Great Life Experience Made for Great Stories at Bella Luna!

From Left: Co-host H.R. Britton, first place winner
Kathy Power, Second place winner Christopher Osborne,
and co-host Robin Maxfield.

Down AND out?? That was the theme of Sunday night's slam at Jamaica Plain's Bella Luna and the story telling was nothing short of amazing! Co-hosts Robin Maxfield and H.R. Britton kept the evening light as ten talented tellers shared their stories of depression, suicide, psychiatric care, prison, the blues, military hazing, break ups and debilitating illness. Fortunately, these very serious topics were often interspersed with great humor and special guest Jeremy Phillips polled the standing-room only crowd with entertaining questions while the judges did what they do best.

Kathy Power and Christopher Osborne took home the honors March 20th! First place winner Kathy Power told a story of forgiveness about her time at Framingham State Prison. When given the opportunity to allow her enemy to fall down a flight of stairs, Kathy chose to help the woman avoid harm and their relationship was forever changed. Her riveting account earned her a $50 gift certificate to Bella Luna, a massmouth t-shirt, and the opportunity to tell her story on April 26th at The Big Mouthoff in the Boston Public Library's Rabb Hall.

The Ripped Up 22s!

Second place winner Christopher Osborne's story was equally powerful. He told of a friend who struggled with addiction for years until ending his life with a bottle of vodka and a nail gun. Christopher won a massmouth t-shirt and will have the opportunity to compete in the Semifinal Gala at Coolidge Corner Theater on April 14th.

Jamaica Plain's last story slam of the season ended with a special performance by three very talented young ladies. The Ripped Up 22s wowed the crowd as they performed two original songs on slam themes Love Objects and Secrets. Their performance was just one more indication that yes, indeed, story is everywhere!

Interested in sharing your own story before next September? Come out to the last slam of the season at Haley House Bakery Cafe on March 31st and tell tales about computer glitches that relate to the theme "What You See Is What You Get" (WYSIWYG). See details here: http://massmouth.ning.com/events

Need some storytelling tune-up tips before grabbing the microphone in public? There is one last storytelling workshop this Monday, March 28th, at 6:15 p.m., at Kennedy's Midtown. Come join Andrea Lovett and myself for the How To Tell A Kickbutt 5 Minute Story Workshop and craft your story into a 5 minute crowd pleaser! Sign up here: http://massmouth.ning.com/events/how-to-tell-a-kickbutt-story-2 Hope to see you there!!