From the creative mind of podcaster and storyteller Jakob Lewis comes an evening that examines the idea of attention as a commodity, and what cost or joy we might get from attending to one another. Through a series of intimate stories and intricate soundscapes, Attend asks us to question how we “pay-out” our attention to the world around us. Do we have any of this resource left for what we say matters to us? What can be said about each of us by examining what we pay attention to? How willing are we to invest in our community with our attention, one of our most valuable and life-changing currencies?

Jakob Lewis draws inspiration from years of interviews with fascinating folks throughout Middle Tennessee for his acclaimed WPLN podcast “Neighbors.” He joins forces with one of Nashville’s most beloved theatre directors, Denice Hicks, to interweave moving stories throughout this powerful evening of imagery, sound, and performance.

Jakob Lewis is an award-winning podcast creator, storyteller, and entrepreneur. Since 2014, he produced and hosted the acclaimed podcast “Neighbors” with Nashville Public Radio / WPLN which explored the personal stories of extraordinary individuals to discover the themes that connect us all. In 2018, he was awarded the first ever OZ Artistic Fellowship, and he has focused his storytelling attention on families by launching a new company called Vox Familia (Latin for the voice of the family). Using non-narrated audio documentary techniques, photography, and the printed word, Vox Familia tells family stories to honor family legacies, discover things they never knew, and share those stories with current and future generations. He lives in Nashville with his wife and two mutts. www.voxfamilia.net

Denice Hicks has been working for The Nashville Shakespeare Festival since 1990, and has held the position of Artistic Director since 2005. She has edited, directed and performed in over 50 Shakespearean productions, developed workshops for students of all ages, and created the Festival’s Apprentice Company Training and Shakespeare Allowed! programming. Educated at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA, she moved to Nashville in 1980 to perform at Opryland. Denice was an original company member of the Tennessee Repertory Theatre, and was among the founders of both the Darkhorse Theater and People’s Branch Theatre. An Ingram Fellowship award winner, her work has been praised by the Tennessean, Nashville Scene, and BroadwayWorld.com, among other publications, from which she has received “Best Actor” and “Best Director” acknowledgments. The Nashville Scene named her one of the “Twenty-five Nashvillians who’ve shaped the city for the better since 1989.”