My improv group, Broke Gravy, had a show recently where we invited three storytellers to tell 3-5 minute stories and then we would act out scenes inspired by each story that we listened to. We had a great time and the audience appeared to have just as much fun. For this particular format, because it’s improv, I can’t hear the stories ahead of time to help coach the folks. This can leave some of the more green storytellers feeling a little less prepared. 

The night of the show one of the storytellers was clearly nervous. I’ve known her for about six years now and I could tell she was feeling some kind of way about her approaching time on stage. I asked her if there was anything I could do and she said that she was nervous because she’s not used to speaking in front of people. I gave her some tips and tricks to help ground herself once she was up on stage. I let her know that I would be just off stage left in case she needed anything once she was up there, but I also told her that no one and I mean no one bought a ticket to that show hoping that she would fail. I reminded her that everyone in that audience was there to support her and listen to what she had to tell them. I also told her that the great thing about telling a story about a personal experience is that the audience has no idea if you “make a mistake” or “forget to say something”. They don’t know your story so they don’t know all of the things that you wished you had done better.

In my experience one of the best things about personal storytelling is that you don’t need notes. These are your memories so it’s a lot easier to keep information straight in your head and remember what to say next because you had the actual experiences. She ended up telling an absolutely wonderful story, as I knew she would and I could see the delight on her face as the audience gave applause of approval. 

I love storytelling.