A new storytelling offering for underrepresented voices
Thanks to a grant from the Orange County Arts Commission
Many years ago at a conference, I heard Jacqueline Woodson, author of Brown Girl Dreaming, say that books should be both mirrors and windows—stories we can see ourselves in and stories that let us see into experiences of people we don’t know much about. She described the loneliness of growing up without books (and dolls and TV shows) that featured Black girls like herself, which is part of why she became a writer.
The idea of mirrors and windows captures everything I love and hope to achieve in my work, including a new project I’m super excited about. This spring, thanks to generous funding from the Orange County Arts Commission, I’ll be teaching a free live storytelling class that centers underrepresented voices. In this class, we’ll explore the art and joy of live storytelling (think The Moth or The Monti). We’ll mine our memory and experiences for true stories to share and learn techniques to make them entertaining and meaningful. We’ll get comfortable telling stories in a group setting, make new friends, and hear some amazing stories. It’s going to be a tremendous amount of fun.
So what the heck do I mean by underrepresented voices? I mean people of color, including but not limited to Black, Latine, Indigenous, and Asian people. I mean members of the LGTBQIA+ community, disabled people, immigrants, and refugees. I mean anyone whose voice has been suppressed.
You might be thinking, wait isn’t that all of us? Yes—most of us have been told, explicitly or implicitly, at one time or another, that our voices don’t matter. That we ought to just keep quiet.
Plus we all have so many identities. Being white, heterosexual, and cisgender gives me a lot of privilege. I’m also a woman who is Jewish and has no children, categories that have made me feel less than, have led others to discount my voice.
So the goal isn’t to gatekeep. Rather, I’m here to wave through everyone who feels they’ve had to play from the sidelines so we can all enjoy the fun (and challenge) of giving voice to our stories and sharing them with others. I want to create an inclusive space that welcomes a broad range of people and whatever stories they want to tell (participants will not be required to tell identity-based stories). The goal is simply to hand the mike to folks who’ve had it pulled away.
The class will meet at the Carrboro ArtsCenter on Thursdays, 6:30-8:30pm from April 18 through May 23 (6 Thursdays). If you’re ready to sign up, hit reply and let me know.
Let me be clear: I applied for this grant because I wanted some space to apply my work in a new way, to perhaps have a broader impact, to learn something new and hopefully teach somebody something they appreciate learning. But I always teach live storytelling for the most essential reason of all: it’s incredibly fun and connective. Storytelling is magic. In a matter of hours, strangers become friends. We learn, laugh, and sometimes cry. A community forms.
If your voice has been quieted and you’re ready to roar, I hope you’ll join me.
And if your voice has been quieted and you’re kinda sorta maybe interested in getting a little louder but all this sounds a little scary, hey, I am with you friend. I have always found live storytelling intimidating. Getting up in front of strangers and telling them about your life is pretty freaking vulnerable. I still get jitters doing it.
But I also have found tremendous joy and affirmation and connection in it. It has made me more comfortable in my body and given me the chance to explore my lived experiences in a way that feels enlivening. It has allowed people to see me, and for me to be seen. Which is something that every single human on the planet deserves.
If this sounds up your alley, I would love to have you aboard. And even if this isn’t for you, know that your voice matters. I want to hear it. And I thank you for hearing mine.