New spoken-word series Oral Project seeks to attract long-form storytellers to Orlando

Spoken word fans in Central Florida have an assortment of events to select from: various poetry-related open mic nights around town, regular Orlando Story Club events, Loose Lips when they’re up to it. Now former Orlando Weekly calendar editor/former Orlando Sentinel reporter Trevor Fraser, operating under the stage name “Ian If,” has introduced a new offering: Oral Projects.

Billed as “A+ Stories and A+ Storytellers,” this hopefully ongoing series saw its debut Thursday, Sept. 28, at Mills Gallery, and even torrential rain didn’t dissuade several dozen attendees, including fellow authors and artists like Bobby Wesley, Tod Caviness, Gabrielle Russon and Hannah Miller. The comfy couches arranged in rows for audience seating were nearly at capacity as patrons sipped pre-show watermelon cocktails mixed by restaurateur Maxine Earhart and her staff.

When introducing the evening, If said the reason he created Oral Projects was to encourage more long-form storytelling in Orlando. “You know, there are great long-form storytellers, and they come through usually during Fringe, and that’s it. We get to see them in May and then they’re gone. I wanted a place that offered more of an experimental long-form vibe for storytellers who are here, and for touring storytellers to have a place to go.”

Oral Projects certainly captured that Fringe Fest feeling during this first installment, with two storytellers familiar to Fringe fans. Danielle Ziss, co-host of Orlando Story Club and director of Central Florida Vocal Arts, shared how her layoff from a corporate career led her to travel from Middle Earth to Southeast Asia, using Tinder instead of Airbnb for accommodations along the way. Then, after a deceptively dark shaggy-dog campfire tale from If, radio comic Rauce Padgett (pinch-hitting for his brother Chase) recalled rolling on rollercoasters during a chemically enhanced Christmas celebration featuring Joey Fatone.

Overall, the evening’s tone struck a comfortable balance — halfway between punchline-centric stand-up and heavy confessional monologues. Each of the 20- to 30-minute pieces had plenty of laughs, but there were also a couple of emotional gut punches; Padgett in particular tied together his picaresque profanities with a Pixar-esque profundity. 

Dates and locations of future installments of Orlando Projects are currently TBA. Keep an eye on Ian If’s event page for updates.