www.johnhstevenshouse.org or www.keyofsee.mn

Storyteller Larry Johnson tells the story of 7,000 Mpls school children pulling the historic Stevens House from Cedar-Riverside to Minnehaha Park on May 28, 1896. Children will have opportunity to calculate their own horsepower, and families can, for a small fee, tour the historic house where the city of Minneapolis was organized, along with Hennepin County, the first Minnesota Agriculture Assn, and the State Fair. More information at topstory7 [at] gmail.com or 612-747-3904.

www.bryantlakebowl.com

Join critically acclaimed comedian Joseph Scrimshaw (“the Cirque Du Soleil of Minneapolis Comedy” – The Onion) for the live recording of his new podcast, OBSESSED. Special guests Bill Corbett, Sam Landman, and Zoe Benston join Joseph for a special Star Wars themed episode!

$12, $10 with 2011 Minnesota Fringe Festival Button

www.patrickscabaret.org

Cheap Theatre and Tom Cassidy present an evening of book-related readings and performances. The April Sellers Dance Collective perform “Had for a Dollar,” in which Emily Gatineau, Kay Kirscht, and April Sellers enact their own rules of censorship, slicing and dicing printed matter in a high-energy improvised game. Animator and video-maker John Akre premieres “Conduct of Life,” a disaster-movie journey through the wisdom of Ralph Waldo Emerson. The Minnesota Center for Book Arts’ Director Jeff Rathermel talks about “Gutenberg’s Papercut.” Cheap Theatre founder Erica Christ takes back most givens about books as we know (or knew) them. Jazz poet Ted King riffs on word matters with matter accelerator Reverand Dr. Dan Boling on guitar. And Tom Cassidy rants about how buying 15,680 books at one time last summer was so stupidly great that it stopped him from ranting for several months. And special guest librarian Inge Cassidy will collect what you owe for that copy of “Show Me the Good Parts” you never returned. $10 at box office; $8 from performers in advance.

www.bryantlakebowl.com

Featuring Bill Ratner and Don Shelby. Tickets: $8-12 (pay what you can). Reservations: 612-825-8949 or www.bryantlakebowl.com.

www.slammn.org

Story SlamMN! is the first regular Story Slam series in Minnesota, started by Poetry Slam Master and Rockstar Storyteller, Allison Broeren.

THEMES:
February 7: The Ex-Files
March 6: Sister Act: Sibling Stories
April 3: Almost Famous
May 1: Armageddon: Good vs. Evil
June 5: Superman: Hero Stories

WHAT IS STORY SLAM?
Story slams are open to anybody. Each night 12 Storytellers will have the chance to vie for medals, cash, and eternal glory by telling their 5-minute story as it relates to the theme for the night. Five random audience judges will be selected to determine the storytellers’ fates as the audience gets rowdy trying to influence the scores. The top three winners at each regular slam qualify for the Big Money Grand Slam in July.

RULES
Anybody can sign-up to tell a tale FACT OR FICTION (but with original words by the storyteller) as it relates to the theme of the evening. We will pull 12 contestants names out of a hat that get to compete. Storytellers have 5 minutes to tell their stories, with a 30 second grace period before point deductions start. After 5:30 you will lose a half point for every 10 seconds you are over the limit. If you go too much over time you may get walked off the stage-so practice your story! 5 randomly selected audience members will be given the power to judge your stories from 0-10. We drop the high and low score, and add the 3 in the middle for your final score. The highest score wins! No props, costumes, or musical accompaniments. Notes are permitted, but remember part of scoring is based off of performance too!

www.thecoffeegrounds.net

P.J Stories is a story time just like a peanut butter sandwich–a story on both sides and lots of fun squished in-between. Each first Thursday of the month a different storyteller is featured. P.J.’s has been presenting stories for school aged students for over 5 years. For directions call the Coffee Grounds at 651-644-9959 or visit www.thecoffeegrounds.net. Sponsored by Northstar Storytelling League and the Coffee Grounds Coffee Shop. Free. Donations gratefully accepted.