StoryOly Grand Slam Storytelling Competition

What: StoryOly Grand Slam Competition
When: Saturday, September 17, 2022
Time: 7pm, Doors open at 6pm
Where: Eagles Grand Ballroom 805 4th Ave. E Downtown Olympia WA
Cost: $15-$25 suggested donation at the door (PWYC - no one turned away for lack of funds)
21+
More Info: StoryOly.com

The StoryOly Grand Slam is back! Join us for a night of great live oral storytelling, entertainment, live music, and celebration! Hosted by local storyteller Elizabeth Lord.

StoryOly is Olympia’s premiere Story Slam event. Community members come together every month to share, compete, and tell true stories based on a monthly theme. StoryOly aims to encourage and develop community engagement and connection through the medium of storytelling. Created and produced by Amy Shephard and Elizabeth Lord, the first StoryOly Slam took place in November 2015.

A Story Slam is a storytelling performance competition. StoryOly is modeled after The Moth and Fresh Ground Stories in Seattle. At each monthly StoryOly Story Slam multiple tellers take the stage and relate a true story from their life related to the monthly theme. They are allotted 8 minutes to tell their tale. A winner is selected. These monthly winners will compete in the Grand Slam. The best of the best!

StoryOly went online only and into a non-competitive format in March of 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. There was no Grand Slam event in 2020 or 2021.....

In-person live competitive events resumed in December of 2021 at the Cryptatropa. This Grand Slam will honor the winners from both the 2019-2021 (prior to March 2020) and the current 2021-2022 season winners.

Their storytelling efforts shall be judged by 3 prominent local community members:

Maggie Lott, Member of the South Sound Storytelling Guild and winner of the 2016 StoryOly Grand Slam; Rob Smith, Producer of the local podcast Welcome To Olympia; Judy Turner, Mental Health Professional and Olympia theater veteran

Typically a portion the monthly StoryOly proceeds from the door are donated to a local nonprofit organizations. This past season however, StoryOly decided to give money to the local businesses affected by the December 2021 catastrophic building fire on Capital Way. For this year's Grand Slam a portion of the proceeds will be donated to: Northwest Abortion Access Fund Home - Northwest Abortion Access Fund (nwaafund.org)

The Grand Slam shall be grand including food, drink, and live music to open and close the event with String and Shadow Cartoon Orchestra!