Thursday night, a near-packed crowd bought tickets, paid for parking, and fought claustrophobia-inducing LA traffic to watch six people tell stories. And it was worth it. Meet The Moth: a non-profit New York City storytelling collective that meets every other week to compete for the honor of ‘best story’. A select group of mostly high-profile Moth storytellers stopped in LA on a noncompetitive national tour.
Host Andy Borowitz kicked off the night with a brief story of coming to terms with his inner wimp, starting out as a producer?s assistant in Hollywood. ?I come from a long line of wimps,? he said. ?Wimps tend to come from a long line of wimps, because you know what? Wimps survive.?
The least satisfying story came from stand-up comedian Margaret Cho. Her tale of dissatisfaction with her crazy agent crossed the line from storytelling to vitriolic gossip. At one point, Cho said, ?What I do with this anger is I Photoshop her face onto amateur porn.? The audience laughed, but was left with the question, ?Is she joking?? Still, anger is a often comedian?s preferred means of establishing pathos, and Cho was certainly funny, if nothing else.
Retired NYPD Lieutenant Steve Osborne proved that the gruff, no-nonsense New York cop is more than just a stereotype. ?A cop?s life is different,? Osborne began. ?We?re not normal people.? Thick Brooklyn accent and all, Osborne told the story of running into an appreciative crack dealer whom he had busted and to whom he had fed hot dogs five years prior.
After acknowledging the evening?s sponsor at intermission, Borowitz joked, ?This evening was also brought to you by crack.?
The storytellers (with the exception of Cho, an LA native) New York roots shined throughout each performance. Fitting, as The Moth was founded by novelist George Dawes nine years ago. He and others would meet in his New York apartment, where they would ?gather around good stories, like moths to the flame.? The Moth soon moved to public venues, and has since become a Manhattan staple.