More than 350 people sat in the audience at the Crest Theatre on Mother’s Day for a show that Sacramento has never seen before.

Fifteen writers and artists, some of whom had never read aloud in front of an audience, took to the stage to tell their own personal stories that honored and celebrated motherhood.

Fifteen stories about the ups and downs of family, humor and heartbreak. Fifteen stories that made the audience laugh and cry. Poignant, soulful stories that engaged them in profound ways.

Personal, vulnerable, and in some cases, secret stories never told before that resonated so deeply, audience members were moved to share their own stories with us after the show. They spoke of inspiration and validation. They asked if we were doing this again next year, either because they wanted to come back again, or possibly audition themselves.

One woman traveled from another state to surprise her sister who was in the cast. They hadn’t seen each other in 14 years. Our show made this happen:

The woman in the sound booth said the show made her cry. Her daughter was on the other side of the country and couldn’t be with her and our show made the perfect Mother Day gift for her.

Our photographer could not have given us more love and support. She blogged about how Listen to Your Mother changed her life.

Fifteen women, most of whom were strangers before the first rehearsal, are now bonded forever through this experience. This Listen to Your Mother experience. The anxiety. The headshots. The rehearsals. The laughter. The tears. The energy. The encouragement. The confidence.

The love.

We are more than friends because something amazing happened to us. Our lives were changed and they were changed together.

Do we want to do this again next year?

Yes, please.

 

 

Thank You

We owe part of our show’s success to our national sponsors BlogHer and One2One Network, along with our local sponsors, Travis Credit Union, Western Health Advantage, Ella Dining Room and Bar, Sarah Maren Photography, Thinkhouse Collective, and Workflow One.

We would also like to thank KBAR for hosting our after-show celebration.

 

Here’s a blog post by one of our cast members, Jill Mansfield, entitled: “A Very Special Listen to Your Mother Thank You“.

(Photos by Sarah Maren Photography)

{ 0 comments }

The Best Part of Your Life

May 22, 2013

We have so very many people to thank for helping us to bring Listen to Your Mother, Sacramento to the stage, but we’re still cocooned in the beauty and love that was the show. And by that, I mean, we’re still trying to form a sentence without crying. While we work to gather our composure and to find the words to thank everyone, we wanted to share a bit of the magic with you. (Thank you, Sarah Maren, for capturing who we are so perfectly.) This… this is what it’s all about… We are so incredibly grateful to Laurie MacAllister, Abbie Gardner and Molly Venter, of Red Molly, who sing May I Suggest? and to Susan Werner, who wrote the gorgeous words that have climbed into our souls, where they will live forever. A million thanks to you all for so generously sharing your perfect song with us. Tweet

Read the full article →

Meet the Cast: Laura Meehan

May 9, 2013

Today, we’re learning a little more about cast member Laura Meehan. Margaret and I will never forget her audition, when she walked in the room with such fantastic energy and had us laughing long after she left. When we asked for her to dig deep and share some things that we couldn’t possibly know yet about her, here’s what she had to say:  1) I have been a freelancer longer than I was ever an employee. I got my first freelance project in 2006. My “main” job is editing book manuscripts, for individuals and publishers. Some of my more well-known clients are Amy Hatvany, Sarah Pekkanen, and Bruce Reyes-Chow, though I’ve gotten to edit about 70 books to date. I also do some more technical work and write articles. On a related note: 2) I do want to write my own book(s). I will admit that that’s my dream. I love books, reading, [...]

Read the full article →

Meet the Cast: Jill Mansfield

May 7, 2013

It took us about two seconds to fall completely in love with Jill. Since meeting her, we’ve learned that she’s kind, funny and generous. But when we asked her to share ten new things with us, we learned that we can add tenacious to our list. See #9 for proof! 1. My family means everything to me. I was blessed with amazing parents and siblings and I now have the best husband and children. We have this amazing group of extended family and friends who are family, too. I have no idea how I could be so lucky.  2. I’m a diehard sports fan. Hockey, football, baseball? YES PLEASE. I’m not going to say that I’m the #1 fan, but I’m close. 3. My friends used to call me The Nanny. When my kids were little, the two of them didn’t look a whole lot like me. I’ve been asked some pretty ridiculous [...]

Read the full article →