'HOT,HOT HEAT": OKC STORY SLAM, JULY 18

Next OKC StorySLAM (see 6/24/08 entry for link to OKCStory Slam)

When: Friday, July 18, 7:00 pm to sign up, 7:30 to tell

Where: The Istvan Gallery, 1218 N. Western, OKC

The theme is: "Hot, Hot Heat"

This event is free and open to the public,

however, stories are geared toward an adult audience.

All stories must be 7 minutes or less and must relate to the theme of Heat or the Summertime Heat.

STORY SLAMS!

"STORY SLAMS" are usually more urban, avant garde, and definitely adult venues. They are edgy, progressive, hip-hop inspired short stories told in fast forward of the experiences of modern life. Think storytelling counter culture or the tales of a new, different generation being spun in ways previous tellers might never have dreamed. They are often held in coffeee houses, museums, art galleries, night spots, or city parks. There are, however, events aimed at teens and young adults (see http://www.youthstorytelling.com/toolbox/Youth_and_Storytelling_Keding.pdf)

There is a very good blog at First Person Arts that includes a description and a video. These are operated a little differently and have emerged from the "Poetry Slam" movement of performance art. They are often competitions and regularly tellers put their name in a hat or jar and the lucky ones tell. There is one that occurs in OKC - usually in June - check the MySpace page for insights: http://www.myspace.com/okcstoryslam.

An article in the New York Times from 2001 provides another view: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E2D61038F933A25754C0A9679C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2 ;

as does http://www.digphilly.com/portal/site/digphilly/menuitem.2435f4be62ac0f6627b80d3233b0a0a0?vgnextoid=328b23e4fc9b2110VgnVCM1000006dc1d240RCRD