HEARTHBOUND, A Folk Musical Reimagining of THE ODYSSEY, is Out Now

Set across a post-apocalyptic Great Basin, Hearthbound is a full-cast limited-series audio drama and folk musical reimagining of the Odyssey. A road trip, a queer love story, and a ballad for ecological restoration, the show features familiar characters like Odysseus, Calypso, Circe, and Helen in new guises and includes an original indie folk soundtrack.

The series was created by Jo Chiang (Amy Surratt's FIRST AND LAST (show), La Mama ETC). Episodes were directed by Jack Calk (A City Doesn't Talk, The Motor Company), sound designed and edited by Levi Sharpe (The Big Flop, Wondery), with music direction and production by Americana/folk duo Ginger Dolden and Pete Lanctot (Eugene Onegin, Little Island),

Calk says, "I think Hearthbound is a beautiful, timely story, epic and intimate with many keen insights into love, community, solitude, and starting again. It's also got killer music, and the artists are great people too. You coming our way?"

"I wanted to reflect the creativity, life, and resilience that have kept us together during so many years of staying apart through this story's music. After such intense isolation, this project is a sonic catharsis of our collective growth, hope, and ability to carry on," shares Dolden.

Starring Chiang in the role of Odessa, the ensemble cast includes, among others, Manami Maxted (300 el x 50 el x 30 el, BAM), Othello Pratt Jr. (Twelfth Night, Classical Theatre of Harlem), Liba Vaynberrg (The Gett, Rattlestick Theater), Pete Winfrey (The Gilded Age, HBO), Blair Baldwin (Rough Trade, Joe's Pub), and Keren Abreu (Keren Abreu, Live, Joe's Pub).

New episodes release biweekly on Tuesdays at 12am EST, with the finale scheduled for October 7th, 2025. Listen to Hearthbound now on all podcast platforms, or learn more at hearthboundpod.com.