Writing for Performance

A behind-the-scenes interview with FBC workshop hosts, ames & Leigh

Fifth Brain Collective (FBC) is thrilled to launch a new program - Fifth Brain Creative Studio, which will feature special guest speakers presenting workshops across a wide range of writing genres and topics. The first workshop in this series, Writing for Performance, will be co-hosted by ames granados and Leigh Spencer. Read on to learn more about your hosts and the journey they can’t wait to share with you.

So, ames, tell me about your path to becoming a writer-performer? (I do listen to you, but I could use a refresher).

I was performing boatloads of improv shows after training at Upright Citizens Brigade in LA. I followed the Nudge to take a storytelling class with a UCB instructor, Brian Finkelstein. He hosts the Moth in LA and has two phenomenal solo-shows (formerly known as one-man-shows). After my first time on the Moth stage, I WAS HOOKED. I won a Moth StorySLAM a few months later (added bonus. Getting up there is the fun part). I took a leap and wrote and performed a solo-show in the Hollywood Fringe Festival. “Jackass: A Prom Story” won an Encore Producers Award. Since then, I jump at any opportunity to write for the stage at local live storytelling shows (I also consider reading my written work in Fifth Brain Collective Membership meetings as “performing”).

Leigh, same question. How did you go from the page to the stage?

I have always been a writer, creating intricate scenes with imaginary friends before I could even write. I graduated from construction paper and crayons to (so many!) notebooks and pencils, eventually landing here, with my trusty desktop.

I became a performer totally by accident.

Back in 2014, my paths crossed with Mel Blumenthal, who was on the board of F*ST! Female Storytellers. She knew I was a writer and liked my sense of humor, so she informed me that I HAD to tell a story for F*ST!. I had no idea what storytelling was.

My first F*ST! show was powerful and life-changing. I absolutely LOVED it, but I knew I could never do that. I didn’t write that way and I could never get on stage, in front of all those people.

Except Mel said I could and she was pretty determined and a little scary (in the best possible way). She almost literally pushed me on stage.

That first time, I was SO nervous. I entertained thoughts of shaving my head, fleeing the country, changing my name, and starting a new life, just to avoid telling my story. But I was kind of attached to my family, so I sucked it up and just did it.

I closed my first F*ST! show, having no idea that, in the performance world, they save the best for last. Turns out I did have a story to tell that people actually wanted to hear. I got to curse in Yiddish while wearing cowboy boots on an actual stage. That’s all it took. I was addicted.

I have been active with F*ST! ever since. I’ve told dozens of stories on multiple stages. I joined the F*ST! board in 2017 and am currently serving as the Storytelling Chair, helping lots of other folks overcome their doubts and tell their beautiful, powerful stories.

I’m qualified to do this work because I remember how nervous I was that first time, how much I needed a push from someone who inexplicably believed in me, and what an impact it had on my life.

Leigh Spencer (and the tops of her cowboy boots)

Ames, you’ve performed at a lot of different shows. Tell me about your most memorable performance. What made it stand out?

That’s easy. It was the opening night of “Jackass: A Prom Story.” Of the 349 reasons that I was terrified before the show, the scariest moment was when the audience laughed for the first time. I had failed to consider that this was a joint project. A collaboration. Them + me. I had written the story for myself. After the show, audience members said nice things (which is encouraging), but I was blown away by the folks who told me that they laughed and cried and saw themselves in my story. I didn’t know my words could do that. That revolutionized the way I thought about storytelling. It will be an important part of my life until the end.

Leigh, how about you? Any moments that particularly stand out?

So many! But there is one story that I am most often remembered for. It was about getting stung in the left boob by a scorpion while I was prepping for my sons’ birthday party. It featured the (in)famous line “I continued making three flavors of buttercream frosting like some one-handed tit juggler.” I have literally had strangers point at me in coffee shops and say “It’s the scorpion lady!” over that one.

Ames, do you have any advice for folks considering performing their work?

Before my first performance, The Voices in my head told me that I didn’t have anything meaningful to say, that my writing wasn’t good, and that I could pass out or piss my pants on stage. Thankfully, the Nudge to give it a shot was more powerful than the fear.

My advice is that if you want to share your writing, but The Voices are holding you back, politely acknowledge their presence. And then tell them to shut the fuck up. This world runs on stories – our inner life, our relationships, and global events are entirely defined by the stories we create and consume. Performing your work validates the worth of your lived experience. It gives the audience a chance to feel seen/known or to step into someone else’s shoes with empathy. That kinda stuff changes the world.

ames granados (changing the world - one story at a time)

Leigh, what about you? What advice would you give to someone who wants to share their written work with an audience?

Consider vulnerability and be honest about your boundaries. I am a classic over-sharer and I am fine with people knowing all sorts of potentially embarrassing things about me. But really think about your audience in terms of what you are willing to share. Is your class or writing group a safe space? Who is your audience? Even if you know your audience to be friendly and supportive, is the show being recorded? Who has access? As an example, F*ST! is launching a YouTube channel with videos of our storytellers. We record all the shows, but, so far, only the tellers get access to their stories and can do whatever they want with them. This is the first time we’re publishing for general public view. We will not publish a video without explicit, written permission from the teller. F*ST! audiences are notoriously friendly and like-minded, but the general public is far less predictable. Would you still feel proud, brave, and edgy if your grandma or third grade teacher watched your video? Writing is a vulnerable process and sharing is an act of faith and confidence. Do it joyfully, but thoughtfully and within comfort zones that only you can assign.

What’s this Writing for Performance workshop thing? Who is it for?

This workshop is for anyone who wants to share something they’ve written for performance. Our definition of the P word is pretty broad. “Performance” could mean anything from reading a piece you’re working on out loud for a class or writing group, reading from a published or soon-to-be-published work in a bookstore, or grabbing an actual microphone on an actual stage (or podcast) and sharing your actual words with an actual audience.

We cordially invite all writers of all genres and at all levels who are interested in sharing their work with an audience wider than pets or houseplants (although don’t discount pets and houseplants – they’re GREAT for practice. I (Leigh) had a deaf dog who was my number one fan.).

What will happen in the workshop?

We will talk a bit about our distinct backgrounds as writers and performers, and then guide you through some interactive prompts that will help you think about ways to transform or model your writing when you know it will be shared with an audience.

You’ll learn about….

• Where in the narrative to start for maximum engagement.

• How to combine facts with feelings to create a bigger message or lesson.

• How to choose segments of pieces you’ve already written to represent your writing style and entice an audience to read your larger work.

• Tips for using your voice to enhance your delivery.

The main thing that will happen is that you will explore your writing in a new way and have fun doing it with no pressure, critique, or expectation.

Lastly, what should people know about you (both)?

We’re both really passionate, not only about our own writing and performing, but also about helping other people by sharing whatever we know through our experience. Words have power and we are all about sharing the wealth and paying it forward.

We love writing, working, and teaching together. We’ve worked together through F*ST!, Odyssey, and The Fifth Brain Collective and we live 12 minutes apart (depending on traffic).

We genuinely want you to succeed – whatever that looks like for you – and find your voice as only YOU can.

We’re funny, talented, awkward, and not scary.

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To register for this workshop and see other Fifth Brain Creative Studio offerings (updated as workshops are added), click HERE or visit www.fifthbraincollective.com/news/studio. Questions? Email Ames at ames@fifthbraincollective.com or Leigh at leigh@fifthbraincollective.com. We can’t wait to write with you!