The Moth

The Moth is a non-profit group based in New York City dedicated to the art of storytelling. It was founded in 1997 by poet and novelist George Dawes Green, who wanted to recreate the feeling of sultry summer evenings in his native Georgia, when moths were attracted to the light on the porch where he and his friends would gather to spin spellbinding tales. George and his original group of storytellers called themselves "The Moths", and George took the name with him to New York. The organization now runs a number of different storytelling events in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, and other American cities, often featuring prominent literary and cultural personalities. Previous notable storytellers have included Andy Borowitz, Margaret Cho, Joe Lockhart, Jonathan Ames, Ethan Hawke, Malcolm Gladwell, Darryl "DMC" McDaniels, George Plimpton, Gay Talese, Mira Nair, Moby, Lili Taylor, and Sam Shepard.

The organization also holds "StorySLAM" events, storytelling competitions open to everyone in New York City, Detroit, Chicago and Los Angeles. The format was inspired by and is similar to poetry slams. Although hosts rotate, New York City StorySLAM hosts include Sara Barron, who hosts the last Monday night of every month at The Bitter End; Dan Kennedy, who hosts the second Tuesday of the month at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe; Ophira Eisenberg who hosts the third Thursday of the month at Housing Works Bookstore & Cafe; and Peter Aguero who...
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