To see Tuesday's follow-up article on how Louisville managed to attract The Moth, click here.
Flyover country, The Moth has landed.
The Moth—the organization best known for The Moth Radio Hour, which airs on WFPL and is distributed by PRX—is bringing its StorySLAM series to Louisville’s Headliners Music Hall. Currently there are four performances scheduled, occurring the last Tuesday of each month for the rest of 2011: September 27, October 25, November 29 and December 27.
“True Stories Told Live” is the mission of the Peabody Award-winning program, which has presented thousands of live stories told in standup fashion since 1997. Each program and live event begins with a theme—the September 27 Headliners event is centered on “Scars,” for example—covering the full range of human emotion and experience.
Louisville joins Moth StorySLAMs in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Ann Arbor/Detroit. The program’s name is derived from the attraction of listeners to storytellers as moths to a flame. While the series typically relies on stories from regular folk, notable storytellers appearing on The Moth Radio Hour include author Neil Gaiman, sex columnist and It Gets Better Project founder Dan Savage, Steve Burns of Blue’s Clues and author Salman Rushdie.
Storytellers are not necessarily professionals; anyone is welcome to contribute. If you wish to take the stage at any of the Louisville performances, plan ahead. Make sure it’s relevant to the theme, and practice. On the night of the show you’ll have a chance to throw your name into the hat, but that’s the only chance you’ll get to have your hands on a piece of paper, because The Moth flies without a net. If your name is chosen, you’ll have five minutes to tell your story. (If you want to hear what other people have done, visit The Moth’s collection of previous segments.)
Tickets will be available for $8 at the door on the day of each show. Doors open at 7:00 for the 8:00 o’clock show, and it is strongly suggested that attendees arrive at least one hour before doors open to ensure entry.
More details are expected to be announced next week. For more information, visit The Moth online at http://themoth.org.
Contact the author at leecopywriting@gmail.com or www.leecopywriting.com.
