Performance Anxiety

When HBO cast Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape, the internet promptly fell into a state of operatic despair. But is there more going on than meets the eye (and X… Read more

Everyone is wrong – the Oscars are still relevant. Maren and Alex are back and kicking off season 3 in style! In this episode they explain why the Oscars, as… Read more

Maren and Alex ask why everyone is raving about Emma Stone’s performance as Bella Baxter in Yorgos Lanthimos’s new film Poor Things and why its success is so hard to… Read more

In this episode, Maren and Alex analyse why vibes are gaining such prominence when it comes to understanding culture. Is story is getting lost as a casualty in a culture… Read more

In this episode, Maren and Alex ask why so many historians are upset with Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, explore the different requirements of artistic and historical representations, and ask what the… Read more

A very special episode, live from the Battle of Ideas, discussing the meaning of performance and “cultural cosplay”! In this first ever live episode of Performance Anxiety, Maren and Alex… Read more

Maren and Alex analyse why so many people hated the Marks and Spencer Christmas advert by examining the meaning of each performer, look at why Christmas adverts are such a… Read more

In this episode, which ranges from Stanislavsky to Futurama, Maren and Alex ask: how creative is The Creator? What do actors inherit as part of an acting dynasty? What do… Read more

Maren and Alex ask if Oppenheimer is a biopic or something more complicated?  Why does Christopher Nolan want to tell this story, and how does he do it? Why was… Read more

Is Barbie about a culture war? Is it feminist? Or is it actually about Ken? And what is Kenergy anyway? In this episode Maren and Alex discuss the Barbie movie… Read more

Alex and Maren ask why A24 are so popular with critics, taste makers and Hollywood, and discuss how Beau’s nightmare in Ari Aster’s Beau is Afraid is the nightmare our… Read more

Maren and Alex describe the phenomenon of the MCU, use Immanuel Kant to show why the Guardians of the Galaxy are the most popular gang, and explain why some MCU… Read more