A little history of live storytelling
(or, more on where we came from & why we’re here)

 In 1986, Marc Smith, a construction worker from Chicago, started a grassroots revolution at the Get Me High Lounge when he and some compatriots hosted the first-ever poetry slam — a response to the sterile, academic poetry readings that dominated the scene at the time.

The slam, Smith explained, “gives it back to the people.... We need people to talk poetry to each other. That's how we communicate our values, our hearts, the things that we've learned that make us who we are.”

The slam gave poetry back to the people by adding one crucial element: audience judging. The audience decided who was best at delivering their poetry to the listeners, which was predicated not just on content, but also style, charisma, and confidence.

In a very short period of time, the poetry slam took the world by storm, making its way to the Nuyorican Poets Café in New York and then branching out to San Francisco, Europe, the African Continent, and beyond. Go to most major cities, and you will find someone hosting a poetry slam.

And now, wherever you find a poetry slam, a story slam is not far behind. The slam format was so popular that live storytelling events adopted it. Large and small, story slams have become one of the most popular forms of live entertainment over the last two decades. And the principles remain the same: anyone can participate, as long as audience judges decide who has “told” their story the best.

 Yet despite these good intentions, slams have yielded some unfortunate consequences. The emphasis on competition has diminished the importance of community; the desire to win has overtaken the desire to connect.

Now, slams often silence exactly the people they originally lifted up, and the original idea, of talking to each other, often falls by the wayside.

First Person is dedicated to returning to Marc Smith’s original vision.

We’re here to lift up the voices of the marginalized and underrepresented, making space for a community of people to share their experiences, to talk their lives, to make meaning together. By removing audience judging and competition from the equation, we focus on the importance of relationships, collaborative creativity, and change at the grassroots level. First Person believes that we can effect change if we move stories that usually sit on the margins to the center.

P.S. First Person stands with Marc Smith, who still hosts his poetry slam in Chicago and has remained loyal to his vision of returning poetry to the public, rather than just the select few.

Ready to hear some live stories? Join us on 6/14: