Review Thu Jun 30 2011

Review: The Chicago Story Collective @ Stage 773

By J.H. Palmer

Before we go any further, I have to mention that I had no idea that in addition to being a fantastic storyteller, Essay Fiesta's Keith Ecker was so ripped! In case you missed it, last week's Chicago Story Collective show: Summer Lovin', starring the lovely Alyson Lyon, the demure Dana Norris, the sultry Jen Bosworth, and the previously mentioned (but it's worth repeating) abs-tastic Keith Ecker got people to sit up and pay attention as they told real-life stories about blowjobs gone terribly wrong, spontaneous three-ways, virginity, and IML. (Guess which one Keith told?)

But the fun didn't stop there, in addition to storytelling, the audience was treated to performances by the burlesque troupe Vaudezilla, which included a breathtaking interpretation of Prince's "Sexy Motherfucker", and a dance routine set to The Stranglers "Peaches" that got so stuck in my head that when I got home I had to listen to it over and over, like some kind of overgrown toddler hankering for repetition.

Rounding out the bill was TimeOut Chicago's sex editor Debby Herbenick, (that link is NSFW, just so you know), who cooly and candidly answered anonymous sex questions that had been collected from the audience at intermission with an air of both credibility and acceptance.

This is storytelling 2.0, and it's just the beginning. The Chicago Story Collective, a group effort launched by three of Chicago's best storytelling series: Essay Fiesta, Stories at the Store, and Story Club, has taken what has been evolving in the Chicago storytelling scene over the past year or so and created something new with it. Storytelling is one of the most satistying and accessible art forms around, and if you haven't been paying attention to it -- well, you should, and if you can't decide where to start, you could do a lot worse than to check out the Chicago Story Collective. Their next show is TBA, but if I were you, I'd keep an eye out for it.