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  • This Wednesday: “Crushed”

    This Wednesday: “Crushed”

    BUNTPORT, 19 AUGUST 2015 at 8:00PM:

    Her first real job was operating a trash compactor at an orange soda factory. He fell in love with a boy who was trampled by the bulls in Pamplona. She lost in the second-to-last round of a spelling bee—and the word was “contriturate.” Or something like that. You get the idea. In honor of High Plains Comedy Festival, please join us for a very special comedians-only evening of true stories on the theme “Crushed.” We have assembled a massive lineup of crush-capable and crush-worthy comedians for you:

    Josh Blue (Last Comic Standing)
    Christie Buchele (Empty Girlfriend)
    Janae Burris (Buddy Buddy!)
    Haley Driscoll (Empty Girlfriend)
    Timmi Lasley (Epilogue Comedy)
    Bob Meddles (Comedy Works)
    Kristin Rand (Everybody’s Great!)
    Dan St. Germain (Comedy Central)
    Sam Tallent (Fine Gentlemen’s Club)

    …and your host, Erin Rollman, pulverizing the comedians’ sense of rhythm with long hugs instead of handshakes after every introduction. We’ll have beer and wine available for donation (CASH ONLY). See you there!

    717 Lipan Street
    DENVER

    FAIR WARNING: This will be a very crowded show and seating may be more limited than usual. We’ll have pillows available, but please arrive early if you want to sit in a chair!

    BONUS: Check out this fun article about The Narrators by Emily Przekwas at Innovator’s Peak.

  • 71: Christie Buchele, “Salmonella Falls”

    71: Christie Buchele, “Salmonella Falls”

    Today’s story comes from Christie Buchele. She is the co-host of Empty Girlfriend podcast, which you should all be listening too, and she’s one of our all-time favorite storytellers in Denver. She’s that friend who always stood up for you on the playground, even when the bully was way bigger than both of you.

    Christie’s story was recorded live on June 17, 2015 at Buntport Theater in Denver, Colorado. The theme of the evening was “WTF.” Our theme music is by our friend Whalehawk (aka the Grammy-nominated musician Jake Sanders).

    Our next live event in Denver takes place at Buntport Theater on 19 August 2015 at 8:00pm. In honor of the High Plains Comedy Festival, the theme of the evening will be “Crushed.” We have an amazing all-comedian lineup for you, a veritable who’s who of Denver’s funniest people, including Last Comic Standing winner Josh Blue, Christie Buchele, who you will hear on today’s podcast, Janae Burris, Haley Driscoll, Timmi Lasley, Bob Meddles, Kristin Rand, Sam Tallent and who knows? Maybe some special surprise guests. Be there to find out.

    And don’t forget—The Narrators San Diego will debut on 8 September 2015 at Tiger!Tiger! Tavern on El Cajon Boulevard. See you there!

  • 70: Aaron Urist, “This Yarmulke Feels Like Ted Nugent”

    70: Aaron Urist, “This Yarmulke Feels Like Ted Nugent”

    This week’s story comes from Aaron Urist. Aaron is a standup comedian from Denver Colorado, the co-host of Crush City, a monthly comedy showcase at The Savoy, and he will be appearing at the High Plains Comedy Festival later this month. Being in his presence is like finding a $20 bill in your jacket on the first cold of autumn—again, and again, and again. Aaron’s story was recorded live on May 20, 2015 at Buntport Theater in Denver, Colorado. The theme of the evening was “Nature vs. Nurture.”

    Our next live event in Denver takes place at Buntport Theater on 19 August 2015 at 8:00pm. In honor of the High Plains Comedy Festival, we will be featuring stories exclusively by stand-up comedians. The theme of the evening will be “Crushed.” And mark your calendars—the debut of The Narrators San Diego is 8 September 2015 at Tiger!Tiger! Tavern.

    Special thanks to Erin Rollman for engineering help on this episode. Our theme music is by our friend Whalehawk (aka the Grammy-nominated musician Jake Sanders).

  • The Narrators San Diego is coming September 8

    The Narrators San Diego is coming September 8

    We have an exciting announcement to share with you!

    We have found a Southern California home for The Narrators. Starting September 8, The Narrators San Diego will take place the 2nd Tuesday of each month at Tiger!Tiger! Tavern on beautiful El Cajon Boulevard at 8pm. As always, The Narrators is a free event.

    If you are reading this and thinking to yourself “WTF is a The Narrators?”, please take a moment to click around up that top header, specifically the ABOUT page, which will fill you in on what exactly it is that we do, and then maybe wander on over to the Home page and fill your ears with the sweet sounds of storytelling (maybe even subscribe to the podcast!). Then, if you have stamina and a clear heart, make a dash for the FAQ page and find out how you can get involved. Then pat yourself on the back and pour a glass of chocolate milk to celebrate, because you will have become an expert on The Narrators.

    But I digress. We are honored to be working with the good people at Tiger!Tiger!, who also operate the Blind Lady Ale House in Normal Heights and Panama 66 at the San Diego Art Museum in Balboa Park. Aside from their fantastic craft beers and delicious food, these establishments serve as important community centers hosting local music, films, game nights, poetry readings, and now storytelling.

    If you live in San Diego and would like to be part of the Narrators, please join us the 2nd Tuesday of every month at Tiger!Tiger! starting this September. If you don’t live in San Diego, please spread the word to your SoCal friends and family.

    Mary Robertson and Robert Rutherford of The Narrators San Diego
    Mary Robertson and Robert Rutherford settled into Southern Californian living and are ready to hear your stories!

    Most importantly, we’re looking for storytellers! We’re looking for people to tell 5-10 minute true stories based on a changing monthly theme. September’s theme is “Firsts”. You do not need to be a professional writer or performer to participate. We love writers, actors, comedians, musicians and other people who identify as artists, but we especially encourage those of you who do not normally do this kind of thing to get involved.

    The Narrators is committed to representing multiple voices and experiences and creating a safer space for all of us to be ourselves. We very much want to hear from people of color, queer people, people living with disabilities, immigrants to the U.S., military veterans, the very old and the very young—you get the idea. You can get in touch through our website, on our Facebook page, or email robert@thenarrators.org.

  • 69: Emma Weisfeld, “Almond-Butter Sticky Fingers”

    69: Emma Weisfeld, “Almond-Butter Sticky Fingers”

    We have an exciting announcement to share with you! We have found a Southern California home for The Narrators. Starting September 8, The Narrators San Diego will take place every 2nd Tuesday of the month at Tiger! Tiger! Tavern on beautiful El Cajon Boulevard at 8pm. Click here for more information.

    Today’s story comes from Emma Weisfeld and was recorded live at Buntport Theater on 20 May 2015. The theme of the evening was “Nature vs. Nurture.”

    Our next live event in Denver takes place at Buntport Theater on 19 August 2015 at 8:00pm. In honor of the High Plains Comedy Festival, we will be featuring stories exclusively by stand-up comedians. The theme of the evening will be “Crushed.” See you there!

    Special thanks to Erin Rollman for engineering help on this episode. Our theme music is by our friend Whalehawk (aka the Grammy-nominated musician Jake Sanders).

  • 68: Ellen K. Graham, “Pilgrims of the Interstate”

    68: Ellen K. Graham, “Pilgrims of the Interstate”

    Back in April, The Narrators collaborated with the Musica Sacra, a 35-piece chamber orchestra here in Denver. They gave us three pieces of music and asked our storytellers to write something inspired by the music. In exchange, we gave them three stories and they chose three pieces of music to accompany them. We wrote and edited and memorized and rehearsed and revised and then rehearsed some more… paragraphs were shifted out of their natural order to work with the music, and the orchestral arrangements were shuffled and modified to jive with the beats of the story. It was a dramatic departure from our usual low-key routine. The end result was beautiful, watching our storytellers transform their personal experiences into these sweeping, powerful performances.

    This week’s story comes from that show. Ellen K. Graham is a playwright and long-time favorite of The Narrators. Her story was paired Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “The Lark Ascending,” which for copyright reasons we do not play in its entirety. This story was originally recorded at Augustana Arts on 24 April 2015. The theme of the evening was “Two-Way Street.”

    Our theme music is by our friend Whalehawk (aka the Grammy-nominated musician Jake Sanders).