“I think you got the lowest score,” said my dad.
I went to The Moth StorySlam event in Miami on May 31st, 2023, where the theme was “GOSSIP.” As you would expect, the stories were juicy. In a city that is about 70% Hispanic, the Venezuelan emcee was the first to tell you that here gossip (or “chisme”) is a way of life.
The StorySlam event had a sold-out audience of over 400 people at the Sandrell Rivers Theater. The Moth is a non-profit organization with the tag line, “True Stories Told Live”, and they have events all over the world. In this open-mic event, they ask for 5-minute stories on the theme. You can enter your name to be a storyteller when you arrive. As the night goes on, the emcee pulls names out of the bag. There are 10 tellers, and I was lucky #2. (Oh, sh*t!) As I walked up on stage into the spotlight, I was still trying to finish “writing” the story in my head.
On the drive to the event, I had thought of great opening for the theme, but no other lines were coming to me. When I got there, an idea came. I sketched out notes for the middle on a piece of paper. I struggled with how to make the story pieces work together…. an ending finally emerged, and I thought that maybe I could do this on the fly…. so then I waffled on whether I would enter my name in the hat… I usually have stories well-rehearsed for performances… I don’t want to embarrass myself… but finally I decided…. “Oh, what the heck! They won’t get to my name anyway.”
I knew the opening line. I had a general ending in mind. I floundered through the beginning… a little longer than I wanted. I made it to the key moment of why I was telling the story… and when the harmonica went off to signal me to wrap up, I managed to end up somewhere meaningful, touching, and funny. “Phew! I survived,” I thought to myself. “What a great audience! They even laughed at my jokes.” My heart was still racing as I ran back to my seat.
The judges read off their scores. Did I forget to mention the judges? Three teams of judges were chosen from the audience at random before the event starts. After telling my story, I could sit back and relax. I did it! The other tellers were fantastic. The emcee was a stand up comedian that kept us laughing between stories. His humor captured a piece of wit from the story that had just been told and kept the audience energy high. Between stories, he also read from slips of paper that the audience filled out in the lobby, “Tell us about a time when a lie was better than the truth.” The best one, “No, you don’t fart in your sleep.”
Overall, a super fun event!
At the end, all the storytellers are called back up on stage. They announce the winner. She gets to come back for the next GrandSlam event with a 10-minute story and free coaching.
I ask my brother to take a picture, and just then my dad points out that I got the lowest score. I do the quick math and realize, “Yes, he’s right. That’s embarrassing.” I also think of the kind folks who said things like: “I really liked your story.” “Good job!” “I wish I could do that.”
You might ask why I am smiling in the picture after my dad points out that I got the lowest score. Of course, I could focus on the failure. Not only did I Iose the contest, I was dead last. I could fall into the pit of “I’m not any good at this, no one likes me, just give up.”
However, I choose to focus on the success! I got up on stage and told my story to a welcoming sold-out audience. They listened and laughed at the funny parts. They were moved by the touching parts. I was lucky to be one of the 10 that got chosen from the bag. It was fun! I had a great time. The audience was young and hip Miami folks. I met some new people. I got to listen to some great stories.
Anyway, as the night went on, the judges and the audience had a few more drinks from the bar. The scores get better when everyone is a little buzzed. The judges are not professionals. They are just audience members. The judging is to add a little more fun to the event and not something to take seriously. Ok, now I’m making excuses… Yes, sometimes I do that… Focusing on success is not always easy… but I’m a storytelling performer… I have other stages… and this experience helped me to find the idea for a really great story. I’ll be telling it again… with a little more crafting and practice next time. This is a personal win!
I choose the story of success (instead of failure)… but I recognize them both. Which story do you choose?
Stay tuned for more GOSSIP…
Reference
- TheMoth.org – Find an event near you and listen to stories online.
Books and a Game by The Moth
