“About 10 years ago, we were both roommates actually in Hyde Park,” Erin Givarz says of the origins of Hyde Park Storytelling. “And we decided we had this beautiful kind of backyard space and we wanted to fill it with people. And we both had this interest in storytelling and live performance. And we just kind of, you know, dreamed it up.”
Givarz’s roommate at the time was Matthew Stoner, and the two of them created the storytelling program together in their own backyard a decade ago.
“Yeah, 10 years of doing this storytelling show,” Stoner says. “It is a live true storytelling show that happens in backyards throughout Austin. And it is just people telling true stories about themselves in five to seven minutes.”
“I think what surprises most people when they first come to a show is that we actually don't know the stories that are going to be told,” Givarz says. “And many times… we've never met the person that is telling the story. So we're feeling the same amount of surprise or shock or interest when those stories get told on stage. And you know, that authentic experience that we're sharing with the audience is, I think, unique. And it just started as 30 or so people in our backyard. And it grew very, very quickly to around 100, and now around 300 to 500.”
Of course, when you have 500 people gathered together, it’s a tight fit for a regular behind-a-house backyard. These days the show has mostly moved on to larger venues (their upcoming ten-year anniversary show will be at Batch Craft Beer and Kolaches), but the creators have worked to keep the backyard vibe a part of the show. “When we moved to Batch, it was really important for us to maintain the backyard feel,” Stoner says. “You know, people come and hang out for an hour and that the show is about an hour long. And we really wanted to maintain that feeling like you're in a friend or a family member's backyard and someone's going to just get on a mic and tell a true story about themselves. I'm thankful that we've been able to grow and people, I think… after COVID really want these in real life experiences. But personally, I'm glad people still come out and I'm glad, you know, 200 to 300 people aren't sharing one bathroom anymore.”
Givarz adds that the venue at Batch does technically qualify as a backyard. “[Batch is] actually a converted house and feels very homey,” she says, “So it is a very similar backyard vibe.”
“Our show is just about people telling the stories from wherever they're at in life,” Stoner say, “from the exciting to the mundane. People have told stories all the way from like encounters with a wolf… to, you know, a person trying to figure out why where their air conditioner is dripping. And we just love to hear the variety of stories and that's kind of why we do this. I'm really excited about all of the things and… the moments of sheer joy and sadness to all of those moments in between. In our show… we don't know what the stories are [going to be] and our show is free and open to the public where anyone can tell a story. We kind of want the messiness of the stories to come through.”
Givarz says the duo wasn’t really looking a decade into the future when they hosted that first show in their old backyard. “I think we're both dreamers, we both love people,” she says. “I'm not sure we had it in our head that it was going to be a 10 year experience, but I do think that we are so passionate about our community and that we both the type of people that want to make things happen and get people together. So in a way I'm not surprised there's been so many fun experiences over the last 10 years… and we're just so excited for our 10 year anniversary show.”
The Hyde Park Storytelling 10 year anniversary show is October 19 at Batch Craft Beer and Kolaches.
