People from all over the world call the “pitch hotline” for , a live storytelling series that has birthed a popular podcast and radio show of the same name.
But Cynthia Riggs’ story immediately stood out.
“She had recently received a package with only a latitude and a longitude as the return address,” said Sarah Austin Jenness, producing director for the New York-based nonprofit series. “Inside were cryptograms written on paper towels, and she came to realize she had created these cryptograms 60 years ago. A gentleman she used to work with at a marine biology lab had kept them and sent them back to her with a new one enclosed.”
The message? “I’ve never stopped loving you.” It compelled Riggs to seek out her former colleague whom, at the age of 81, she married last year.
Jenness was so excited by Riggs’ story (which did not originally include the happy ending) that she called her back and helped her develop it for a Moth live show at Union Chapel on Martha’s Vineyard. It was also recorded for The Moth Radio Hour, which airs on 340 stations nationwide, including Northern Colorado’s .
“There’s this honest emotion that comes with being excited but also terrified by the prospect of love,” Jenness said. “People really respond to that.”
The Moth, which will debut its at Swallow Hill’s Daniels Hall on Oct. 17, has presented 3,000 stories since it was founded in 1997. Its new Denver series joins at least a half-dozen Front Range storytelling shows that have sprung up in recent years to meet the demand for a direct, unvarnished stage experience.
As the basis of most performance art, storytelling offers a back-to-basics, often participatory alternative to not just other forms of entertainment, but a daily existence filtered through the impersonal drone of social media.
“When someone shares a story, you’re getting a more pure version of what happened,” said Andrew Orvedahl, a Denver comic who founded and podcast in 2009. “I don’t know if ‘true’ is the right word, but it’s often the most accurate way to see a slice of someone’s life.”
The free Narrators show, which takes place the third Wednesday of each month at the Buntport Theater, draws a frequently young, hip crowd that digs into subjects ranging from the awkwardly hilarious to the heartbreaking. In an average show, audience members might hear anything from a harrowing tale of sexual assault or political strife to a botched first date or career triumph. (Full disclosure: This reporter has performed on The Narrators in the past).
Like many storytelling shows, The Narrators’ lineup is a mix of comedians (Orvedahl is a member of Denver’s Grawlix troupe who this week ) writers, actors, musicians and, yes, regular folks.
“Live storytelling feels different because it’s the ancestral form, the campfire version, (a) cross-cultural tradition that has existed since language first emerged,” said Narrators co-host Ron Doyle. “There’s something ancient and intimate and intrinsically natural about it.”
Indeed, shows like Boulder’s bi-monthly (Oct. 19 at Shine Restaurant), Longmont’s (Oct. 30 at Still Cellars) and Denver’s (Oct. 23 at the Deer Pile) emphasize a confessional, vulnerable tone that creates a genuine feeling of connection with the audience.
It’s comforting on multiple levels, said Anthony Powell, artistic director of Denver’s 14-year-old company.
“I don’t think we ever really lose the feeling of pleasure we had from being read to as kids,” he said.
Stories on Stage, which will present its “Brush Up Your Shakespeare” show on Oct. 17 at Chautauqua Community House in Boulder and on Oct. 19 at Su Teatro in Denver, employs professional actors to tell its stories, which are often adapted from literature and drama.
Nonetheless, Powell likens each show to “being fired out of a cannon,” since the mood in the room can change at a moment’s notice, given the spontaneous nature of the readings.
“Any actor who’s into Shakespeare has done monologues,” he said. “But this is even more one-on-one. If it’ s a scene — and it basically is — the audience is the other actor. And with so many of these stories we have only the barest idea of what’s going to happen until we get in front of an crowd.”
The formats of these shows determine the experience. Stories on Stage is more structured and theatrical than, say, The Narrators. The Moth’s “Story-Slam” is a competitive format in which stage hopefuls (who can be pretty much anyone in attendance) submit their ideas a half hour before the show, which are then whittled down to 10 storytellers for that night. Winners compete for a spot in the Moth’s GrandSlam event.
“With The Moth coming to town, that’s a major jump for the scene,” said Orvedahl, who founded The Narrators as a comedy-storytelling show while living in Los Angeles. (His former Narrators co-host, Robert Rutherford, will soon open a Narrators chapter in Rutherford’s new home of San Diego).
But with the recent proliferation of shows, is Denver approaching storytelling overload?
“(The other shows) don’t feel like competition unless they’re on the same night,” Orvedahl said. “All the different shows make for a richer scene in general.”
THE DENVER MOTH STORY-SLAM. Competitive storytelling stage show. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 17 at Swallow Hill’s Daniels Hall, 71 E. Yale Ave. $10. 303-777-1003 or swallowhillmusic.org.
STORIES ON STAGE: “BRUSH UP YOUR SHAKESPEARE.” Theatrical storytelling show. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 17 at Chautauqua Community House, 900 Baseline Rd. in Boulder. $28. Also at 1:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. at Su Teatro, 721 Santa Fe Drive. $17-$20. 303-440-7666 or chautauqua.com.
