Q: Where is this happening? A: All over the city. Find out where by clicking here.
Q: Can anyone participate? A: Absolutely. No experience is necessary to take part in the open mic. You are a human being, you have stories to tell, and you know how to tell them. We want to hear them.
Q: Is there a cover charge? A: Never.
Q: How does it all work? A: The list is opened a 15 minutes before the event starts. We will proceed in the order in which people signed up until we reach the end of the list. When your name is called, the stage is yours for seven minutes. Each venue has unique time considerations, but we can generally get in at least 10-12 storytellers (and up to 25 at some venues!)
Q: What kind of stories can I tell? A: Anything goes, from your life story to what you saw on the bus last week. Family stories, funny stories, heartbreaking stories - anything you want to share. We are also cool with folk tales, traditional stories, or fiction and even poems, songs, or excerpts from a longer work (These are all stories too!) Participants are welcome to recite, read, improvise, interpretively dance, and so on.. There is no restriction on how you deliver a story.
Q: Is language/content a concern? A: There is no restriction on content or language. However, racism, misogyny, homophobia, or hate speech in any form will not be tolerated.
Q: Is the time limit strict? A: Yes. You have 7 minutes. You will get a courtesy warning at 6 minutes. At 7 minutes, you will get another warning, meaning you should wrap it up. At 7:30 or so, we will gently cut you off. We want to get as many people up as possible, and need to keep things tight in order to do so.
Q: Do I have to be there for the whole night? A: Ideally, that would be great, but it is not required. Your best chance of guaranteeing a spot in the lineup would be to get there close to when the list starts, but we can usually fit latecomers in as well. Sometimes the night is a long one, so you are welcome to leave before the end if you need to do so, but we'd love for you to stick around as long as you can (especially if you told a story earlier in the evening!)
Q: Can I tell more than one story in a night? A: Generally, you'll only get one spot to share a story each evening.
Q: Am I allowed to show up just to listen to the stories? A: Definitely, but we hope you will be inspired to share, whether on that particular night or sometime in the future, on stage or off.
Q: There doesn't seem to be a Do Not Submit in my neighborhood yet. Can I help? A: We would love your assistance in bringing a storytelling open mic to your community, whether it be by hosting, providing a venue, promoting, or organizing. Email us at [email protected] to get the conversation started.
Q: Why are you doing this? A: We have seen personal storytelling empower, transform, and delight countless people since it started to get popular in certain parts of Chicago over the last several years. However, this movement has yet to be become completely inclusive and fully representative of our city, its neighborhoods, and its people. Do Not Submit is an attempt to bring all of Chicago together to connect, share stories, and get to know each other.
