Wanderlust runs Saturdays at 8pm in January and February
Get your tickets here!
Stories are, and always have been, an important part of my family. As a kid, my sister and I required a bedtime story from my dad every night. He would make up the wildest of tales, transporting us to other times and places and filling our heads with the most elaborate of adventures.
He and my mom occasionally would go on trips for work, and to spare us the horror of having to go to bed without a bedtime story, they each made us a tape with stories on them. These were no ordinary voice recordings: they had sound effects of lions and trains and blizzards, with my parents giving details that really made us feel like we were there in the story with them, feeling the hot sun on our faces, or listening to the river under the boat. We would listen until we fell asleep every night.
I’ve never forgotten those stories. I think that humanity as a whole connects to the process of Story and Storytelling in ways that we don’t always connect to anything else, even other forms of art. I think that’s why I love the work produced by the Hideout so much, because they give so much respect and enthusiasm toward the art of telling sincere stories.
Wanderlust fulfills that awesome itch I have for telling tales in a way I haven’t experienced since my dad’s improvised bedtime stories as a kid. Not only do we get to go along for a story, but because of the unique structure of the ensemble and featured adventurers each week, we also get to experience it. It’s like the difference between 2-D and 3-D. You can see the world change around the characters, hear the wind blowing as they walk through a canyon, and see a visual representation of their feelings onstage. It’s a really amazing experience to be a part of. Ruby and Aaron had such a clear vision from the very beginning, and to see that vision slowly playing out and coming to fruition has been both challenging and rewarding. We even have this modular set that we can essentially mold to fit whatever we fancy for each scene.
I think storytelling is fun, it is artistic, but it is also IMPORTANT. It is how we share worlds and experiences with each other, with our children, with complete strangers. It is how we connect as humans. My dad has Alzheimer’s now, and can’t remember the stories that he once told. But my sister and I will never forget those silly little tales, and like many stories told around the world, they mean far more to us than the words they took to tell.
Come see a story unfold before YOUR eyes, and experience Wanderlust for yourself every Saturday in January and February at 8pm.