This edition of Pano was originally emailed to subscribers on March 2, 2022. To receive Charles Donelan’s arts newsletter in your inbox each Wednesday, sign up at independent.com/newsletters .
NUMBERED DAYS
This four-part podcast from playwright Corey Madden stars Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad) and Tony Amendola. When Madden’s husband, the composer Bruno Louchouarn, develops esophageal cancer, Madden turns her iPhone from a convenient distraction into a tool for mindfulness by invoking the power of poetry. She pledges to write a free-verse poem on her phone every day that Bruno still lives. These are the “numbered days” of the show’s title. What began as a coping mechanism quickly transformed into something else — a reminder to live in the moment and to commit to being present for every last beautiful, excruciating instant of what remains of their life together.