Listen: Adassa and Richard Kind Kick Off New Season of Brad Forenza's AROUND THE SUN

Around the Sun, the episodic audio drama featuring award-winning talent from stage and screen, launches its second season on Wednesday, October 26.. New episodes drop weekly throughout fall.

Created by Brad Forenza, Around the Sun is presented via the Broadway Podcast Network. The scripted series is comprised of engaging, self-contained episodes, averaging 10 minutes each. When consumed together, they weave a story of human connections, made and missed.

"Season 2 takes place in the desert, a nice counterpoint to season 1's urban flare," explained series creator Brad Forenza. "This year, cast members are integrated throughout the season, so audiences can hear more of the voices they love. Most of the actors are mixed-and-matched among characters, genres, and acting partners, so season 2 really embodies an ensemble approach to the work."

Opening the season, by way of welcoming listeners to the desert through a real estate transaction, is prolific recording artist, Adassa (who also voices Cousin Dolores in Disney's Oscar- and Golden Globe-nominated smash, Encanto). "Working with Brad Forenza was such a fun experience. His vision and unique point of view on this project was igniting on so many levels," mused the 2022 American Music Award nominee. "In Around the Sun, I was able to engage in a real life situation with all the enthusiasm and drama that plagues so many of us on a daily basis," Adassa concluded.

Voicing the prospective buyer, a desert transplant from NYC, is Tony-nominated actor Richard Kind. "I had such a fun time recording this. The writing is so good, and the characters so clearly drawn," said Kind, whose other voice work includes memorable roles in Pixar's Cars, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 3, and Inside Out. "I recorded two scenes that bookend the entire series. But I'm so looking forward to hearing what comes in between. Especially with this fantastic cast," noted Kind.

What "comes in between" is an eclectic mix of talent, bringing a seemingly defunct part of the desert to rich, dramatic life, episode by episode. The ensemble of "desert people" includes: SAG Award Winner Caroline Aaron (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Edward Scissorhands), Emmy Nominee Mindy Cohn (The Facts of Life, Scooby Doo), TV Icon Richard Kline (Three's Company, Blue Bloods), celebrated voice actor Jennie Kwan (California Dreams, Avatar: The Last Air Bender), Filmmaker/singer-songwriter Taylor Purdee (Killian and the Comeback Kids), and Two-time Emmy Winner Bruce Vilanch (Get Bruce, Hollywood Squares). Listen throughout the season, as a new crop of characters struggle to confront The American Dream, unrequited love, identity, regret, and even a few alien invasions (aliens, as portrayed by Three-time Oscar Nominee Piper Laurie [The Hustler, Carrie, Children of a Lesser God] and series creator, Brad Forenza, that is).

Around the Sun is a Best Version of Yourself production, created by Brad Forenza, co-produced by Suzanne Ordas Curry, and presented via the Broadway Podcast Network. It features theme music and sound design by Shane Curry, and incidental music by Shane Bordeau. The first three episodes are available below, with new episodes dropping every week, throughout the fall.

Episode 2.1: Red Earth Realty (Adassa and Richard Kind)

Episode 2.2: Fallout Girls (Caroline Aaron and Jennie Kwan)

Episode 2.3: Area 51 (Taylor Purdee and Bruce Vilanch)