The Moth StorySLAMs Spellbind Attendees Every Month

The Moth StorySLAMs expanded to Louisville in September of last year and have since run strong on the last Tuesday of every month. Their most recent slam was held on July 31 and hosted eight storytellers. Each storyteller gave a recounting of an event in his or her life on the topic of chemistry.

For anyone unfamiliar, The Moth is a nonprofit organization supporting the art of storytelling. The organization was founded in 1997 by writer George Dawes Green (Ravens and The Juror). Green wanted to create a place where people could tell spellbinding stories similar to what he would hear in his younger days on summer nights in Georgia by his friends. The name of the organization is derived from people’s attraction to a story as a moth is attracted to a flame. The slams began in New York but now take place worldwide. Many stories are recorded to podcasts and broadcast on the radio nationwide. The station for Louisville is 89.3 WFPL.

Headliners is the venue for the monthly slams. Unlike a normal concert with crowds standing, The Moth StorySLAMs cover Headliners’ floor with approximately 120 chairs but the seating fills up leaving standing only room. The crowd was predominantly older than 50 but a solid portion was also occupied by college age men and women. The event was hosted by Gabe Bullard, the news director for WFPL.

In between storytellers Bullard read slips of paper that allowed the audience to participate in the show. Each audience member was given a piece of paper and asked to write a response to, “Oil and water don’t mix. Name two elements in your life that just won’t blend.” People responded with a lot of career, relationship and personal life answers ranging from livers and alcohol consumption; work ethics and bosses; and bills and shopping addictions.

The Moth StorySLAMs follows specific rules outlined on this board. Each storyteller told a true story on the topic of chemistry.

If someone did want to take the stage there were rules to follow. Any story presented must be true, on topic, have structure (beginning, middle and end) and under five minutes. Bullard clarified that no one on stage is here to give a speech or do a standup routine. To give an example, Bullard told a story of his childhood love. To spend more time with his crush Bullard offered to tutor students in chemistry. Before a big test, Bullard’s crush sought tutoring from him. Alas, Bullard’s affection would go unrequited as before Bullard expressed his feelings his crush only thanked him for his tutelage. She felt nothing more.

The eight storytellers told had a unique story particular to him or her. One teller, Sara Thompson told a story of when she worked in a store named, The World of Science. She also made the same overly expressive gesture when the name of the store came up. Repeatedly, one of Thompson’s co-workers tried to coax Thompson into dating a friend of her family. Every time Thompson saw the young man interested in her, she was completely certain he was homosexual. Well, Thompson and the young man did date – for several years. However, they did break up for a while when the man had to move away. When he returned their chemistry remained exquisite even if Thompson was angered by his actions. Now the two are married.

Judges chosen from the audience gave scores to each story. There were three teams of two scoring the stories between 0-10 with decimals allotted for more specific scores. Thompson’s story went over quite well but the story that stole the show came from one of the second half of tellers (there was an intermission after the fourth storyteller).

Bill Barnhart was an elderly man who shook as he meandered to the stage. His voice was faint and carried a Germanic accent. His story dated back to his younger days when he was studying to be a Roman Catholic priest. He had a friend who couldn’t find a good woman to date. Barnhart introduced him to two young women, Jill and Mary-Helen. Barnhart left them to decide where things would go between them. Of course, the moment his friend is out with Jill, Barnhart notices an opportunity he passed by letting Jill get away. Luckily, Barnhart’s friend sought advice from him. Barnhart made sure to direct him towards Mary-Helen. Barnhart is now married to Jill after he renounced his career in priesthood considering his disagreements with the church’s actions. He concludes by claiming chemistry doesn’t compel people to love but alchemy. There must be something more mystical. The crowd stood and cheered loudly for his story and his storytelling. He went on to win the evening.

The show concluded at 10 p.m. The crowd left slowly and passed by the merchandise table with shirts reading, “I [moth] stories,” with a moth silhouette in place of a heart. Bullard asks for people to come next month on Aug. 28. Next month’s topic will be, “About time.” Headliners should host another great crowd and great round of stories.