Orlando Story Club is a live storytelling competition which takes place at The Abbey in downtown Orlando. Anyone can enter by putting their name in the story hat, where 10 names are randomly selected to compete. Each storyteller is given five minutes to impress the audience and the top three tellers take home prizes.
All proceeds benefit local charities. It’s a night of laughter, fun, and
connection!
Judges are randomly selected from the audience and special story prizes
are awarded at the end of the evening. Other audience participation
opportunities abound.
I enjoy sketching knowing I will have only five minutes to catch one of the competitors. Despite that challenge I enjoy pushing the sketch to a finish as best as possible. These are everyday stories from peoples lives and you never know how strange, surreal or common a story might be. Most tug at my heart strings since we all are making it through this game of life together, despite the challenges and setbacks.
At specific events around town, Danielle Ziss and Bobby Wesley set up a story wall. Event attendees fill out note cards with “one-liners” – short
stories that fit with the story themes. One-liners can be as short as a
word or as long as the note card allows. It is a fun way for audiences
to participate in Orlando Story Club, even if they haven’t attended a
show!
One-liners are a huge part of Orlando Story Club live
shows. Between each randomly selected storyteller, our hosts read the
one-liners to the audience. They are completely anonymous and fit with
the selected theme of the evening, allowing all storytellers and story
listeners a chance to participate.
Example one-liner:
Theme: What a Mess!
I woke up to find my toddler holding a pair of scissors and a handful of hair. It was my hair. Who knew I could pull off bangs?
The next Orlando Story Club: Best of 2019, Homecoming, will be on Wednesday, December 11, 2019 at 7 PM – 9:30 PM
at The Abbey
(100 S Eola Drive, Suite 100, Orlando, Florida 32801). Tickets are $5.