On a warm Tuesday night under hot lights, Tom Hart took the microphone at Satchel’s Pizza. As the murmur of the audience quickly died down and heads looked his way, the 42-year-old Gainesville resident began to share a story of a French friend’s visit to America.
The storytelling is part of a community-involvement endeavor at Satchel’s. On the second Tuesday of each month, the eclectic pizza restaurant hosts “The Conch,” an open mic night during which people tell true stories of hope, heartbreak and randomness.
The event started July 10. Two months later, the event is still going strong, said event coordinator Bill Bryson, 46.
The event is Bryson’s brainchild. As an amateaur storyteller, whose Southern upbringing created a lifelong love for storytelling, he acquired a collection of recorded stories as a child. As an adult, he began to listen to storytelling podcasts such as “The Moth” and “This American Life.”
He said he wanted to spread his love of storytelling with the Gainesville community, so he started “The Conch.”
The first night, about a dozen storytellers spoke, and the same number spoke in August. Each night features a general theme. Past themes have included “Every Dog Has Its Day,” and “There’s a First For Everything.” Each night is recorded as a podcast and is available on Grow Radio, a local Internet radio station where Bryson works.
“There’s so much left to the imagination when someone is telling a story face to face,” he said. “There’s a real craft to storytelling.”
Freshman Ricky Marrero said he became interested in storytelling as a child.
“I love hearing personal stories, because they all have wisdom,” Marrero, 18, said.
As Larry Condra, a 58-year-old Gainesville resident, shared a humorous story about a car accident, the audience snickered at his story.
As the sun set, and more people came to the microphone, Bryson said he saw his vision start to take shape.
“What fascinates me is the things that are revealed about the storyteller and about the circumstances,” he said. “It creates a sense of community and breaks down walls.”
Satchel's Pizza bartender Jordan Borstelmann, 31, tells an anecdote at Grow Radio's storytelling event, The Conch. The event was at Satchel's Pizza, and performing members had five minutes to tell stories.
