Preview MothUP gets a new name and due press

After a year and a half, MothUP organizers Alicia Merchant and Laura Louise-Tobin are breaking ties with the non-profit that birthed them. They’re going independent with a new name and tonight’s première show at No One Writes To Colonel. For anyone who loves a good yarn, meet the Raconteurs.

“Basically we felt like we had outgrown The Moth,” explains Tobin over drinks at the Colonel. “When we started, I think they expected we’d have like 20 people in a living room instead of a Facebook group of 1,200 people.” 

“We built this thing up,” says Merchant. “We made an event where we have to turn people away from the door every month and we don’t have to worry about getting enough storytellers. We just wanted control.”

As one of 52 satellite groups of the New York-based storytelling series (and associated podcast) The Moth, Toronto’s MothUP group was banned from doing any press, charging money for tickets, or going about any of the normal (and fiscally responsible) ways of running an event. The break from the contract means that the group can sell tickets in advance, conduct publicity, and recoup some of its expenses, which were previously out of pocket. As Raconteurs, they’ll also be able to partner with members of the community. In March, Raconteurs will host a two-night storytelling event in collaboration with the Canadian Opera Company where they’ll invite mezzo-sopranos to tell stories based on the themes inspired by the opera Tales From Hoffman.

For anyone who has ever attended a MothUP (which until last January was held at the sweaty backroom of The Ossington), there’s an electrifying sense of intimacy in the room. Anyone is encouraged to tell a story based on the month’s theme (Merchant and Tobin take advance pitches and sometimes walk-ins that evening), but the stories told onstage are always unexpected. Both ladies remember fondly a story volunteered by Tim Sims’ widow Lindsay Leese based on the theme “Inheritance” about inheriting a plantar wart from her late husband. At the “Love and Sex” event in February, comedian Catherine McCormack described how she lost her virginity at age 13 using a plastic glove as a makeshift condom, which obviously brought the house down. Other stories volunteered that evening ran the gamut between salacious, teary, and everything in between. 

Since its launch in May 2010, the MothUP has cultivated a roster of storytelling professionals; Sage Tyrtle, who will perform tonight, trades in empathetic heartbreak tales and has become a mini-celebrity at the event. The organizers have encouraged them to branch off and perform their own storytelling events, cultivating a community of, yes, local raconteurs. 

“There’s just this really amazing sense of intimacy,” explains Tobin. “We’ve been told we have the best audience in town. And they understand that they have to participate in the event and create an atmosphere where people can open up in a crowd of strangers. There’s a lot of trust.” 

Adds Merchant, “I find when I go through the audience or I’m talking to people, you hear a lot of other people talking about their own experiences that are similar to one of the storytellers. I think our event encourages people to share. There’s a lot of storytelling that happens on the stage, but there’s also a lot of storytelling that happens in the audience.” 

With the new name, ticket pre-sales and press allotted for the first time, Merchant and Tobin hope to expand their repertoire of storytellers and build on the success of last year’s anniversary show at the Polish Combatants Hall. That show had an audience of nearly 300 and featured contributions from local writers Shawn Micallef and Sean Dixon. They’ve even dreamed up a list of dream storytellers, should they get the itch to talk.

“The one person that I’d really love to come I’ve already talked to, and that is Scott Thompson,” says Tobin. “So hopefully we’ll get him onstage in the new year.”

“I love Ian Brown and Tabatha Southey,” says Merchant.

“I would die if David Miller came,” says Tobin.

Says Merchant, “Margaret Atwood could always come and tell a story at our event. I would not turn her away at the door.” 

“But Stuart McLean I might,” says Tobin. 

Tonight’s première show of Raconteurs is based on the theme “Born Again.” The organizers recommend that if you want a ticket at the door you should get there at least an hour early, which is 6:30 p.m. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. at No One Writes To The Colonel and tickets are $7. Slated on the bill are contributions from Sage Tyrtle, The Bitter End’s Etan Muskat and Arianne Shaffer, and more. Plus, there are excellent mojitos to be had.