One of the perks of living in Los Angeles, or in any large metropolitan area I guess, is the endless array of entertainment possibilities. I was recently introduced to a new one, one that I had never had any exposure to before—storytelling! I was actually surprised that I had never even heard or read any discussion about storytelling before. I guess you sometimes get used to what you know and become oblivious to other stuff.

But it only takes one person to open your mind to something new, and for me that was my friend Susanna. It all started when she announced she was performing in Expressing Motherhood, a stage show that offers moms with no acting, writing, or speaking background an opportunity to share their motherhood experiences. Susanna writes a blog called Not June chronicling her mothering and other life experiences and has a very unique voice so she had the writing part down, but the speaking/acting aspect was a new pursuit for her.

At first I was skeptical, certainly not about her ability to do it, but about my desire to go. I knew I wanted to support her in this new endeavour of hers, but I wasn’t sure this was the kind of entertainment I would enjoy. I knew I enjoyed shows with multiple characters showcasing one story, but Expressing Motherhood was just regular people, moms, sharing their own independent, true stories. How interesting could that really be? And it was at a theater in Burbank, so this was definitely a multiple hour commitment to boot. Continue reading →