Last night, the inaugural HSV Open Mic Night took place. I think the audience, numbering about seventy, was happy with it. I am glad I had friends who agreed to perform: poetry, story-telling, reading short stories, and reading memoirs. And, I was lucky in that the volunteer emcee was entertaining and a far better public speaker than I. The audience included a significant number of members of the Village Unitarian Universalist Church, including the original founders of the open mic night that used to be held there; their support, I think, was key to having a full complement of people available to hear the performances.
Despite the success of the night, I think it largely was in spite of, rather than because of, my efforts. I didn’t put in the effort required to really make it work. I shirked responsibilities for calling prospective participants because I don’t like making phone calls; if prospects didn’t have email addresses, I ignored them. But that notwithstanding, I think the audience liked the event. I stumbled into modest successes despite shortcomings. The feedback I’ve gotten so far has been positive. I’m ready to start working to get a broader mix of performers for the next event, which probably will be held next January.