I laughed, I cried, etc

October 10, 2012 8:20 AM

Storytelling as an art form/performance- I can't get enough! Point me towards podcasts, events in NYC, etc.

I've enjoyed The Moth for a long time- first the podcast, and then, once I moved to NYC, the live events- but I didn't realize that this particular form of autobiographical storytelling was a kinda pervasive artform until just recently. I started listening to the podcast Risk ("the show where people tell true stories they never thought they'd dare to share"), and today I found out about the Red Umbrella Diaries, a storytelling show/podcast exclusively by sex workers. I can't get enough of this stuff!

Please, point me towards 1. other podcasts in a similar vein and 2. other New York-based events I can check out. Or, I guess, specific performers I should look into- I really enjoy David Sedaris, for example, or Louis CK's more autobiographical stuff.

Requirements: it's true/nonfiction, it's based on the life of the person telling the story, and it's funny or sad or both (both is great).

posted by showbiz_liz to Media & Arts (14 answers total)

Are you on the nonsense NYC mailing list? Stuff like that comes up on there occasionally. For instance, today you can attend:

Show and Tell is exactly what it sounds like: Everyone is invited to bring an object of personal significance and talk about it for up to three minutes. This isn't about rehearsing your story in front of the mirror 17 times like the people at the Moth -- it's about standing up in front of a friendly group of people and sharing a little anecdote about an object that resonates with you. Or to put it another way: Show and Tell isn't performance; it's sharing.

You can either (a) bring an object and be prepared to talk about it or (b) simply be part of the audience, because you can't have Show and Tell without people to be shown and told. Either way, it's a good time.

Freddy's Bar
627 Fifth Avenue, between 17th and 18th streets, Brooklyn
R train to Prospect Avenue station
8p; $free
plukas64]at]gmail.com
show-and-tell-project.blogspot.com/

posted by griphus at 8:22 AM on October 10, 2012

Story Collider is like the Moth, but the stories ostensibly have some connection to science.
posted by SampleSize at 8:28 AM on October 10, 2012

I recently subscribed to KCRW's Strangers and UnFictional to scratch this itch. They haven't updated yet for me, so I'm not 100% sure they're worth it, but you can check their archives.
posted by knile at 8:35 AM on October 10, 2012

"Anyone can tell a funny story about something that happened when they were fourteen, but to actually read it how you wrote it when you were fourteen is a different level of funny. This is the level of funny Cringe that is about."
posted by ocherdraco at 8:50 AM on October 10, 2012

As mentioned above, Strangers is the new show from the founder of the Moth. (Full disclosure: I'm the music supervisor.) We're updating less frequently (we've recently gone to monthly, at least for the time being) but Lea is still doing magnificent work in a slightly longer-form style nowadays. You can start with the SoundCloud Spotlight page to hear some of her personal favorites, or visit the new site at Story Central.
posted by mykescipark at 8:56 AM on October 10, 2012

Well you know about Risk the podcast but did you know that Risk does live events (of which many are in NYC)?
posted by mmascolino at 9:06 AM on October 10, 2012

There's How I Learned, which is monthly or so on the LES.

Poisson Rouge has storytelling events pretty often.
posted by yarrow at 11:08 AM on October 10, 2012

The Stoop is Baltimore's version of the Moth. Listen to all their past stories here.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 11:10 AM on October 10, 2012

You want to check out Tom Shillue.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 1:32 PM on October 10, 2012

StoryCorps is great.
posted by lakeroon at 2:30 PM on October 10, 2012

You should look into Mike Birbiglia.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 4:44 PM on October 10, 2012

go to an asssscat show.
posted by cupcake1337 at 6:29 PM on October 10, 2012

Speakeasy DC is the storytelling outfit in DC. They have a podcast.
posted by OmieWise at 5:48 AM on November 15, 2012

Story Story Night, a podcast of story nights in Idaho, is often good.
posted by catquas at 6:14 PM on December 10, 2012