Hey Divas! It's been a minute but we're back baby! Max Jenkins (Dead to Me, High Maintenance, Special, literally what show HASN'T he been on?) joined me for a chat about Idina Menzel, as he's currently treading the boards in MCC's Which Way to the Stage? But that quickly got swept aside to chat about the one, the only, the controversial: Lea Michele! From her Broadway roots in Ragtime to her star turn in Spring Awakening to the super nova of Glee there. are. stories.  We cover it all. Max is a mensch and I'm so grateful to have him on the pod!

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Theme Music by Tom McGovern
Cover Art by José C. Hernandez-Ruíz

Reminder Black Lives Matter, Stop Asian Hate, Trans Lives Matter, Ableism is Bulls***, drink water and stay safe!

Divas! Welcome to the pod, the inimitable, the hilarious, and the oh so sweet: Daniel Rafinejad! And this week we're talking about the Child-like Empress herself: Bernadette Peters! We discuss her many iconic stage career, starting from when she was three years old, Then her hey day in 1970's cinema, all the way up to her current work in tv and animal activism. Also, fun fact: Danny lives across the street from Miss Peters! Also, did you know she and Steve Martin dated?!? Come worship with us!

We are Proud Mary's over here on the pod because this week we're worshipping the incredible, the undeniable... simply the best: Tina Turner! Allen and actress/playwright/Allen's work wife Ash Hicks (@ashjeanhicks) exalt our Buddhist Queen. She's 80 years old and still got it. Ash is following in her footsteps. They're both Buddhists, Sagittariuses, and went to the same high school. What!? Though we try to avoid it, to dive into the greatness that is Tina, we have to acknowledge the scumbag, trash, POS: Ike Turner. Did you know he was going to continually switch Tina's out from his band? That's why he trademarked the name. Ugh, disgusting. But it's okay because Tina always comes out on top. She has the grace of a saint. Ash started worshiping her from a young age while watching What's Love Got to Do with It? Don't worry, her mom made her turn her head at the worst moments. We love that Tina's heels got higher and her dresses got shorter. Work, kween! Also, she's a James Bond Chanteuse! But that's only one of her biggest diva moments. Some of her biggest, over her five decade long career: keeping her name, moving to Switzerland, surviving a stroke, and getting one of her husband's kidneys! Lastly, we are unofficially endorsing Tina: The Tina Turner Musical! Come Worship with us!

IG/Twitter/Venmo: @allenstarby
@DivaWorship
@AshJeanHicks

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Vote for Biden, he's not a diva, but he's better than the alternative.

Hi Divas! Welp, this week we had to jump on the black and white fairytale train because: Taylor Swift dropped folklore! My guest this week, Hunter Kaufer (@huntykay__ / @_ari_d_) breaks down all things Taylor. Did you know she wrote folklore in quarantine? All I did was start a great podcast. Pretty much the same thing! Hunter reveals the Swifties are mourning the end of Lover but devouring their new cottagecore, forest witch, walking through the woods, nymph-like Taylor. We dive into her illustrious and drama filled career. She's won Woman of the Decade, twice. Reputation is her most flawless album, according to Hunter (1989 according to moi). Reputation started with a solar eclipse, culminated in a year of seclusion, all to reemerge on UPS trucks. "There will be no explanation, there will just be Reputation." I mean, couldn't you just? She's a lyricist after all. Then, we obviously dive into the Kanye story-line. Dicey territory, but after hearing Taylor's version of things, how could we not take her side? This is a podcast to defend divas, after all. Did you know Taylor's worth a measly $360 million? Meh, pocket change. I then dive into her ridiculous Vogue 73 Questions. It all leads up to the pièce de résistance: Cats. Which I reveal I cried twice during. I also can't diagram a sentence. I need help! Finally Hunter and I dive into the discourse of snot acting. The question: does Taylor have the range? Listen to find out! Come worship with us!

It's Supercalifragilisticextra-DIVA-docious! This week Allen sits down with actress, host, and VO artist Reba Buhr (@reba.buhr) to discuss the eternal guardian of happy endings (and not the sexual kind): Dame Julie Andrews! For many of us (aka theater kids), we grew up with Mary Poppins and Sound of Music in our households, and that's where Reba got the Julie bug. She even surfed Ebay when it first started for all the Julie paraphernalia she could get her hands on. We're talking full cork board, red string, overstuffed folders with pictures falling out type behavior. We gush over Julie's voice. It's pure perfection. And her energy. She's a mother AND a model?! I mean, come on! Her biggest diva moment: winning the Oscar for Mary Poppins the year Audrey Hepburn replaced her in My Fair Lady. Julie then went on to withdraw her name from Tony nominations for Victor Victoria because her cast was overlooked. What a gem! Sadly though that was the show she lost her voice on. But there are so many recordings, and she's such a star, Reba legitimately DOES NOT NEED TO DEFEND HER. We dive deep into Star! and The Americanization of Emily. James Garner's performance in the latter gave Reba... feelings. Finally we get to Julie's next act which is, drum roll... a new Shonda Rhimes Show called Bridgerton! We can't wait. Come worship with us!

Hit Me, Diva, One More Time! Here we go, queens, this week, Allen sits down with singer/songwriter/witch Seph Hamilton (@CutieGarland, they/them) to talk about our Child Like Empress: Britney Jean Spears! Seph remembers listening to her with their neighbor before school. Did you know Miss Britney Jean did three albums in three years?! We stan watching her break a sweat to a mid-tempo jam like "Sometimes." Then we briefly compare her to another diva, Sutton Foster (don't @ us!!!) Seph breaks down the iconic "Toxic" music video. She didn't break the mold, she created it. Also, that Diane Sawyer interview was bullying, and Diane knows it! Seph and Allen have both tragically missed seeing Britney live. But luckily she's not going anywhere. We can dive deep into the mythology of her instagram. I mean, come on. To love her is to defend her. Allen dissects the devastatingly beautiful crying-on-the-bathroom-floor scene of Crossroads (written by Shonda Rhimes, and don't you forget it). And Seph discusses their theory on the Pink Power Ranger. Finally, #FreeBritney, the woman cannot vote, and that's the tip of the iceberg. Worship with us!

Deep Breath. Okay, divas. Today Allen sits down with Broadway's Taylor Iman Jones (Head Over Heels, Hamilton, and Devil Wears Prada) to discuss their queen, their goddess, their reason: Audra McDonald *cue Hallelujah Chorus*. We open talking about unlearning our own success metrics and how Audra has taught us there's multiple ways to learn the craft of performing. She's opened the door for so black women. Six Tony's. SIX. More than anyone else in any acting category. The audacity to be that talented! And then she was naked onstage just last season! Taylor recounts when Audra saw her perform in Scotland, PA at Roundabout. Can you imagine? Couldn't you just! Then we dive into her infamous battement at the Tony Awards when she was, say it with me: pregnant! She is unstoppable. Taylor's dream for Audra: to protect her legacy. It's not going anywhere but we will defend her at all costs. Then we sidebar for a sec to hear about when Cynthia Erivo literally wiped Taylor's tears away. Divas on divas on DIVAS in this episode!

IG/Twitter/Youtube: @TaylorImanJones
IG/Twitter: @allenstarby

This week Allen sits down with playwright, Michael Allen Harris, to worship our Taurean queen: Janet Jackson. We start off learning about Michael's kitten, Moesha, whom he saved from a hole in a wall. Allen describes being blinded by a tree dancing down the street while listening to "Feedback." Janet's music is just THAT inspiring. And Michael's remembers getting his Janet Jackson card after watching the "If" video. Allen learns Janet has over forty #1's and was the highest paid artist twice in her career! And Janet's like, "Meh. Casual. Whatever." Michael remembers Janet referencing the Matrix before the Matrix was even a thing in the "What's It Gonna Be Video." We talk about her iconic key earring. And Michael dishes on his Antigone-esque biography of Janet's life (the divas cannot wait for this to happen). Also, Janet is the reason Youtube exists! Finally Michael says "Thank you, Miss Jackson" because he's nasty. Worship with us!

This week Allen welcomes singer/songwriter Segun Oluwadele to get into the multiplicity of the one, the only, Tracy Chapman! We start off by talking about lying to our therapists. Segun recounts being compared to Tracy from a young age (okay, brag much?). We clutch our pearls for our respective divas. Segun then dives deep into one of Tracy's many incredible ballads, "I Used to be a Sailor." Also, Tracy sang with Pavarotti?!?! Then we discuss the politics of coming out. And Segun defends Tracy's genius to his very last breath and explains how we need to place emotional equity into our divas. Finally, we're dreaming of a Tracy Chapman documentary, complete with sit down interview by none other than Segun himself. Come drive this Fast Car with us! *wink*

@segunoluwadele
@allenstarby

This week Allen welcomes in actress, cinephile, and dog mother: Brooke McHugh! Together we discuss the iconic career of *drumroll please* Barbra Streisand. From Italian movie posters for A STAR IS BORN, to her ironic narrative of not being pretty. We swoon remembering Mandy Patinkin in Yentl. And we adore her many husbands and very public love affairs. Then we take a slight diversion to talk about the Royal family, but trust us, it all will get back to Babs! Pay homage with us!

IG: @Mchugh.brooke
IG/Twitter: @allenstarby

Allen dishes with their friend Zach on all things Cher! From her comeback, comeback, comeback tours to the Mamma Mia-verse, we stan a true decades-long career queen. We deep dive into The Cher Show on Broadway, which Zach saw twelve times. Twelve! And no stone is left unturned when we dissect Cher's iconic emoji-filled twitter account. Come worship with us!

IG: @ZachKaufer Twitter: @ohhhzach
IG/Twitter: @allenstarby

Hi Divas!
 In this episode I'll introduce myself to new listeners, and explain the origins of Diva Worship! Follow me @allenstarby.

Hi Divas! This week we have the amazingly talented Eleri Ward on the pod! Be sure to give her amazing album A Perfect Little Death a listen, you MT queers won't regret it. This week we're talking about the queen of Broadway and the silver screen, two time Tony Award winner and star the cinematic event of the year 2000, Center Stage, the one, the only: Donna Murphy! We gush over her amazing performance as Fosca in Passion all the way to her turn in the Bourne Legacy. Of course we go into the Red Dress Sondheim Concert of it all. She has this amazing grace, beauty, and strength in everything she does. Dare we say, goddess like poise, a la the Greek deity, Athena????? Also, Eleri is the first guest who has a tried and true "follow for follow" with their diva! Donna, if you're listening, we'd love to have you on! Come worship with us!

Welcome to Diva Worship! A weekly podcast where host, Allen Darby, and a guest dive deep into their favorite divas! Part comedy, part gossip sesh, and all pure adoration. We may not be religious but we do worship divas! 

Hi Bootylicious Divas! This week we welcome the one, the only, the star of the Pitch Perfect franchise, Shelley Regner! And we're discussing the Queen Bey herself: Beyonce! Shelley and I met doing a musical yeeeeeears ago, and decided we were stuck with each other. And now here we are, talking about THE diva of divas. Truly, where to begin? She is a goddess. She's a queen. She's a mononym. Constantly reinventing herself as any diva should, we get into what it would be like to meet her multiple times in this ep. And question, is there anything to fault her on? I have something, but don't fact check me, listeners! We dissect her Super Bowl performances, Coachella, the genre defying and defining Lemonade.  And only after we stopped recording did I realize we didn't even get into Ivy Park! Come worship with us!
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Also, our new music was composed by the wicked-ly talented Tom McGovern (@tommcgovern27)
Our cover art by the same terrific Jose C. Hernandez-Ruíz (@j.c.art)
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Black Lives Matter, Stop Asian Hate, Pride is a year round revolution, and Ableism is bull$hit.
Wash your hands and stay safe!

Welcome to Season Two, Divas!
We're bringing it to you every runway this season with a flamboyance of new divas, starting with the one, the only: Dolly Parton! And who better to discuss Our Patron Saint of 2020, than Diva Worship's number one fan: Martino Garavaglia (@martinomars). We bounce around a lot on this episode, both of us showing off our excitement and ADHD. We discuss Marty's shrine to Dolly all the way to his bicep tattoo of her. She just makes the world make sense! Marty then dives into some tricky territory with the Mother of Moderna and one of her restaurants, but rest assured, she's a Saint for a reason. You know her, you love her, get into this amazing episode. Come worship with us!
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Also, our new music was composed by the wicked-ly talented Tom McGovern (@tommcgovern27)
Our cover art by the same terrific Jose C. Hernandez-Ruíz (@j.c.art)
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Black Lives Matter, Stop Asian Hate, Pride is a year round revolution, and Ableism is bull$hit.
Wash your hands and stay safe!

It's the holiday season, Divas! And what better way to celebrate than with the Empress of December herself, Mariah Carey! Our certified expert on all things Lambily is the one the only Kat Vetrano. This is a doozy of an episode and I hope you enjoy!

Hi Divas! Get ready for a hilarious episode as Daniel Illig (@sf.bby) and I dive into the one, the only, Elaine Stritch. Daniel is a diva expert himself and we reminisce about running into each other waiting for Audra McDonald's autograph. And don't worry, there is a ton of diva cross talk and comparisons in this ep. According to Daniel, Elaine is 80% chainsaw, 40% whiskey, 50% white linen t-shirts, and 100% her. She kind of has "scary grandma energy" and we love it. Daniel allays his quarantine blues by listening to her album, ELAINE STRITCH AT LIBERTY. And her stories on that album? Come on! She spans mythology with her memories of Brando, Ethel Merman, and Sondheim. Though her vocal chops are not the nicest to listen to she has an immense gift for story telling, as heard in her multiple iconic recordings: "Ladies Who Lunch" and the aforementioned "At Liberty" to name a couple. We round the bend discussing questionable artistic choices. And finish up by dishing on her GOLDEN GIRLS audition flub and her onstage orgasm in WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF. You read that right, folks: ELAINE STRITCH HAD AN ORGASM ONSTAGE. Come worship with us!
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Be sure to follow me!
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Instagram/Twitter/Venmo: @allenstarby
Instagram: @divaworship

Hi Divas! This week, Allen chats with author and screenwriter Isaac Oliver (@mrisaacoliver) to discuss possibly the greatest singer of our time: Whitney Houston. We open the interview with Allen gushing about Isaac's time writing for HBO's High Maintenance and Netflix's GLOW. Then Isaac reminisces about making carpet angels in his childhood bedroom while listening to "I Will Alway Love You" on repeat. It's the perfect pop ballad. We then get right into the meat of it all by discussing Robyn Crawford erasure and Whitney's probably fluid sexuality. Isaac then shares Whitney's most divatastic performances: "Why Does It Hurt So Bad?" at the MTV Movie awards, "IWALY" at Divas Live, and her mash up of "I Loves You Porgy/ And I am Telling You/ I Have Nothing." Not to mention her iconic Star Spangled Banner. We also discuss the dichotomy of The Bodyguard: terrible movie, but incredible soundtrack... well, Side A, at least. We will never have another like her. The conversation then dives into her relationship with Bobby Brown, and her complicated monetary relationships with her family. She had everyone on payroll! Isaac believes she was a divine being who should have been protected, and let's face it, we all agree. Finally we close out the interview with Isaac professing his care and thanking Whitney for all she did. He'd also love to give her some Brené Brown books. Come worship with us!

Welcome to LEGEND WORSHIP this week! Get ready for an exciting Queer history lesson with reigning Miss Hell's Kitchen, and NYC's premiere Judy impersonator: Gloria Swansong (@gloria_swansong)! She teaches us about Lypsinka, Jim Bailey, and the legend that is Judy Garland. Gloria's pick for peak Judy is Meet Me in St. Louis, and not Wizard of Oz, surprising us all! Where do you start with someone so mythological as her? Gloria recommends the "Battle Hymn of the Republic" from the Judy Garland show. You will be changed. We then dive into some questionable artistic choices regarding race and the institutionalized racism that led Judy to those choices. If people want to cancel her, Gloria asks, "how can you cancel someone who's dead?" Lol. Gloria then expounds on the connection, or lack thereof, between Judy's death and the Stonewall Riots. But if she was still alive, Gloria, and all of us, would love to see her on Broadway. One of her many unfulfilled dreams. Can you imagine her as Harold Hill? We love to see it! Or a Judy-Lizzo Collab. Can you imagine? We can. Come worship with us!

IG/Facebook: @gloria_swansong
IG/Twitter/Venmo: @allenstarby
IG: @divaworship

Black Lives Matter.
Black Trans Lives Matter.
Ableism is Bullshit.

Drink Water.
Wear a mask.
Vote for Biden/Harris 2020!

Alright divas, this week Allen interviews current Las Vegas teacher and former costume designer to the stars, Joe Kennedy (@josephak13) and we talk about the Queen of Pop herself: Madonna! Get ready, because Joe is an expert, and has been since his mom played "Papa Don't Preach" on repeat while she was pregnant with him. A diva of divas, she has 300 million records sold, $1.2 billion in concert sales, and she's even banned from Hamilton. Can you even?? Joe reminds us to watch Madonna: Truth of Dare, the behind the scenes documentary of the Blond Ambition Tour. She took risks putting queer culture front and center. She was the first person banned from MTV because of it. And excommunicated from the Catholic Church! JP2 was not having it. Madonna is a beautiful contradiction in her music videos of being saintly and slutty. We love to see it. And never forget she went to U Mich on a dance scholarship. Step ball changed her way to the top! Joe then dives deep into her international influences and asks her to be a bit more thoughtful in her artistic choices. Is it appropriation or is it appreciation? Finally, Joe defends Madge's acting - she's got a limited range but isn't dead behind the eyes, okay, Lupone!? Lastly, Joe thanks Madonna for all she's done for the community. Come worship with us!

IG/Twitter/Venmo: @allenstarby
IG: @divaworship

Black Lives Matter
Trans Lives Matter
Ableism is Bullshit.
We are on stolen land.

Vote for Biden/ Kamala!