illuminated birth event

Join Illuminated Birth for an evening of sharing and listening to birth stories! Attendees are invited to share their birth story, or just listen to others and give support. Whether your birth experience was joyful, difficult, or complicated, we need safe spaces to share these stories. We carry our birth stories with us throughout our lives; sharing them with a supportive group can be cathartic, healing, and validating.

Hosted by two doulas in a cozy, welcoming space. Open to all women and birthing people. Babies in arms are welcome, but please leave older babies and children at home. Click HERE to sign up.

illuminated birth event

Birth Story Circle Hosted by Meryl Estabrook and Megan Peasley

Join Illuminated Birth for an evening of sharing and listening to birth stories! Attendees are invited to share their birth story, or just listen to others and give support. Whether your birth experience was joyful, difficult, or complicated, we need safe spaces to share these stories. We carry our birth stories with us throughout our lives; sharing them with a supportive group can be cathartic, healing, and validating.

Hosted by two doulas in a cozy, welcoming space. Open to all women and birthing people. Babies in arms are welcome, but please leave older babies and children at home. Click here to register.

What does it mean to be home?

We invite you to listen to true stories, told live, as we discover the values we all share as neighbors and celebrate our diversity. Hearing a true story live, even on Zoom, is as entertaining as it is uplifting.

Join us on Friday, March 4th as regional storytelling champions and first-time storytellers from our community share stories about "Home". Enjoy an evening of entertainment, inspiration, and appreciation as we reflect on the importance of "home".

Join us on March 4th! Register today:
https://givebutter.com/neighbors2022
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Co-Produced by Fugitive Productions

Based in Acton, Fugitive Stories presents "Moth-Inspired True Stories Told Live" — non competitive storytelling events in Acton, Concord and Arlington. They bring featured storytellers — Moth and MassMouth champions — to tell a true tale alongside community members who we're spotlighting for the first time.
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This Year's Tellers

As folks who either grew up locally or live here now, all our community tellers call the Acton-Boxborough community "home". We are thrilled to be hosting:

Bill Ryan - Former ABRSD Superintendent

Evie Stevens - World Champion and U.S. Olympian in Cycling, ABRHS graduate

Bob Sweeney - Retired NHL player, Executive Director of the Bruins Foundation, ABRHS graduate

Maribel Mendoza - A-B United Way Board Member

Zainab Garelnabi - A-B United Way Student Board Member
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Plus, a talented group of award-winning storytellers from Fugitive Stories:

Theresa Okokon
Co-host of GBH’s Stories from the Stage, Storytelling Workshop Leader & Coach

Don Picard
The Moth StorySLAM Winner & GrandSLAM Finalist, WGBH Featured Storyteller

Rose Saia
Moth GrandSLAM Finalist, “Big Mouth Off” Semi-Finalist, WGBH Featured Storyteller

Mark Modrall
Massmouth Story Slam Winner & “Big Mouth Off” Semi-Finalist

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Thanks to these local sponsors, 100% of the ticket sales will support local community initiatives!

Papalia Plumbing & Heating
Qualcomm Foundation
West Acton Villageworks
Enterprise Bank
Gallant Insurance Agency
Idylwilde Farms
Mill Design & Blinds
Open Door Education
Kitchen Outfitters
Live4 Physical Therapy
National Grid
West Acton Village Merchants Association

Sponsorship Opportunities still available! Support the local A-B community and receive recognition both before and at this event and our May 5K in West Acton. Learn more: abuw.org/sponsors

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Suggested Donation $25 per person

Join us on March 4th! Register today:
https://givebutter.com/neighbors2022

Welcome Back Neighbors!

Last year, we co-hosted a storytelling fundraiser with AB United Way just before COVID-19 hit. It resulted in a capacity crowd at Villageworks in West Acton and a good amount of money raised to help people in need in the local community.

This year, as our event is online, we’ll miss the intimacy of spending time together, but we are able to open this up to a whole new and much larger audience. Tell your friends, wherever they may be, that they’re in for a fabulous night of true stories told live. In addition to several hand-picked first timers, we’ll be bringing back some of our favorite award-winning, featured tellers. You’re in for a treat.

We’re thrilled to include Groton-native and MSNBC’s “chart-throb” Steve Kornacki as a storyteller this evening. Steve has received well-deserved accolades for his work at NBC’s “Big Board” where he shares election statistics in real time. We congratulate him on his new gig, working the big board for NBC’s NFL Sunday night games.

Our theme for the evening is “Neighbors.” Our featured tellers include:

Matthew Dicks
Matthew is a 41-time Moth StorySLAM champion and six-time GrandSLAM champion whose stories have been featured on its nationally syndicated Moth Radio Hour and weekly podcast. One of his stories has also appeared on GBH’s “Stories From the Stage.” He is an elementary school teacher and the internationally bestselling author of the novels Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend, Something Missing, Unexpectedly, Milo, and The Perfect Comeback of Caroline Jacobs. He is the founder and Creative Director of “Speak Up,” a Hartford-based storytelling organization. Matt loves ice cream cake, golf, tickling his children, staring at his wife, and not sleeping.

Sara Sweet Rabidoux-Kelsey
Sara is a Moth MainStage performer and a GrandSLAM champion. She is the Co-Founder of Blind Tiger Tellers and once ruined the perfect chance to meet her idol, Billy Joel. When she’s not bartending at Logan Airport, Sara creates reenactments of scenes from The Handmaid’s Tale with Barbie dolls for her fan art account, @OfkensTale on Instagram.

Wes Hazard
A comic, storyteller, and actor who has appeared on ABC & PBS television, GBH “Stories from the Stage” co-host Wes Hazard brings wit, energy, and honesty to the stage. Named one of Boston’s “Five Comics to Watch” by The Boston Globe, he’s been heard on the Risk! podcast, The MOTH Podcast, and is a three-time Jeopardy! Champion.

Katie Liesener
2016’s Massmouth “Big Mouth-Off” champion Katie Liesener has performed in more than 80 shows across eight states. She is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, and other publications.

And some local storyteller:
In addition to Fugitive’s featured storytellers, a few friends of AB United Way will be sharing their stories: Christine Schuster, President & CEO of Emerson Hospital; Elizabeth Li, Acton-Boxborough Regional High School Student; and Boxborough’s own Vivek Kadambi.

Window opens at 6:45. Come early to chat with friends.
Event starts at 7pm.
Suggested donation $25 per person.

Thanks to these local sponsors, 100% of the ticket sales will support local community initiatives: Acton Pharmacy; Bisousweet Confections; Circle Furniture; Coughlin, Sheff & Associates, P.C.; Enterprise Bank ; Gallant Insurance Agency; National Grid; Northeast Auto Inventories ; Papalia Plumbing & Heating; Purveyor of Promotional Products; and Steinberg-Lalli Charitable Foundation.

PLEASE NOTE: THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED DUE TO THE COVID-19 RESPONSE.

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling at West Acton Villageworks. We bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? Fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a five- to six-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

March’s Theme: “Careful”

FEATURED TELLERS

• Kemp Harris
  WGBH Featured Storyteller, Children's Storyteller, Actor, Musician & Composer

• George Vendura (George from the Bronx)
  Massmouth “Big Mouth Off” Champion Finalist

• Paul Doncaster
  Featured in two Moth GrandSLAMs, WGBH Featured Storyteller

To learn more about tonight’s featured tellers, click here.

Doors open at 5:30pm • Storytelling starts at 6pm
$10/online • $12/door • Purchase tickets here.
Tickets available online until 4pm on the day of the show.

Grab a beverage or snack at Acton Coffee House, right downstairs and bring it on up. Or take walk down the block for some yummy homemade ice cream at West Side Creamery.

Treehouse (http://www.treehouse.red/) is a network of GIVERS that empowers and inspires its members to take meaningful action via a series of small, invitation-only, nontraditional events. Since Treehouse members are givers, you are far more likely to get help from Treehouse than from any other business networking group. Join, return, and sponsor!

This event is a Treehouse Talk (for Treehouse members, prospective members, and the public), group storytelling in conjunction with Fugitive Productions (http://www.fugitiveproductions.com/previous-fugitive-stories-events) on the theme "peacemaking & positive feedback." Mingle, tell and/or experience 3-4 short stories, mingle again! Email us (info@house.red) if you'd like to tell your story!

ABOUT STORYTELLING: Hearing a true story live is fun, moving, and transformative. We are hard-wired, perhaps at a genetic level, to tell and listen to stories. Storytelling is an art form as old as humanity. It is the primary way that we relate to each other to create kinship and community. Humanity’s earliest stories were about survival, hope, loss, love, and courage. Today’s stories echo the same themes. Fugitive Stories presents "Moth-inspired True Stories Told Live" — non-competitive storytelling events in Acton, Concord, and Arlington. Our stories are told, not read, and are roughly five minutes long.

ABOUT TICKETS: Treehouse is free for attendees and is brought to you by the generosity of its sponsors. How it works:

WEEK 1 - Paid tickets go on sale (sponsors and donors). If you're seeing only paid tickets, then it's week 1!
WEEK 2 - If an event's costs ($40/person/event) are covered in week 1, then free tickets go on sale (attendees). If you're seeing free tickets, then it's week 2!

If sponsorship does not cover the cost of the event, then the event will be moved to the next time slot. Sponsors please note that (1) this event's date/location may change and (2) tickets are non-refundable. This page (and the number of available free tickets) is updated peridiocally, so check early and check often! This event is brought to you by the following:

DONORS (any amount)
- Lesley Leonessa (https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesley-leonessa-928ab012/).

BRONZE ($80/event)
- Scott Lewis, CEO Roundtable (https://ceo-roundtable.com/) - Bringing CEOs, Presidents and business Owners together for candid, solution-seeking discussions that focus on the challenges and pressures unique to top-level management.
- Alen Bell (https://www.linkedin.com/in/alandbell1/) - Edward Jones.

SILVER ($120/event)
- TBD

GOLD ($160/event)
- Clocktower (http://www.clocktowerlaw.com/) – IP attorneys guiding entrepreneurs from startup to exit.

AN EVENING OF STORYTELLING ON “BELONGING” TO BENEFIT NEIGHBORS IN NEED. 

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling at West Acton Villageworks. Tonight, we host eight storytellers — four Moth Champions and four folks chosen from the local community. It is an evening of entertainment the proceeds of which will support the AB United Way, a local nonprofit that fights for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in our communities. 

While storytelling is entertainment, it is so much more. It is an art form as old as humanity. It is the primary way that we relate to each other to create kinship and community. Humanity’s earliest stories were about survival, hope, loss, love, and courage. Today’s stories echo the same themes.

Hearing a true story in a live performance is fun, moving. and transformative. Fugitive Stories evenings intimately reveal what we all have in common. You’ll laugh and sometimes shed a few tears. Every event opens a door to a memory or to your heart.

Tonight’s Theme: “Belonging” (Appropriate for teens on up)

FEATURED TELLERS

• Special Guest Teller State Senator Jamie Eldridge

• Rose Saia — Moth GrandSLAM Finalist, Massmouth “Big Mouth Off” Semi-Finalist, WGBH Featured Storyteller, Co-founder Fugitive Stories

• Susanne Schmidt — Moth Producer, Comedienne

• Robin Schoenthaler —Moth GrandSLAM Champion

• Brendyn Schneider — Massmouth “Big Mouth Off” Finalist, WGBH Featured Storyteller, StorySpace Featured Teller

To learn more about tonight’s featured tellers, click here.

Doors open at 7:30pm • Storytelling starts at 8pm
$20/online • $25/door •  Purchase tickets here.
Tickets available online until 4pm on the day of the show.
Non-alcoholic beverages and snacks will be provided.

Show your ticket receipt for 20% off food (only) at True West the night of the event.
Early seating and reservations recommended.

Presented by Acton-Boxborough United Way and Fugitive Productions. Thanks to the generous support of these local businesses, 100% of the ticket sales will support local community projects: AB PIP STEM, Fugitive Productions, Market Dynamics, West Acton Villageworks, and Q Cleaner & Tailor.

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling at West Acton Villageworks. We bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? Fill out our form online. We’ll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a five- to six-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

January’s Theme: “Wrong Turn”

Our award-winning featured tellers for the night. Click here to view their bios.

Don Picard — The Moth StorySLAM Winner & GrandSLAM Finalist, WGBH Featured Storyteller
Rachel Gans-Boriskin — Senior Lecturer in Communications at the Gwen Ifill College of Media, Arts, and Humanities at Simmons University
Mark Modrall — Massmouth & Moth StorySlam Winner, “Big Mouth Off” Semi-Finalist, WGBH Featured Storyteller

Doors open at 5:30pm • Storytelling starts at 6pm
$10/online • $12/door • Purchase tickets here.Tickets available online until 4pm on the day of the show.

Stop by Acton Coffee House for a snack or beverage on your way upstairs. Or mosey on down the street to grab a yummy homemade ice cream at West Side Creamery and bring it on up.

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling in The Gallery at Villageworks in West Acton. We bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? You can fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a five- to six-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

$10/online • $12/door
Order your tickets here.
Doors open at 5:30pm. Storytelling starts at 6pm.

Acton Coffeehouse, as you enter the venue, serves beverages and snacks until 6pm. Bring them on up!

Do you want to be a scheduled community teller in Acton or another location? Fill out our form here.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling in The Gallery at Villageworks in West Acton. We bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? You can fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a five- to six-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

$10/online • $12/door
Order your tickets here.
Doors open at 5:30pm. Storytelling starts at 6pm.

Acton Coffeehouse, as you enter the venue, serves beverages and snacks until 6pm. Bring them on up!

Do you want to be a scheduled community teller in Acton or another location? Fill out our form here.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling in The Gallery at Villageworks in West Acton. We bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? You can fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a five- to six-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

$10/online • $12/door
Order your tickets here.
Doors open at 5:30pm. Storytelling starts at 6pm.

Acton Coffeehouse, as you enter the venue, serves beverages and snacks until 6pm. Bring them on up!

Do you want to be a scheduled community teller in Acton or another location? Fill out our form here.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

February’s Theme: “Almost”

FEATURED TELLERS

Janelle Codianni
Janelle is a writer, performer, story coach, and the owner of High Maintenance, her handy-woman business. She co-produces Harpy, a storytelling show in Somerville that features the voices of women and femmes. When she isn’t doing these things, she’s remodeling her vintage camper, powerlifting, or attempting to casually talk to her two daughters about consent.

Mark Modrall
Mark is a computer programmer from Littleton.  He started telling stories in public about six years ago when he ran out of relatives who hadn't heard that one before. He's won several story slams at the Moth and Massmouth, and he's been a featured speaker at WGBH's “Stories From the Stage.” And he counts himself blessed that he's occasionally invited to speak with much better tellers at great venues, like Fugitive Productions.

Don Picard
Don Picard is a Moth storyteller who shares his own moving life moments with humor and humility. He has worked in software development for nearly 30 years and is currently employed for JobCase, “a place to manage all things work-related, especially the wisdom, experience and connections” of other job hunters. Don was a double major in Theatre Arts and Computer Science at Cornell, and chose to work as an engineer in order to be able to live in Cambridge and feed his family. Don enjoys telling live stories about his kids, husband, and extended family as it is fun, therapeutic, and allows him to exercise the other half of his college degree so he doesn’t become bitter.

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling in The Gallery at Villageworks in West Acton. We bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? You can fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a five- to six-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

$10/online • $12/door
Order your tickets here.
Doors open at 5:30pm. Storytelling starts at 6pm.

Acton Coffeehouse, as you enter the venue, serves beverages and snacks until 6pm. Bring them on up!

Do you want to be a scheduled community teller in Acton or another location? Fill out our form here.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

Each month, we bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? Sign up at the cafe or fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a four- to five-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

$10/online • $12/door
Order your online tickets here.
Doors open at 5:30pm. Storytelling starts at 6pm.

December’s Theme: “Indulgence”
Featured Tellers

Karen Lock Kolp began telling live stories in 2015, when she won the first slam she ever entered. She's competed in multiple semifinals in Massmouth’s annual “Big Mouth-Off” competition. Karen has told for WGBH's Stories from the Stage and she's told many stories as a featured teller here at Fugitive Productions. Karen is also an expert in child development whose podcast, We Turned Out Okay, features lots of stories and updates weekly.

Rachel Gans-Boriskin is a Senior Lecturer in Communications at the Gwen Ifill College of Media, Arts, and Humanities at Simmons University where she teaches storytelling, journalism, health communication, and media studies. A political junkie, she blogs at politicsinpink.com waxing eloquent, and at times angry, about feminism, politics, and popular culture. She lives in central Massachusetts with her husband, two kids, two cats, six chickens, one lizard, and numerous dust bunnies.

Professional storyspinner, published writer, performance instructor, host, and TedX Coach, Brendyn Schneider is a Boston-based storyteller who’s been featured at WGBH Studios, Emerson College, Coolidge Corner Theater, Somerville Theatre, and other action-packed venues across New England. He is a Moth StorySLAM winner, a winner of multiple Massmouth regional and semifinal slams, as well as a three-time finalist for Massmouth’s annual “BigMouthOff” show. He’s also been featured as performer and host at Northeast Storytelling’s annual conference, “Sharing the Fire” and he recently moderated a panel of master storytellers at Juilliard in New York City. A Fugitive Stories veteran, Brendyn takes his audiences on story-trips of wit through the follies of growing up and the everyday slog. For more, please venture to brendynschneider.com.

Acton Coffeehouse is open until 6pm. Be sure to grab a beverage and a snack on your way up.

Do you want to be a scheduled community teller in Acton or another location? Fill out our form here. We welcome those as young as 13 and there is no age limit!

If you want to be the first to know about all of our events, sign up for our email list.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

Fugitive Stories continues its special brand of non-competitive storytelling in The Gallery at Villageworks in West Acton. We bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? You can fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a five- to six-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

November Theme: “Just in Time”

FEATURED TELLERS

Mark Modrall
Mark is a computer programmer from Littleton. He started telling stories in public about six years ago when he ran out of relatives who hadn't heard that one before. He's won several story slams at the Moth and Massmouth, and he's been a featured speaker at WGBH's “Stories From the Stage.” And he counts himself blessed that he's occasionally invited to speak with much better tellers at great venues, like Fugitive Productions.

Theresa Okokon
Theresa Is a Wisconsin native, a yoga teacher, a social worker, a storyteller, and the co-host of WGBH & Massmouth's Stories from the Stage — the first nationally televised TV show dedicated entirely to live storytelling. She works in nonprofit development, and also owns and operates a small business called LEGIT.yoga, where she provides trauma-informed yoga to people at Boston-area homeless shelters, low-income housing communities, and alternative schools. She loves sandwiches, hammocks, crafting cocktails, cooking without a recipe, and laughter.

Don Picard
Don Picard is a Moth storyteller who shares his own moving life moments with humor and humility. He has worked in software development for nearly 30 years and is currently employed for JobCase, “a place to manage all things work-related, especially the wisdom, experience and connections” of other job hunters. Don was a double major in Theatre Arts and Computer Science at Cornell, and chose to work as an engineer in order to be able to live in Cambridge and feed his family. Don enjoys telling live stories about his kids, husband, and extended family as it is fun, therapeutic, and allows him to exercise the other half of his college degree so he doesn’t become bitter.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

$10/online • $12/door
Purchase online tickets here.
Doors open at 5:30pm. Storytelling starts at 6pm.

Acton Coffeehouse, as you enter the venue, serves beverages and snacks until 6pm. Bring them on up!

Each month, we bring Moth and Massmouth winners, along with others from the local community, to share their stories. Do you want to tell your story on our theme? Sign up at the cafe or fill out our form online. We'll get back to you to let you know if you're in. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a four- to five-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

March Theme: “ARRIVAL”
Are we there yet? Have you recently arrived at a surprising conclusion? Did you finally take that big step in life you've been avoiding? Have you met little green people? Have you ever waited four days for a boat to take you up the Niger River to Timbuktu — and it was a no show (I have!)?

FEATURED TELLERS

Janelle Codianni
Jannelle, a Massmouth StorySLAM winner and Massmouth Grand Champion Finalist (2nd place), is an author and theater arts producer.

Katie Liesener
Katie Liesener is a co-coordinator for Massmouth. As a storyteller, she’s performed in over 80 shows across eight states. She’s also a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, and other publications. Katie was the 2016 Massmouth “Big Mouth-Off” champion.

Christine Gentry
Christine joins BBQ on the list of good things to come out of Texas. She holds a PhD in English Education from Columbia University and currently serves as Director of Teacher Development and Licensure for a network of public high schools in Boston. Christine likes to write short stories, perform in oral storytelling shows and is the co-producer and host the Boston branch of “The Story Collider.” Her writing has been published in Word Riot, The English Record, and Printer’s Devil Review magazines, and her oral stories have been featured on the “Story Collider,” “Best of RISK!,” and “This American Life” podcasts. Christine is a Moth GrandSLAM champion and Mainstage performer.

$10/online • $12/door
Order your online tickets here.
Doors open at 5:30pm. Storytelling starts at 6pm.

Acton Coffeehouse is open until 6pm. Be sure to grab a beverage and a snack on your way up.

True West Brewery offers 15% off food in the restaurant for advance tickets holders on the day of each event. Stop in before the show or after!

Do you want to be a scheduled community teller in Acton or another location? Fill out our form here. We welcome those as young as 13 and there is no age limit!

If you want to be the first to know about all of our events, sign up for our email list.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

“People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it’s the other way around.”
— Terry Pratchett

Storytelling is humanity’s oldest form of entertainment. It is the legacy of generations. There’s a thing that happened. There’s the story of the thing that happened. Then there’s the interpretation of the story of the thing that happened. Good tellers identify a moment and craft a compelling story that resonates on many levels — evoking emotion, inviting introspection, and offering a chance to connect with others.

“Fugitive Stories” is a monthly event that brings new and experienced storytellers together to challenge and delight us with this profoundly personal, accessible craft.

Invited tellers prepare five- to six-minutes stories. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a two- to three-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

Acton 2017 Fall series:

• Sunday, October 1 — “Breathless”
• Sunday, November 5 — “On the Move”
• Sunday, December 3 — “Good Intentions”

Doors open at 5:30pm with storytelling beginning at 6pm and ending around 7:30pm with one intermission.

Tickets are $10/online • $12/door
Click here to order tickets.

Season Series Ticket Special: $50/Two Season Tickets to all three events
Click here to purchase season tickets.

Acton Coffeehouse is open until 6pm. Be sure to grab a beverage and a snack on your way up.

True West Brewery offers 15% off food in the restaurant for advance tickets holders on the day of each event. Stop in before the show or after!

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

“People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it’s the other way around.”
— Terry Pratchett

Storytelling is humanity’s oldest form of entertainment. It is the legacy of generations. There’s a thing that happened. There’s the story of the thing that happened. Then there’s the interpretation of the story of the thing that happened. Good tellers identify a moment and craft a compelling story that resonates on many levels — evoking emotion, inviting introspection, and offering a chance to connect with others.

“Fugitive Stories” is a monthly event that brings new and experienced storytellers together to challenge and delight us with this profoundly personal, accessible craft.

Invited tellers prepare five- to six-minutes stories. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a two- to three-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.
 

Acton 2017 Fall series:

• Sunday, October 1 — “Breathless”
• Sunday, November 5 — “On the Move”
• Sunday, December 3 — “Good Intentions”

Doors open at 5:30pm with storytelling beginning at 6pm and ending around 7:30pm with one intermission.

Tickets are $10/online • $12/door
Click here to order tickets.

Season Series Ticket Special: $50/Two Season Tickets to all three events
Click here to purchase season tickets.

Acton Coffeehouse is open until 6pm. Be sure to grab a beverage and a snack on your way up.

True West Brewery offers 15% off food in the restaurant for advance tickets holders on the day of each event. Stop in before the show or after!

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

Fugitive Stories is delighted to begin another year of storytelling in Acton with a special event! A Storytelling Evening to Benefit Bridges Together, Inc., a nonprofit provider of intergenerational programs headquartered in Sudbury, MA

Sunday, September 24 — “Across Generations”
Featured Storytellers: Amanda Goodwin, Kemp Harris, and Rose Saia

Doors open at 6pm with storytelling beginning at 6:30pm and ending around 8:30pm with one intermission.

Tickets are $20/online • $25/door
Special Intergenerational Ticket Offer: Two tickets for $30! Buy one ticket for a Senior (65+) plus one ticket for a high school student and the second ticket will be 50% off! Advance purchase only.

Click here to purchase tickets.

Questions? Please contact Fugitive Productions directly at (617) 823-2313 or dg@fugitiveproductions.com.

“People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it’s the other way around.”
— Terry Pratchett

Storytelling is humanity’s oldest form of entertainment. It is the legacy of generations. There’s a thing that happened. There’s the story of the thing that happened. Then there’s the interpretation of the story of the thing that happened. Good tellers identify a moment and craft a compelling story that resonates on many levels — evoking emotion, inviting introspection, and offering a chance to connect with others.

“Fugitive Stories” is a monthly event that brings new and experienced storytellers together to challenge and delight us with this profoundly personal, accessible craft.

Invited tellers prepare five- to six-minutes stories. We also invite audience members who are interested in telling a two- to three-minute story on our theme to drop their name in a hat. If chosen, they’ll tell their tale.

Acton Coffee provides beverages and snacks until 6:30pm. Order them downstairs and bring them up for the show.

Doors open at 6pm
Storytelling starts at 6:30pm

Click here to learn more about Fugitive Stories.
Click here to purchase tickets. ($10/online, $12/door)

“Kemp Harris is a thief, a tease and a heartbreaker. Plus, knows too much. And it’s all right there when he sings. Beautifully there.”  — Tom Ashbrook (host of On Point, NPR)

“Stories on the Wind,” presented by Kemp Harris, keeps the oral tradition of "telling" alive. Kemp is a composer, musician, children’s author, and actor who has been performing in the region for decades. Most important, for nearly 40 years, Kemp has been “performing” as a kindergarten teacher in Boston's burbs. The man knows how to tell a story and how to keep children — and their parents — engaged.

Kemp has performed as a storyteller and musician at festivals, schools, and libraries across the country. Kemp’s program includes developmentally appropriate stories that incorporate music and audience participation. This event, designed for pre-schoolers on up, brings a mix of familiar stories, African folktales, and Kemp Harris originals to life in an informal and energetic setting. The program is designed to be an engaging, interactive experience for the whole family.

As a musician and composer, Kemp has shared the stage with Taj Mahal, Gil Scott-Heron, and Koko Taylor. He has written and performed original compositions for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, WGBH public television, and the soundtrack for the documentary, “An Unreasonable Man,” about the life and career of Ralph Nader.

While perhaps best known as a singer and piano player, Harris is one of those rare artists who demonstrates a gift for any expressive form he touches. 

PRESENTED BY FUGITIVE PRODUCTIONS
Tickets: $10 online, $12 at the door
Purchase three tickets, get one free.
Beverages and snacks are available at Acton Coffee House connected to The Gallery.

Do you have a story to tell? Lots of people have jumped into the storytelling pond. Storytelling has swept the nation with fans tuning in to The Moth Radio Hour and This American Life on NPR and/or going to local story slams where true stories are told to a live audience. Storytelling brings people together by sharing a moment that may be profoundly personal, hilarious, or transformative. It builds confidence as well as writing and public speaking skills. It can be an effective tool for business owners, marketing and sales professionals. It may help high school students prepare for their college essays. Plus, it’s just fun! In this new 3-part class, participants will learn how to write and tell a 5- to 6-minute true story based on a pre-selected theme. At the final class, attendees will tell their stories and receive feedback. Fugitive Stories monthly showcase will take place immediately after this class in The Gallery at Villageworks. Class members receive free admission and one member may be selected to tell his or her story! Open to all ages 13 and up. 

Rose Saia is a Moth winner, a WGBH & Massmouth storyteller and co-producer of Fugitive Stories in West Acton. Learn more about Fugitive Stories and Rose at www.fugitiveproductions.com/stories.

Click here for registration info.