Confabulation is a monthly showcase of true, lived stories, told by ordinary Montrealers from all walks of life. The stories are delivered without scripts, notes, props, or pretense, and it is one of the most lovely and sincere events I have had the pleasure to participate in (both as an audience member and storyteller on one occasion).
Each event has a loose theme and this month, I am thrilled to collaborate on a special edition Confabulation about neighbourhoods. We are still looking for storytellers, so if you would like to tell a 10-minute story about a neighbourhood (in Montreal or elsewhere) or a neighbour – please get in touch, or sign up on the Confabulation website.
Actor and comedian Matt Goldberg writes that he started Confabulation last year because “like many people, I was convinced that I had no stories. Or rather that I had somehow lost all my stories, which suggested they were none-too-important to begin with.”
“We just don’t tell a lot of stories anymore. And when we do, they tend to be short sound-bytes of story, brief moments that we find funny or odd….but I think by limiting our stories in this way, by self-editing and selecting, we lose something. We lose the confidence that our life is full of meaning.”
In the same way, our neighbourhoods are invested with meaning through the stories that we live within them. Even if – like Goldberg – you don’t feel that you have a story to contribute this time round, please come down to listen – many people who attend a Confabulation event begin to feel their own stories stirring and making their way towards the surface…
Confabulation: Neighbourhoods takes place Friday Saturday February 5th at 8pm, at Shaika Café, 5526 Sherbrooke West (Vendome metro). If you want to tell a story, please get in touch or sign up here. Everyone is welcome to come and listen in, the event is by donation.
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February 5th is a Saturday. Do you mean Friday, February 4th?