BONUS: Art is Change Ep 160: METRA - A Climate Revolution With Songs

Wed, 21 Jan 2026 10:00:00 -0500

Hey, Metra listeners! We're so pleased to bring you this conversation that Metra co-creators Ned and Emily recently had with Bill Cleveland on the Art is Change podcast. We talk about the 7-year journey to create the show, our approach to tackling climate catastrophe as a subject matter, the power of music, and much more. Bill is a stellar interviewer, and he also weaves the show through with other delightful pieces of art and inspiration. We hope you'll enjoy!

What if a Musical Could Help us Tell the Truth About Climate Change?

In this episode, Bill Cleveland sits down with theater director Emily Hartford and composer–storyteller Ned Hardford to explore Metra: A Climate Revolution with Songs—a nine-episode musical audio drama that reimagines an ancient Greek myth as a near-future climate story.

What starts as a conversation about craft opens into deeper territory: imagination as resistance, music as pedagogy, and why genuinely new stories don’t come from algorithms—they come from people doing long, human work together.

In it, we explore three big questions at the heart of Metra and the moment we’re living in now:

1. How music, story, and the human voice reach places that facts, lectures, and policy arguments can’t
2. What it looks like to tell a climate story without fear-mongering or “disaster porn,”
3. How artists can build work that others can actually use,—turning art-making into cultural infrastructure rather than a one-off production.

Listen in to discover how art, music, and story can help us practice a different future—and why Metra just might be the kind of narrative infrastructure we need right now.

Art is Change website

BONUS: Metra Listener Mailbag 3 - What to Do if You Hear a Voice

Wed, 17 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Tom hears from an old friend and proposes a way forward.

Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something

In particular, we recommend the book, Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility, edited by Rebecca Solnit and Thelma Young Lutunatabua
 
Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical
 
 
Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

A Show We Love: Performing the Revolution

Fri, 12 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Listeners, if you're enjoying Metra's take on storytelling-meets-collective action: have we got a show for you. We're thrilled to recommend a non-fiction podcast this week: one that weaves revolutionary stories from real-world justice movements--

What do a textile worker in Delhi, a student in a Palestinian refugee camp, and a farmworker in 1960s California have in common? In the midst of their struggle for freedom, they all turned to theatre.

Performing the Revolution is a limited-series podcast that knits these powerful stories together to create a global narrative featuring artists who put everything on the line in the struggle for justice. The series starts in New Delhi, India following Jana Natya Manch (Janam), a 50-year-old street theatre company that performs for India’s working class. It then moves to The Freedom Theatre in The West Bank – where kids fight to define who they are and what they dream about amidst a decades-long occupation – and on to El Teatro Campesino’s legacy of agitating during the historic California grape strikes.

Here is Episode 1; find all the episodes wherever you get podcasts.

https://www.radicalevolution.org/performing-the-revolution

Metra E9 - Change the Myth, Change the World

Wed, 10 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

The finale. 
Are we tied to the tracks of this catastrophe? 

Songs:
“Fearful” reprise
“Gotta Be Brave”
“With the Swing of an Axe”
“Work for the Night is Coming”
“Epilogue”

Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Corinna Schulenburg, Fred Inkley, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, Sierra Rein, Jonathan Gregg, Ned Hartford, Galway McCullough, Walker Schneckenberger, Mercena Schulenburg, Ezra Trumbull, Theo Trumbull, Kristen Vaughan, and Luke Wyngarden

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

A Show We Love: All Around Science

Fri, 05 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Very excited to introduce this show to Metra listeners -- All Around Science! 

All Around Science is weekly podcast by two huge science fans discussing what’s new and interesting in science. Science is our window into incredible worlds, from impossibly small atoms to impossibly distant stars. We want to use it to discover as much as possible, and share it with you every week.

This is episode 220, "The Dirt Beneath Your Feet." Hosts Bobby and Maura talk about a new type of blue-green algae that had been discovered off the coast of Italy (lovingly nicknamed “Chonkus”) which gobbles up CO2 on the surface of the water, and then sinks to the bottom, acting as a (literal) carbon sink. Then, the main topic of the episode is: "What is dirt?" What is it made of? Why is it different in different places? Why does it change as you dig deeper? Is “soil” the same as “dirt”?

So much of what's covered is relevant to our fight for a sustainable climate, and it's all super fascinating to deep dive into. We hope you'll enjoy All Around Science!

Find it wherever you get your podcasts: https://pod.link/1530972643

Metra E8 - I Want a New Story

Wed, 03 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

The penultimate episode; the culmination of the Process. Will Tyler make the right choice?

Songs:
“Cori Comes Home” reprise
“Take a Bite”
“Fearful” 

Content note: this episode contains discussion of sexual assault.

Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Corinna Schulenburg, Fred Inkley, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, and Sierra Rein

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

BONUS: Metra Listener Mailbag 2 - How Did We Get Here?

Fri, 28 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Tom Molpe attempts to answer a big question.

...

Books for Earline (and anyone else who may find them useful):

Climate Crisis - Overall
The New Climate War by Michael E. Mann
Falter by Bill McKibben
The Climate Book by Greta Thunberg
The Language of Climate Politics: Fossil Fuel Propaganda and How To Fight It by Genevieve Guenther

Climate Crisis and Extractive Capitalism
Wealth Supremacy: How the Extractive Economy and The Biased Rules of Capitalism Drive Today’s Crises by Marjorie Kelly.
Cannibal Capitalism: How Our System is Devouring Democracy, Care, and the Planet – and What We Can Do About It by Nancy Fraser

Myths About Energy Consumption and Our Relationship to the Environment
More and More and More: An All-Consuming History of Energy by Jean-Baptiste Fressoz
The Shock of the Anthropocene: The Earth, History, and Us by Jean-Baptiste Fressoz and Christophe Bonneuil

The Koch Brothers and their Billionaire Army
Kochland by Christopher Leonard
Dark Money by Jane Meyer
 
…
 
Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something
 
Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical
 
 
Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

Metra E7 - This Isn't About How We Got Here Today

Wed, 26 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0500

The story of Cori.

Songs: 
"Ceres' Curse reprise"
"Cori in the Limo"
"Bechtel Man"
"Cori Rides a Train"
"Cori Starts to Dream"
"Cori Underwater"
"Cori Sheds Her Skin"
"Cori Comes Home"

Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Corinna Schulenburg, Fred Inkley, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, and Sierra Rein

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

BONUS: Metra Listener Mailbag 1 - How Did I Get Here?

Fri, 21 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Dear Listeners:

We believe the time has come to clear the air on a matter of some…complexity. 

Are you the sort of listener who keeps an ear out for patterns? Repetition?

Perhaps you’ve noticed a unique name popping up in numerous places. 

Perhaps you’re one of the Metra listeners who heard Episode 4 and began to have questions. 

You’re not alone. Today we address such a listener question — namely, how the hell is a guy named Tom Molpe joining the climate revolution in 2045, while he edits a podcast in 2025??

Perhaps Tom can clear things up. 

Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

Metra E6 - I am the Only God that Matters

Wed, 19 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Tyler is drawn further into the Process.

Sam shares her story of transformation.

Aglaphonos takes on a chilling new persona.

Songs:
“The Myth of Erysicthon Part 3”
“Ceres’ Curse”
“Famine”

Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Corinna Schulenburg, Fred Inkley, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, and Sierra Rein

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

A Show We Love: Wanderer's Journal

Fri, 14 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Check out this teaser for another audio drama we love -- Wanderer's Journal, by Timothy Rafael and Lumi Oakes.

Wanderer’s Journal is a fantasy fiction podcast about Marigold and Pluto, and their unlikely friendship formed through a magical journal that links them. Each of them finds a journal, learns that their voice is recorded into it, and can be both read and played back to the other. Unbeknownst to them, they become a part of an ancient mystery, and see the world from new angles. 

Wanderer's Journal is now in its second season; find all episodes wherever you get podcasts--

https://pod.link/1737708682

Metra E5 - The Very Big Day

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0500

The day arrives.

Cori, Sam, Aglaphonos, and Tom are about to intercept their subject and throw him into the Process. Will it win him over? Can the Bubble people change?

Songs: 
“Welcome Mythmakers”
“The Myth of Erysicthon Part 1”
“Metra’s Mother”
“The Myth of Erysicthon Part 2”

Check out our website for ways to join the climate movement: metrathemusical.com/do-something

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Corinna Schulenburg, Fred Inkley, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, Sierra Rein, Ned Hartford, Corey Allen, and Stephanie Willing

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

Metra E4 - Sixty Days

Wed, 05 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0500

To launch their mission against the Bubbles, the team needs someone on the inside. Someone with access to the Bubble security systems. Luckily their new friend, Diane, has gear that their mark is desperate to get his hands on.

Things are about to get very real. Is our team ready?

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Corinna Schulenburg, Fred Inkley, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, Sierra Rein, Galway McCullough, Ned Hartford, Kristen Vaughan, and Luke Wyngarden

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

A Show We Love: The Dragoning

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0400

We're pleased to share another audio drama we love, which features the creators of METRA!

In this audio dramedy, the world is shaken by the transformations of women into dragons who consume and immolate men. This is Season 1, Episode 1: Ray.

Find the show: https://pod.link/1511981177

Season 1: A tourist from afar tries to understand what, when any woman could literally eat you for lunch, is a guy supposed to do? Who can you trust? 

Season 2: The tourist creates an international incident by bringing home a dragon. 

Season 3: New episodes release on Mondays. 

This Episode features Ray.

Ray was played by Ned Hartford (Massey)

Ray's sound design was by Ned Hartford (Massey)

The Dragoning is written and hosted by Emily Rainbow Davis and produced by Messenger Theatre Company.

The Dragoning Theme is by Scott Ethier

Sound Design by Matt Powell.

Thanks to Shannon Harvey for the artwork.

Metra E3 - Your Sap Is Bitter

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0400

The revolutionaries learn that their Process has triggered some devastating fallout.

Sam proposes a new direction, and Aggie bristles at a judgmental counterpart. Cori attempts a dangerous quest for some of the mission’s missing pieces.

The team gain new allies.

Songs:
“A Nymphian Interlude”

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Corinna Schulenburg, Fred Inkley, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, Sierra Rein, Stephanie Bacastow, Stephanie Willing, Kristen Vaughan, Walker Schneckenberger, and Luke Wyngarden

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Content Note: Implied violence and discussion of violent event.

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  @metrathemusical
metrathemusical.com

Support Metra at ko-fi.com/metrathemusical

Metra E2 - So, What's Your Revolution About?

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0400

2041, a ramshackle bar in climate-devastated northeastern America.

Cori recovers from her bifurcated consciousness. Aglaphonos foretells their next recruit, just before Samantha takes refuge in the bar. Cori pitches the revolution--but does she fully understand what she's asking?

Songs:
"Cascade Outro"
"Reporting for Duty"
"Take a Bite"

Content Note: Brief instance of peril as a result of religious extremism and transphobia. Instance of supernatural violence.

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Fred Inkley, Corinna Schulenburg, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, Sierra Rein, and William Peden.

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  ⁨@metrathemusical⁩  
metrathemusical.com

Metra E1 - Let the Story Begin

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0400

Meet the Tree Nymph Chorus. Don't worry, they'll guide you through the story. 

We begin at the end, in 2045--facing down a line of armed security forces at the edge of the Bubbles. And then, we jump back to 2015 and a remote Greek island. An ancient tree nymph recruits the central player in her climate revolution. They begin a dangerous journey.

Songs:
"Welcome From the Nymphs"
"Back to the Past"
"Cori, Come Near"
"Cascade"

Written by Emily and Ned Hartford
Music and Lyrics by Ned Hartford
Dialogue Directed by Emily Hartford
Produced by MythMakers Media

Featuring: Jeannette Bayardelle, Cherrye J. Davis, Fred Inkley, Corinna Schulenburg, Alia Munsch, Cristina Obando Sanchez, Sierra Rein, Luke Wyngarden, William Peden, Matthew Trumbull, Corey Allen, and Stephanie Willing.

Sound Editing and Design; Instrumentation Arranged and Performed; Vocals Arranged; and all Audio Produced, Engineered, and Mixed by Ned Hartford

Follow the show:
https://pod.link/1843713183
IG and Bluesky:  ⁨@metrathemusical⁩  
metrathemusical.com

Trailer - Metra: A Climate Revolution with Songs

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 07:00:00 -0400

Metra is an original musical fiction podcast about how we change the world.

The year is 2043. The world is hot, water is scarce, the weather is unpredictable…and the fossil fuel industry continues to thrive. The wealthy are comfortable in their air-purified, cooled, humidified, superbly hydrated Bubble cities. But in a roadside bar on the Outside, an unlikely group of revolutionaries is about to demand a new story.

Starring Tony-nominee Jeannette Bayardelle and a Broadway and NYC theatre cast. Metra weaves ancient myth, transformative magic, and memorable music to tell the story of a dangerous climate future, and the fight for the world we deserve.

Metra: A Climate Revolution with Songs, by The Hartfords — wherever you get your podcasts, October 22nd.