Three Long Islanders will take the stage in (mostly) TRUE THINGS, a storytelling game show where audiences listen to personal stories and try to spot subtle lies hidden within mostly true accounts.
The Jan. 10 show, titled New Start, begins at 7 p.m. at The Performing Arts Studio, 224 E. Main St., Port Jefferson.
“The main thing is that it’s true personal stories,” said host and show creator Jude Treder-Wolff of Selden. “There’s a lot of comedy, a lot of heart, and a lot of things people can relate to. You’ll laugh, you’ll feel stuff, and then you get to ask questions and hopefully win a prize.”
Treder-Wolff created the program to bring a popular New York City storytelling format to Long Island.
“Ten years ago, I was doing a lot of shows in the city, and it’s a schlep,” she said. “There wasn’t anything happening locally like that, so I thought I had to make something happen here. When I talked about these fun, true storytelling shows that were active in NYC and nationally, people just didn’t seem to know they existed.”
Unlike Manhattan-based storytelling games that challenge audiences to identify one true story among several lies, Treder-Wolff flipped the format. “All the stories are true in essence,” she explained, “but only one has no lies. The rest include subtle little alterations.”
Those changes might involve a road that doesn’t quite connect two towns, or a song playing on a car radio that hadn’t yet been released at the time of the story. “One or two altered details don’t change the story,” Treder-Wolff said. “But figuring out what those details are really engages the audience.”
Treder-Wolff’s background includes storytelling, comedy, singing, improv, and social work. As a creative arts therapist, she uses theater arts to help people heal and share their experiences.“True storytelling as an art helps people feel more known and understood,” she said.
The Jan. 10 performance, produced by Lifestage Inc., will feature storytellers Susan Wiedeman, a literacy specialist who incorporates storytelling into her work with students; Jean LeBec, a four-time Moth story slam winner; Dennis DiMaggio, a workplace trainer and improv performer; and St. James resident Cathy Rose Salt, a longtime performer, arts leader, and jazz musician.
Tickets are available at: mostlytruethings.com