Preview: Small Stories

This September local performance event Small Stories teams up with Bristol’s free bereavement counselling service The Harbour for an evening of spoken word, comedy, short stories and poetry, exploring why talking, writing, and having a space to share your thoughts makes all the difference. The night will also feature live music and visuals, plus a Q&A session with counsellors from The Harbour.
Below, director and host Natalie Burns and performer and organiser Christie Cluett introduce the night.

So: Small Stories. What’s the big idea?
Natalie: Sometimes people with the most interesting stories feel they don’t have a place to tell them. Small Stories is a new not-for-profit event that aims to raise money for local charities and community initiatives by giving local performers a stage on which to tell their stories.
Not everyone is into traditional literature and short story evenings – they can be intimidating. Small Stories aims to let people tell their stories in whatever way they want to tell them, whether that’s spoken word, poetry, music, art; whatever suits them best. Each event will give a different local charity a stage, and showcase great local performers to share stories relating to the cause.
Christie: It’s about stories from people who have something real to share. Writing is a great way to tell difficult stories, deal with difficult emotions or situations and Small Stories is a space to raise awareness, start the conversations and be entertained all in one.

And what made you select The Harbour, and mental health issues generally, as your first cause?
Natalie: Small Stories is run entirely by volunteers and Nicola, one of our organisers, is a counsellor who volunteers for The Harbour, running free sessions for people affected by life-threatening illness. Mental health and bereavement will effect most of us at some point in our lives, but they are difficult to talk about. So we decided to take the plunge for our first event.
Christie: We have a great range of diverse voices that will be talking about the real impact of mental health and bereavement but it’s not all doom and gloom. Sometimes, humour can be one of the best ways to cope, even the darkest situations. If you can laugh at it, it’s like half the battle is won, so we’ve made sure to include comedy performances that look at the funny side of even the lowest points.

Tell us the thinking behind the post-show Q&A.
Natalie: We didn’t just want to raise funds, we wanted to raise awareness and start a conversation that involved people. Five Counsellors from The Harbour will make up the Q&A panel. Anyone can ask a question on the evening (there’ll be the opportunity to submit them anonymously on the night if you prefer), or you can email them to smallstoriesbristol@gmail.com

What can we expect on the night?
Natalie: We’ll have performances from some amazing Bristol talent. Poetry from Philippa Bayley who has benefited from The Harbour’s services, spoken word from street poet Dean McCaffrey, comedy from Christie and fellow local writer Ellen Waddell, and music and visuals from local soundscape band Block. Luke Sleven and Hannah Whaler will also be illustrating their chosen story live on stage through the show. We’ll raffle both pieces of original art off to the audience after the show. There’s a lot going on!
Christie: Whether you have experience of the cause and want to come and join in the conversation, or if you have questions you want to ask, there’s definitely something for everyone. If you’re just looking for an entertaining evening for a good cause, then you’ve found the right place. 

How did you decide on performers?
Natalie: Small Stories used to run as a monthly short stories event before we decided to turn it into a not-for-profit. That’s where I met our performers. They stood out, they all had very different styles, and they were all similar in one way. They were self-deprecatingly funny, brutally honest, and told their story the way they wanted to, despite what anyone else thought. I have massive respect for that.

Small Stories Sept 11, The Lantern. For more info and to book tickets, visit www.colstonhall.org/shows/small-stories