Listen Together Audio Drama Program

The LISTEN TOGETHER AUDIO DRAMA PROGRAM will harness the power of communal storytelling to deepen and grow the imaginative power of young people of all ages.  Imagination is a powerful tool for seeing the world and the foundation for the empathetic experience of others, and our program uses audio drama and other spoken word audio to inspire and engage patrons with the world and with each other. Reading to our kids and exposing them to audio books has been recommended for decades and audio-only entertainment calls the listener to engage their imagination to co-create the experience and to “see” the fantastic. People have experienced this throughout human history with communal storytelling which has connected us to our shared humanity.  

Our program will use curated audio drama, audio books, and other spoken word experiences as a foundation for shared experience and supporting programing. Using books and art and discussion to engage with the worlds we find within audio drama will fuel discovery, learning, sharing, and connection.  The Listen Together program provides a communal listening space where shows can be selected and listened to with other people and supported by shared discussion time and related library programming, all designed to engage and develop the imagination.

Mission & Institutional Context 

Our mission is to support and encourage our patron’s intellectual, creative, and civic life by providing resources and support for life-long learning, exploration, and communal experience. The development of our patrons’ shared imaginative life and communal empathy is clearly a part of that mission and The Listen Together program supports our patrons by creating a context for shared experience and fellowship around the universal and inclusive experience of storytelling. The Listen Together program is resource light, scalable and customizable, interacts positively with all aspects of the library and our mission. Listen Together is a perfect opportunity for community led innovation, as well. The Listen Together program can be run with very little technical infrastructure and expertise. The program will be proctored by a subject matter expert librarian and staff, but created and led through a collaboration with the community. The specifics of programming will reflect our patron’s concerns about content, subject matter, and focus.  

Action Brief Statement

The Listen Together Audio Drama Program is based on the idea that engaging with audio drama together in a communal setting will deepen and enlarge our communal imagination and fellow feeling. A strong sense of fellowship and shared experience allows us to (re)discover the world in a new way. This approach is based on the idea that imagination is the foundation of empathy and love. By creating a context where people can communally experience something that engages their imagination, then supporting their engagement with each other within that context a strong sense of shared humanity will be created. While the Listen Together program can be enjoyed by almost all age groups, cohorting by a minimum age is likely to be key to success. This program also leverages everything we know about the power of fan communities and the binds that experience creates.

 

Inspiration

The Listen Together program is inspired by the countless story-time programs in libraries around the world, and by the various places where narrative and human-centered audio is taking place. Inspired by Jim Dale reading Harry Potter, the Radio Spirits audio cassettes of childhood, by the audio recording of the movie Alien I made as a 12 year old. Most importantly the program was inspired by every person who has ever read to a child. 

• Citizen Racecar https://www.citizenracecar.com/afterschool-podcasting 

• Reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/audiodrama/ 

• Audible https://www.audible.com/ 

• Radio Spirits https://store.radiospirits.com/ 

• Poetry Slam https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVNFnigPkswqzL0s42YN2vQ 

• StoryCorps https://storycorps.org/?cid=ppc%7CGoogle%7C%7C%7C&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=18892952625 

Guidelines & Policies

The Listening Together Program should have the main purpose of a shared imaginative experience that can lead to further creative and imaginative exploration. The program offers audio to listen to together, opportunities to discuss and share that experience (like a book club), and supportive programming that enlarges on the experience. The program’s policies should be developed in collaboration between the engaged community and the subject matter expert in this arena. Issues to consider are the genres and age range of accessible content, the subject matter and topics encountered within the content itself, supportive programming in other areas of the library, and the expected and intended use-case for the program. 

These should all be reflected in a searchable finding aid and program guide that is thorough and clear regarding the content that will be encountered in a show, which age ranges the content is appropriate for, the genre, and what additional library experiences the program can lead to. For instance, if the audio drama being “aired” is an adaptation of an espionage thriller from the 1950s, then companion experiences that explore the Cold War, the story’s setting (perhaps the Balkans), or spy technology and gadgets can be designed with other library staff. These facets of the program, as well as issues around the shows’ more delicate aspects (profanity, racism, or violence) should all be captured in the program and finding guide. The structure and content of the resources available to the patrons and their parents should be negotiated with the community, to ensure responsiveness to their concerns. 

Timeline for Implementation

The Listen Together Program relies on very simple technology and infrastructure and the preparation time for the program should be relatively minimal. The program will be deployed in three phases, taking a total of six months. 

Phase 1: 3 months 

• Procure and install computer and audio hardware and software 

• Call and conduct collaborative programming meetings to determine the content policies preferred by our community 

• On boarding and training staff 

Phase 2: 2 months 

• Secure access to content – especially licensing agreements that avoid visible revenue streams like commercial inserts 

• Create cataloging and finding aids which document the shows’ content and potential programming “hooks” 

Phase 3: 1 month 

• Programming support for related library areas (reference, maker spaces, art programs) 

• Dry run and troubleshooting 

Audio drama Encounter space: 

• Listening pods – device / headphones and source computer 

• Library of shows 

• Catalog and finding aids 

• Show support information – website, fan wikis 

• Finding aids for related / relevant material in the library – books about locales, books about voice acting, books on home production 

Needed: 

• Librarian / program runner 

• Audio server / software 

• Listening station hardware – play/pause/rewind 

• Headphones 

• Dedicated space 

• Budget 

Tasks: 

• Collecting / managing audio collection 

• Managing subscriptions 

• Outreach to creators 

• Creating catalog 

• Creating genre encyclopedia 

• Facilitate patron input / guidance on the evolution of the program 

• Types of shows/genres 

• Activities to supplement exploration 

Marketing & Promotion

To promote this effort within the organization a clear outline of the strategy and plan will be sent to all staff and a specific call for participation and collaboration with other subject matter experts and staff – how can the maker spaces contribute with “make your own merch”? How might staff help with background information on settings, historical periods, or genre tie-ins? An emphasis on any creative or learning tie-in that can be derived for any unit of the library. Like the community will be engaged vis a vie the content and audio formats, the library staff will be engaged on how to best leverage the program for every endeavor. For instance, how can the reference desk help with resources for travel research or study abroad programs after a show set in Italy inspires someone’s wanderlust? 

Externally, the program will be promoted on the library’s website, through social media postings, and potentially ads on local public and commercial radio, given the budget. Online banner ads can be bought for websites and communities that align with the program like Radio Spirits and audio drama fan sites, although this approach is less likely to find locals. Connecting with local schools’ English or drama programs can be a channel, as well.

Staff Training & Readiness

Creating “buy in, not out” (Stephens 2004)) is incredibly important in the success of new initiatives, especially those that ask staff to adopt new process or technology. The Listen Together program needs a subject matter expert and program “librarian” who will be responsible for driving the program. They must understand the content landscape, content sensitivities (i.e. content references and content guidelines), and lead the community collaboration effort. They will lead creating finding aids, and for collaborating with others on the programming currently being offered. For instance, if it is “classic horror month” and audio dramas of Frankenstein are being listened to, then the rest of the staff can prepare information about the period the original was written in, the other media the story has appeared in, discussion points about the social and gender dynamics of the period, etc. This collaboration with colleagues will also inform the program librarian’s interactions with the community. The staff will need to understand the shape and aims of the program, and the current programming of shows, and have sufficient time to prepare any supporting programs or activities. 

Evaluation & Future Expansion

A program such as this will benefit from a rigorous collection of metrics, both from a “ongoing improvement” standpoint, but also from a community engagement standpoint. By reviewing key metrics and assessing the program’s impact, a more enlightened approach to community involvement is possible. Qualitative and quantitative measures should be used to best understand the impact the program is having. 

Quantitative:

Number of attendees, number of shows aired, additional program events held, number of patrons participating in planning meetings 

• Attendance at listening events 

• Usage of the listening stations 

• Usage of the related bibliography 

• Popularity of genres / shows / formats 

• Attendance at “make your own merch” events 

Qualitative:

Anecdotal reports 

• Feedback forms from participant’s reactions 

• Discussion groups activity 

• Popularity of supporting programs (e.g. “make your own merch”) 

For future development an obvious growth point would be to support patrons, especially the young, in their interest to create their own spoken word audio – whether audio drama, poetry slam, “StoryCorps” style family recordings, youth podcasts, etc. 

• Recording studios 

• Classes / primers on the types of audio drama 

• Out reach to creators 

• Create our own audio drama 

• Foley equipment and training

• Music creation tools & instruments

• Recording facilities

• Editing systems and training

• Acting coaching

• Publishing guidance

 

Summary

The Listen Together Audio Drama Program provides a communal listening, discussion, and exploration space for spoken-word audio, especiually audio drama. Supporting programing encourages creativity, exploration, and collaboration – all designed to encourage the development of imagination and shared empathy.

 

 

IMAGE CREDITS 

Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 10.53.42 https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/diy-custom-listening-station-v1-pics-inside.18528/ 

Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 10.55.20 https://www.dempseycanada.com/ProductDetails.aspx?productID=95158 

Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 11.39.35 & Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 11.38.50 https://www.lakeshorelearning.com/products/music/audio-equipment-listening-centers/read-along-listening-center/p/GG820/?srsltid=AfmBOoq0Hx83GEIJ6td96FkFPycBrbSrGVJ1r4oMgD4G0MoBf9F3dyCa 

Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 11.44.56 https://digitalcollections.clemson.edu/single-item-view/?oid=CUIR:9FD499B26FE0F087C8DB2DA44916EADA 

Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 11.48.41 & Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 11.48.25&Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 11.48.41 https://www.gettyimages.ca/photos/family-listening-to-radio 

Screenshot 2025-11-22 at 12.14.38 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral_storytelling#/media/File:A_Story-teller_reciting_from_the_%22Arabian_Nights.%22_(1911)_-_TIMEA.jpg 

 

REFERENCES 

Barbakof, A., & Lenstra, N. (2024). Working hand in hand: How to conduct community-led  planning. americanlibrariesmagazine.org 

Reddit. (n.d.). /r/audiodrama. https://www.reddit.com/r/audiodrama/ 

Stephens,  M. (2004). Technoplans vs. Technolust.  https://tametheweb.com/2004/11/01/technoplans-vs-technolust/ 

Stephens,  M. (2012). Taming Technolust: Ten Steps for Planning in a 2.0 World. https://tametheweb.com/2012/05/30/taming-technolust-ten-steps-for-planning-in-a-2-0-world-full-text/ 

Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia. (2025, November 19). Imagination. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imagination 

Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia. (2025, November 19). Oral storytelling. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral_storytelling