Experience the power, intimacy, and community-building of stories when radio favorite The Moth brings a diverse group of thoughtful storytellers to share their own stories, each crafted and shaped by a unique collection of experiences, identities, and worldviews, to the Moss Arts Center on Tuesday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m.

Hitting Home: The Moth in Blacksburg” will be held in the center’s Anne and Ellen Fife Theatre, located within the Street and Davis Performance Hall at 190 Alumni Mall.

Moth Mainstage shows are renowned for the great range of human experiences they showcase. Different than a Moth StorySLAM, these are curated events that feature five tellers who develop and shape their stories with Moth directors. Each show starts with a theme — “Hitting Home” is the theme chosen for this performance — and the storytellers explore it, often in unexpected ways. Because each story is true and every voice authentic, the shows dance between documentary and theatre, creating a unique, intimate, and often enlightening experience for the audience. 

The Moth approach allows people all over the world and from all walks of life to share their stories on stage in front of a live audience, illuminating both the diversity and commonality of human experience.

The evening’s host is Jon Goode, an Emmy-nominated author, poet, and playwright living in Atlanta. Goode has been a featured performer on HBO’s “Def Poetry,” TVOne’s “Verses & Flow,” and BET’s “Lyric Café.” He is the regular host of The Moth StorySLAM in Atlanta.

The featured storytellers include:

Hannah H. Smith Brennan. A sociologist and educator, Brennan’s expertise and enthusiasm blend theory and practice in her work on families, childhood, play, and young people's empowerment. While working with an elder community midwife during her pregnancies, Brennan experienced such profound personal growth that she expanded her professional focus to include women's health, bodies, and wisdoms. With a goal of learning, educating, and inspiring, Brennan holds a vision of a world where healthy, fulfilled, socially minded people love and support each other's unique gifts and talents.

Muneesh Jain. Jain’s biggest passions in life are baseball and Broadway. Between the months of April and October, you will most likely find him in one of the 30 major league ballparks across the country, watching a ballgame, talking to strangers, and eating ice cream out of a mini helmet. During the offseason, he’s probably at a musical or a play. He is the co-host of “The Clubhouse Podcast,” where he and his friend Anthony Rapp interview celebrities about why they love baseball.

Devan Sandiford. Sandiford spent his childhood and young adult years keeping his personal stories hidden. Feeling a voice within him longing to be heard, he moved to Brooklyn, New York, with his wife and their two sons, hoping to push himself out of his comfort zone and unlock the power in his voice. Sandiford is now a published writer, an award-winning storyteller, and the program manager of community engagement at The Moth. His stories have been featured in the Washington Post; “The Moth Radio Hour” and its podcast, “Speak Up Storytelling;” “Writing Class Radio;” and elsewhere. He has contributed his opinions on parenting, race, and identity for The New York Times and Washington Post and is currently working on his debut memoir.

Horace Scruggs. A resident of Palmyra, Virginia, Scruggs has been teaching and conducting professionally since 1985. Scruggs has taught music to all grade levels from kindergarten through 12th grades, and worked professionally with school, community, and church choirs and ensembles. He holds degrees in music education from Longwood University and Shenandoah Conservatory and is an adjunct faculty member at Piedmont Virginia Community College (PVCC), teaching class piano and music appreciation, and conducting the PVCC Chorus.

Dame Wilburn. Host of “The Moth Podcast,” “Dame’s Eclectic Brain Podcast,” as well as various live shows including “The Moth Mainstage,” Wilburn’s storytelling began as a way of keeping cool in the summertime on her grandmother's porch in Macon, Georgia. She has completed four residencies for storytellers: three at Serenbe in Palmetto, Georgia, and one with AIRTrez in Almont, Michigan. Wilburn has also presented at the University of Iowa and University of California, Los Angeles.

Corbin Hayslett is the musician for the evening. A multi-instrumentalist and ninth-generation Virginian, Hayslett excels on clawhammer banjo, guitar, and fiddle, bringing a wealth of knowledge of old-time, bluegrass, and early country music to performances and to his position as general manager at County Sales music shop in Floyd.

Through live shows, storytelling workshops, a podcast, Peabody Award-winning “Radio Hour,” and New York Times bestselling books, The Moth brings the power of personal storytelling to millions of people each year — creating community and building empathy around the world. Moth Mainstage is the quintessential Moth experience, where some of the best tellers share personal stories, live and without notes.

Ticket information

Tickets for the performance are $25 for general admission and $10 for Virginia Tech students and youth 18 and under. Tickets can be purchased online; at the Moss Arts Center's box office, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; or by calling 540-231-5300 during box office hours.

The Moss Arts Center adheres to the guidelines of the Virginia Department of Health and Virginia Tech in its operations, including protocols for face coverings and cleaning and sanitation. More information about these requirements is available on the Moss Arts Center website.

Paid parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street. Virginia Tech faculty and staff possessing a valid Virginia Tech parking permit can enter and exit the garage free of charge. Virginia Tech has also partnered with ParkMobile to provide a convenient, contactless electronic payment option for parking, which may be used at any parking meter, campus parking space, or lot with standard F/S, C/G, or R parking.

If you are an individual with a disability and desire an accommodation, please contact Jamie Wiggert at least 10 days prior to the event at 540-231-5300 or email wiggertj@vt.edu during regular business hours.

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