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River History, Ayad Akhtar Arts Events and the Political Roundup: This Week’s Cultural Highlights

A Houston broadcast rounds up politics, interviews a river historian, and marks Ayad Akhtar's plays and readings.

By mitch·2 min read
A broad view of the Trinity River winding through Houston, near where the city began.

HoustonMatters has posted its schedule for the week, and the show covers the latest political news, a river history book, and two local arts events tied to Ayad Akhtar.

The Week in Politics Roundup

The show opens with a roundup of the latest political developments. The segment runs at 9 a.m. CT on 88.7FM, with audio available after 11 a.m. CT. Listeners can call or text 713-440-8870, email talk@houstonmatters.org, or tag @HoustonMatters on social media. The roundup sets the stage for the hour, and the show moves through each segment in a fixed order, with the guests booked ahead of time.

Scot McFarlane on the Trinity River

The second segment brings in Scot McFarlane, author of The River That Made Texas: A Forgotten History of the Trinity. He speaks about how the Trinity River shaped the politics, economy, and environment of Texas and Houston.

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The show airs live on YouTube alongside the radio broadcast. Audio from today’s show will be available after 11 a.m. CT.

Ayad Akhtar’s Houston Events

Two local arts groups are marking the work of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and novelist Ayad Akhtar. His play Disgraced won him the Pulitzer Prize for drama, and Houston’s Shunya Theatre is staging a production of it.

Akhtar will also hold a reading on Oct. 5 of his latest novel, The Radiance, with Inprint Houston. The show covers both events in the hour.

What the Show Covers

The show’s segments run in a fixed order, and the guests are booked ahead of time. The hour includes three distinct pieces of content:

  1. The political roundup at 9 a.m. CT
  2. The interview with Scot McFarlane
  3. Reports on Ayad Akhtar’s Houston events
Segment Time Topic
Political roundup 9 a.m. CT Latest developments
Scot McFarlane interview Live Trinity River history
Ayad Akhtar events Live Shunya Theatre and Inprint Houston

The Schedule

The show offers a free podcast on iTunes and Stitcher, so listeners can catch up later if they miss the live broadcast. The Oct. 5 reading is a fixed date on the calendar.

The schedule is set, the guests are booked, and the Oct. 5 reading date is confirmed.

See the a run of 15 images at Houston Public Media.

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