Powered by Play

Avery and Drew sign off from Powered by Play, talking about what they're currently playing, recent shows they've seen, and what they hope for listeners to take away from this podcast. Reach us at [email protected]

What does the future look like? How do we use science fiction and technology to imagine and play with what could happen days, weeks, years from now? Alongside special guest Brooke Chappell, Drew and Avery explore the bright and hopeful–-or dangerous and despairing—future. From time capsules buried in backyards to Star Trek and the Jetsons, join us as we venture into the world that exists beyond our time!

This month, Avery and Drew get active! From Jazzercise to kung fu, fitness can be a source of play in our daily lives. Sports such as track and field, e-sports, and even minigolf can organize us into beating personal records, cheering each other on, or simply socializing. Join us as we dive headfirst into the empowering and energizing world of fitness and sports!

What are the ways we playfully venture into the great (for us) unknown? How do we navigate when far from home, and how do we bring far from home to us? This month Avery and Drew are joined by Rose Angulo to explore playing traveler and tourist, making our way to unfamiliar spaces and learning more about others and ourselves! Whether at a tea ceremony in Kyoto, or in tunnels below the city of Rome, we’ll hit the see the sights and make some memories! You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

This month, Avery and Drew get dressed up! From theatrical costumes to personal style, from school uniforms to superhero transformations, and even dabbling in the spooky and naughty, playing dress up can be a big part of our playful lives. It allows us to alter our appearances for aesthetic purposes, or it might be required to play a certain role. Join us as we explore how what we wear sends messages about power, emotion, culture, group belonging, legacy, or pure personal expression! You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

What makes a house a home? Could it be a sense of play? This month, Avery and Drew go deep into the foundations of how we learn what it means to have a space to call our own. Designing homes, thrilling at haunted houses, or imagining rooms on stage—there are many ways we play to understand where we live. Come join us as we eat, sleep, and make pillow forts in our episode at home!

What makes you laugh? How are jokes playful, and how might they have serious consequences? This month, Avery and Drew play at being jokers, examining how humor playfully comments on the world around us. Tricksters, jesters, even social change facilitators- who writes the jokes and who does the laughing? You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Does crime play? This month, Avery and Drew are joined by Orange County Public Defender Rose Angulo to explore the playful (and serious) aspects of law and order in society. From Paw Patrol to Model UN to the sentencing of Mr. Toad, we’ll explore how crime, justice, and laws are part of our lives from pre-school through adulthood. All rise for this special longer episode! You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Got a secret admirer? How about someone who gives you butterflies? This month, Avery and Drew get swept away by the languages of the heart. We’ll be delving into playground chants, adult party games, valentines, and BDSM dungeons. What does it mean to desire, in the many ways we use the term? Why do we crave romance, and why does it mean wine and roses to some and black lace and dates in a cemetery to others? How do we play through these powerful emotions, and what kind of happily (or mostly content) ever after are we headed toward? You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Heroes and villains: they are the cornerstone of epic storytelling. From Indiana Jones to Sailor Moon, and Spider-man to Ali Baba, there's countless ways to play the role of a hero. And as demonstrated by Elphaba in Wicked, Syndrome in The Incredibles, or Zuko in Avatar the Last Airbender, our villains are usually more than meets the eye. But what happens when the lines between hero and villain blur, transform, and mix together in unpredictable ways? Join Avery and Drew as they play around with the forces of good and evil that underlie everything around us. You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Listeners, start your engines! This month Drew and Avery feel the need… the need for speed! Join us as we examine what it means to drive, pilot, and ride along, whether it’s by wings, wheels, sails, rails, or on four legs. We’ll watch train sets circle a table, construct and play some Mario Kart vehicles, sail the Spanish Main, and join Harley riders and horse girls. It’s a journey down memory lane and a new route down the highway! You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

How do we rehearse our unconscious desires to wreak havoc or release negative emotions? How is fighting, professional or not, full of ritual play or aggression? What are the ways that we play around with causing chaos or exchanging pain, and why do we involve ourselves in activities that “hurt so good?” This month, Avery and Drew investigate the cycle of creation and destruction and how we let out aggression in the best or worst ways.

Ever dream of being a mad scientist, mixing chemicals with a maniacal laugh? Or an emergency medic traveling the world saving patients from a pandemic? This month high school biology teacher Kristen Cruz joins Avery and Drew to explore the ways science “plays out” in society. Join us as we look at classrooms, video games, and more to find the ways science exists all around us and calls us to playfully engage with natural laws! Note: this episode includes discussions of dissection as teaching strategy, including the ways specimens for dissection are obtained. You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Food and drink are with us, and before us, every day. They’re part of the web of intercontinental trade, the ritual of cooking and eating, the morning rush of the mom-and-pop donut shop or closing time at a Michelin star restaurant. They’re in our global economics, our rituals from festivals to funerals, and our books, movies, and games! This month, Avery and Drew ask: are we really what we eat? How do we “play with our food,” even though our parents told us not to? From table side guacamole, to eating while dungeon delving, to sacred rituals involving eating and drinking, we’re here to talk about what food and drink represent, and why playing with them inherently connects us with who we are inside!

What would life be without a healthy dose of magic? From dragon riding to quests and prophecies, we wander in fantasy worlds to help make sense of modern life. This month, Avery and Drew explore the roads that “go ever on,” as Tolkien wrote, making sense of fantasy tropes and the power they hold, both in-world and outside. What is compelling about befriending a mystical creature? About learning the art of swordplay? About mastering spells and connecting with power from before the dawn of humanity? Join us and get caught up in the magic of fantasy! You can support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Is money really the root of all evil? Can it buy everything? This month, Avery and Drew set out to examine how we sometimes play above our means! Whether cosplaying as millionaire playboys, striking it rich in Monopoly or Acquire, earning along stone by stone and crop by crop in Stardew Valley, or imagining a bougie life in the roaring 20s or the Regency period: How does playing wealth prepare us for a lifetime of climbing the ladder to financial success? You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

History is full of monsters: from Ancient Greece, China, and Scandinavia to Europe’s Gothic Horror and even Sesame Street. But what are these monsters, and how do we play with and through them? What are the Kaiju, gelatinous cubes, and Muppets we invite onto our screens and gaming tables? And what are the monsters inside ourselves? This month, Avery and Drew face their fears and name the monsters that make us all who we are! You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Can you imagine yourself as a rock star playing air guitar? Or as the next Monet as you paint and sip? What’s the line between playing Artist and being an Artist? This month Drew and Avery put on their berets and their salsa dancing shoes, and play imaginary trombones as they explore the ways we playfully engage with art, performance, and design. Come join us as we think through how that play might bring us closer to the sublime… or at least to some scattered applause in a karaoke booth! You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Collections! All over the world, people of all ages collect all sorts of things by seeking, displaying, and maintaining items they personally find interesting, beautiful, or meaningful. Whether it involves coins or tarot decks or board games, collecting is a form of play. This month, Avery and Drew are here to investigate why it matters. You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Noises in the night. Jump scares. The sound of a theremin! Facing our fears through play is a long-standing strategy and can even be funny or joyful! Join Avery and Drew as they welcome communications scholar Dr. Christian Seiter to discuss being scared and being mortal! From video and board games to escape rooms and ghost tours, we will open some eerie curtains and discover how we acknowledge and manage our greatest fears through play. You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

How do we know where we come from? What does our ancestry add to who we are? This month, Drew and Avery explore what it means to explore heritage through play. We'll investigate how we play to remember or even to learn new things about our family's pasts and where (and how) we belong. From museums to Lunar New Year and the Titanic, we'll discover how much of our past and others’ is encountered, preserved, and even transformed through play. You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

Ever feel like breaking the rules? Putting on a costume and pretending to be naughty? Join Avery and Drew as they discover when and where playful misbehavior is accepted, maybe even expected. From Mardi Gras to drag shows, when do players get to color outside the lines? When are small acts of rebellion enough, and when do they lead to larger movements? Demand candy, throw tea in the water, and draw a lipstick V on your friend’s head as we make like Firefly and aim to misbehave! You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

We all need a little bit of care sometimes! This month, Avery and Drew explore the ways we play to feel better, healthier, and calmer. We visit cat cafes and listen to soothing ASMR videos. We explore cozy games and appreciate cleaning and refreshing footage. Come and take a relaxing and playful break with us! You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

State fairs, monster trucks, and fantasy football! What does it mean to play as Americans? Who are we as a nation and how does it define the ways we play? How does our play reflect both a coherent national identity and regional or community identities? What is our history with play and how does it relate to the American Dream–or the American reality? You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi! ko-fi.com/poweredbyplay

In the first episode, Drew and Avery discuss the definition of play and what makes something "playful." What divides play and the rest of life? What games did we grow up playing, and which ones do we play now? You can now support our podcast on Ko-Fi!

This podcast explores the ways that play teaches us about ourselves as individuals and members of society. We look at forms of play through games, sports, celebrations, performances, toys, and everyday “fun!” As researchers and fans, we go out and play, meet our fellow players, and then discuss what we learned. Along the way, we seek to understand: Why do we play? How does it change us? When does playing connect or divide us? And what can it show us about building better lives for ourselves and each other? Episode transcript