Bio
Xander Adams is an award winning radio producer, sound designer, and public health reporter based in Louisiana. They are currently freelancing for TransLash Media.
They grew up on the Mississippi westbank—half a mile from the river. Their reporting focuses on privacy, HIV, Hep C, prison healthcare and conditions, and policing.
Xander created the sound-art podcast Smash/Cut and has worked with The Verge, Scalawag Magazine, 70 Million, MIT’s Undark, Night Vale Presents, Netflix, CBC, BBC, WHYY, and WWNO.
Résumé available here - pre-2022 bylines read “Alexander Charles Adams”
Current Work
The TransLash Podcast for TransLash Media // Editor (Spring 2021 - Present)
Started on Trans Athletes Speak Out, Editor on all episodes following.
Recent Work
Founder Stories for Lola Media // Producer & Sound Designer (Spring 2022 - Summer 2022)
Decoder with Nilay Patel for Vox Media’s The Verge // Associate Producer (Spring 2021 - Winter 2021)
The Anti-Trans Hate Machine - Season 1 for TransLash Media // Sound Designer & Engineer (Summer 2021 - Fall 2021)
Radio
original radio feature Production
“bear” - self-published // Creator & Producer (Spring 2021)
Where Hep C Remains Untreated for Those in Custody for 70Million // Reporter/Producer (Spring 2020 - Fall 2020)
Has Louisiana Cracked The Code to Treating Hepatitis C? for WWNO & WRKF’s Commute Hour // Feature Producer (Fall 2019)
The Struggle to Change an HIV Narrative for Undark Magazine from MIT // Producer/Reporter (Fall 2019)
The Gut Show for WHYY’s The Pulse // Segment Producer/Reporter (Summer 2019)
New Orleans: The Big Hard for Netflix’s Tales of Your City // Producer/Reporter (Summer 2019)
Getting on PrEP is Harder Than You Think for WHYY's The Pulse // Producer/Reporter (Spring 2019)
Baton Rouge Clinic Pilots New HIV Treatment Model for WWNO’s All Things Considered // Feature Producer (Winter 2019)
It's a Commitment for UC Davis's Department of Theatre and Dance // Producer (Winter 2019)
My Whitney for CBC's Love Me // Producer/Reporter (Fall 2018)
Rags for Long Live the New Sound // Producer (Fall 2018)
“Deborah” (censored) for WWNO’s All Things New Orleans // Feature Producer (Summer 2018)
Unnatural Selection for WHYY’s The Pulse // Sound Designer & Engineer (Summer 2018)
Podcast series Production
The Coronavirus Vaccine Race for Tumble, a Science Podcast for Kids // Editor & Engineer (Fall 2020)
A Ride with Lu Up the Mountain for Where the World Begins: Songs of Sonoma // Co-Producer/Editor/Sound Designer (Summer 2020)
Hyper-Thetical from Transmitter Media on Luminary // Sound Designer for Eps 3, 6, & 7 (Summer 2019)
Dreamboy for Night Vale Presents // Editor (Fall 2018 - Winter 2019)
Smash/Cut on the Two Guys and Rogue Podcast Network // Creator & Producer (Nov 2015 - Spring 2019)
Awards
Second Place // Society for Features Journalism, Features Podcasts (Fall 2021)
Honorable Mention // Society for Features Journalism, Features Podcasts (Winter 2021)
3rd Prize // KCRW 5th Annual Radio Race (Fall 2017)
Shortlisted // Hearsay 2017 Best Audio Fiction Prize (Fall 2017)
Reporting
HIV Test Sites Challenged by COVID-19 Restrictions in Baton Rouge for Scalawag Magazine // Reporter (Summer 2020)
Bad medicine in Louisiana prisons for Scalawag Magazine // Reporter (Spring 2021)
op-eds
Before meeting a potential landlord, I take a look in the mirror for Louisiana Illuminator // Writer (Spring 2021)
Langiappe
Sound Installations
The Barbershop Experiment [Co-Producer: Cristal Duhaime] // Hearsay International Audio Festival (Fall 2017)
Silent Treatment [for GLRY] // OUTBurst Queer Arts Festival (Fall 2016)
The Question Hole [for GLRY] // OUTBurst Queer Arts Festival (Fall 2016)
Artistic Residencies
Ragdale Radio Residency // Third Coast International Audio Festival (Spring 2018)
A Week-long residency with the Ragdale Foundation bringing together underrepresented voices in radio supporting their projects. Here I created the complete storyboard and shot list for the Glass Men project.
Create Residency // Hearsay International Audio Festival (Fall 2017)
A two-week residency to create a local-voiced installation for the 2017 Hearsay Festival with CBC’s Cristal Duhaime
Flight/Risk Development Residency in Belfast, NI, UK // The Accidental Theatre Company (Fall 2016)
Developed a piece of theatre within 30 days under the festival concept “theatre that welcomes risk and seeks to tell new stories”
Supported other artists in the festival with sound and dramaturgical aid
Emerging Queer Artist Residency in Belfast, NI, UK // OUTBurst Queer Arts Festival (Fall 2016)
Dramaturg on multiple projects in the festival, act as sound technician for housing theatre, TheatreofplucK, and to devise a new queer performance piece for the festival. This birthed Hi, I'm Mattie.
Speaking
Story Rhythm for the Audio Drama Track @ Podcast Movement // Solo Speaker (Summer 2019)
Sounds of Skin and Body // Voxnest Livestage @ Podcast Movement (Summer 2019)
HIV in Radio: More Than Trauma Narratives // The Audio Chocolate Box Series @ Hearsay International Audio Festival (Fall 2017)
Education
Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Studies (Dramaturgy and Sound) // Louisiana State University (Spring 2017)
~~~~~~~ past life ~~~~~~~
Theatre
Theatrical Sound Design
The Grimm Sleeper Project directed by Margaret Kemp // Headlands Artist Residency (Winter 2017)
The Day I Almost Met Liberace directed/written by Gavin Armstrong // OUTBurst Queer Arts Festival (Fall 2016)
Hutton Dressed as Lamb directed/written by Gemma Hutton // The Black Box; Belfast, Ireland (Fall 2016)
The Ubu Project [A Workshop] directed by Niall Rea // TheatreofplucK (Fall 2016)
Harlequin in the Ghetto directed by Dr. Lisa Peschel & Dr. Alan Sikes // Out of the Shadows: Performing the Jewish Archive (Spring 2016)
Weight of Smoke directed/written by Addie Barnhart // Swine Palace (Winter 2015)
Admissions directed by Chelsie Ciccone // LSU Laboratory Theatre (Fall 2015)
Closer Than That directed by Jack Wright // Swine Palace (Fall 2014)
School for Lies directed by George Judy // Swine Palace (Summer 2014)
Works as Assistant Sound Designer
GL RY directed by Dr. Alyson Campbell // OUTBurst Queer Arts Festival (Fall 2016)
Romeo and Juliet directed by George Judy // Swine Palace (Summer 2014)
Outworks: LGBTQ New Play Festival curated by Macy Jones // LSU Laboratory Theatre (Spring 2014)
Devised Theatre work
GLRY directed by Dr. Alyson Campbell // OUTBurst Queer Arts Festival (Fall 2016)
A Regionally Specific Workshop/Performance on HIV
This is the second installment of GL RY, first being in Melbourne, Australia and focused on women living with HIV in Ireland. Known for being politically conservative, Ireland as a region has a negative history concerning women’s health. GL RY consists of interviews, devising workshops between survivors and artists, sound art pieces, and a live performance.
An Approved Research Project by the University of Melbourne’s Ethics Board to the Primary Investigator, Dr. Alyson Campbell of the Victorian College of the Arts
Production Dramaturgy
GL RY directed by Dr. Alyson Campbell // OUTBurst Queer Arts Festival (Fall 2016)
The Ubu Project [A Workshop] directed by Niall Rea // TheatreofplucK (Fall 2016)
Harlequin in the Ghetto directed by Dr. Lisa Peschel & Dr. Alan Sikes // Out of the Shadows: Performing the Jewish Archive (Spring 2016)
Good Kids directed by Richard Holden // LSU Mainstage (Fall 2015)
Admissions directed by Chelsie Ciccone // LSU Laboratory Theatre (Fall 2015)
Hoover in Love directed by Alexis Skinner // 2015 Outworks: LGBTQ New Play Festival (Spring 2015)
Dream Walker directed by Jordan Campbell // LSU Laboratory Theatre (Spring 2015)
Weight of Smoke directed/written by Addie Barnhart // Swine Palace (Winter 2015)
Frankenstein directed by George Judy // Swine Palace (Fall 2014)