HYFIN and Ex Fabula are teaming up to host an open mic event for BIPOC storytellers and creatives. “AfterDark: For the Culture” will feature stories, spoken word and poetry on heritage, family, hair, food and more.
“This event is meant to create a space for people to come together and share their own genuine expression,” Ex Fabula Program Director Alea McHatten. The open mic also “highlight[s] culture and people and in celebrating them with a wider audience,” McHatten said.
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Kim Shine of HYFIN, Radio Milwaukee’s Urban Alternative station, and McHatten will be hosting the event together.
“Everyone is invited,” Shine said, “but [AfterDark is] centering Black and Brown voices because there’s a lot of creativity [in Milwaukee] when it comes to spoken or the written word, [but] you don’t always hear from black and brown communities. […] Black culture is American culture.”
The event will have pre-selected storytellers, but audience members are encouraged to tell their stories onstage too. The time limit is five minutes per person.
“It’s a semi-curated event because we understand that not everybody wants to tell their story or not everybody feels safe in the moment,” Shine said. “We didn’t want it to be a full open mic and just waiting and seeing [for storytellers to share].”
HYFIN and Ex Fabula hope this event will foster connections between people in the spoken word and storytelling community in Milwaukee, bringing people together.
“[Our] programs [are] centered around the same thing, folks understanding one another and… being able to find safe spaces and collaborate and… realize that we come from different backgrounds but we are all in this together at some point, so we need to learn about each other. We need to respect each other and a great way to do that is by listening to each other,” Shine said.
“AfterDark: For the Culture” is on July 14 at Radio Milwaukee’s Green Rooftop (220 E. Pittsburgh Ave.). Doors open at 6:30 p.m. before the StorySlam at 7 p.m. Tickets for the event can be purchased online. Before the event begins, Ex Fabula will host a free “StoryStarter Workshop,” giving guests the opportunity to practice their story and get tips before they perform at the main event.
