Last Thursday at the Swedish Club was just what I needed. Lots of great stories, and people getting together afterward to talk and make new friends. We had lots of first-timers, and some regulars we hadn’t seen onstage in years. One first-timer, Melanie, thanked us for doing something that can’t be replaced by AI. She’s right. What happens on the third Thursday of each month can’t be done online or with ChatGPT. You gotta show up to feel the magic.
The theme was first love, but we had stories on all kinds of love: First love, last love, dog love, Beatles love, and art love. We even had a story about math tutoring. We heard about Barry Gibb, Richard Avedon, a couple of Kevins, and a guy named Everett.
The only part of the night I didn’t like was having to bump 5-6 tellers at the end when we ran out of time. Among others, I bumped myself, my son, two friends I’ve known for over a decade, and one of the strongest tellers we have in Seattle. We would have had a fantastic 45 more minutes of stories, but everyone would have been exhausted by the end, and half the audience would have gone home before that to go to bed. So I had to bump a bunch of really talented people and let them know that they have a guaranteed spot on any future show they want.
We had an extra special treat when we got to hear a story from Joanna Demerast, the new community director for NW Folklife Festival. Joanna, thank you so much for coming out, sharing a story, and hanging out afterward to talk to people about how to apply to perform at the festival next year.
If you didn’t get the survey I sent out last week for gauging interest in Folklife and a possible 5-week workshop given by the NWFL Festival and the Seattle Storytelling Guild later this fall, click on the link below. It shouldn’t take more than a minute to fill out, and it will get you on the festival distribution list. (all info will be kept confidential). Take the survey if you want to learn how to apply to perform at Folklife. I would love to see FGS’ers on the Folklife stage.
Click here to learn more about the Seattle Storytellers Guild
I didn’t get a chance Thursday to tell a new story I’m working on, but I’ll be telling another story at “Inside Story” next Saturday, August 30, at Unexpected Productions. After I tell, an improv group will be doing their take on my story. As our good friend Kent Whipple says, it’s where improv and storytelling make a baby.” So come see me make a baby with the improv folks at Unexpected Productions!
Next month’s show is on September 18. The theme is “Lessons learned.” I’ll get the invite out as soon as I can. Hope to see you all there!
Don’t forget out next free online workshop is Sept 7 if you’d like to get feedback on a story you’re working on
Paul
Freshgroundstories at gmail dot com
Fresh Ground Stories 