Real stories reveal true colours

By Ashleigh Fielding | posted on January 11, 2018

THE chance to expand on her one-liners inspired Perth comedian and ABC radio presenter Andrea Gibbs to fly halfway across the world to be coached by some of the industry’s best.

The product of that trip, Barefaced Stories, is coming to Albany on January 19 and will give people the opportunity to have a sneak peek into real people’s life stories.

Barefaced Stories is the love child of Gibbs and her best friend, Kerry O’Sullivan, and creates an evening of entertainment via live storytelling.

The Albany edition of Barefaced Stories, set to hit the Albany Entertainment Centre stage in just over a week’s time, will feature special guests and Albany locals – all of whom will break down their barriers and tell true stories from their lives.

Gibbs said Barefaced Stories is a chance for people to come together and show their true colours.

“Humans are natural storytellers, but we rarely really open up to each other and reveal the full picture,” she said.

“Our anecdotes sometimes have an Instagram filter on them, but Barefaced is all about stripping that down and revealing the reality of life.

“Stories, whether they are happy or sad – if they are told well – have the power to bring us all together, which helps everyone feel a little less alone in the world.”

Prior to the Albany performance, Gibbs will host two workshops at the Vancouver Arts Centre this weekend to help people ‘find their story’ and learn how to craft it for presentation.

The Saturday ‘Find Your Story’ workshop will go from 10.30am to 2.30pm, and Sunday’s ‘Craft Your Story’ workshop will be from 1.30pm to 5.30pm.

“The workshops are open to everyone that is willing to answer some questions about their lives and be honest with their answers,” Gibbs said.

“I spend day one mining people’s lives for stories that are worth sharing, and then on day two we try to share them.

“The workshops are a blast – interesting, funny and challenging.

“We learn a lot about each other and have a whole lot of laughs along the way.”

Tickets to the What’s Your Story? Workshop can be booked via [email protected] and tickets for the AEC performance of Barefaced Stories can be purchased from the AEC Box Office or online via Ticketek.