Everyone has a story.

Each show features a different theme tying together stories that span the human experience. Performances take place the 2nd Wednesday of each month. Currently at the Alamo Drafthouse Mueller, in the Barrel O'Fun.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Richard Ver Steeg to the Testify stage. He'll be sharing his story, "A Rock Named Richard," for our storytelling show, Short Stories.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbR2cSydc/

Richard was - sequentially - a linguist, a spy, and a photographer before embarking on an English Literature degree to prepare for a career in software engineering. He wrote a book about genetic sequencing algorithms, completed his degree, and managed to stay focused long enough to complete a 3 decade long career as a software engineer.

He shares true stories from his life at various venues including Testify in Austin and The Moth in Houston as well as collaborations with Austin Cantorum and Garage Arts Project.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Peg Gavin to the Testify stage. She'll be sharing her story, "Our Beloved Pets" for our storytelling show, Short Stories.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbR2cSydc/

Peg Gavin is a nature and outdoor enthusiast who loves a well-crafted story, whether expressed through song lyrics, poetry slams, books or storytelling events. Originally from upstate NY, she made a road trip to Austin with friends after college and has never left.

She is grateful to be retired from a long career in social work, and when she is not on the road somewhere with her husband she spends her time volunteering, fostering puppies, hanging out with friends, going to music festivals, and planning her next adventure.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Brian Reisman to the Testify stage. He'll be sharing his story, "Am I...Traditional?!" for our storytelling show, Short Stories.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbR2cSydc/

Brian started is professional life acting in theater (almost entirely Shakespeare with one musical by accident). He transitioned to working in tech as a software engineer which he is eagerly planning his escape from to delivering keynote addresses on trustworthiness and confidence.

He hasn't injured anyone while dancing two-step in over 100 days and would welcome your help in meeting his wife!

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Please join Testify in welcoming Alex Abraham to the Testify stage. He'll be sharing his story, "How I Got Lost in Russia" for our storytelling show, Short Stories.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbR2cSydc/

I am a writer, coach and tour guide in Austin. When I am not traveling to weird places I love to read, exercise and try new restaurants around town.

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Please join TestifyATX in welcoming Liz Kreppel to the Testify stage. She'll be sharing her story, "Smoke Damage," for our storytelling show, Short Stories.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbR2cSydc/

Liz Kreppel is a born and raised New Yorker who moved to Austin and quickly fell in love with Texas. When she’s not exploring the city, you can find her swimming at Barton Springs, kayaking on Lady Bird Lake, or attending storytelling events around town.

Liz has been attending The Moth events since high school, but it wasn't until after college she began to tell her own tales. She is passionate about building connection through storytelling and hopes to continue sharing stories with communities across Austin.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Kami T. Wilt to the Testify stage. She'll be sharing her story, "How Not to Do It" for our storytelling show, Short Stories.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbR2cSydc/

Kami Wilt is the founder of Austin Tinkering School, where she teaches kids to build wild things with real tools—which tells you a lot about her risk tolerance. She is a seeker of adventure, accidental absurdity, and moments of unexpected magic. If there’s a strange detour, emotional revelation, or ill-advised plan, she probably has a story about it.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Lisa Hallee to the Testify stage. She'll be sharing her story, "My Silver Fox" for our storytelling show, Short Stories.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbR2cSydc/

Lisa Hallee is a former University of Texas Diver, and a retired French teacher and swim coach. Having spent most of her life in the water, she is usually the one in charge of the deep end. This makes it all the more ironic when she finds herself 75 feet down and in over her head.

An Austin-based traveler and lifelong rule-follower, she is currently perfecting the art of the "Buddy System" and believes that every great near panic attack is really just a future great story.

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Susan Mack has a bit of a problem with a dog who decides running in a parking lot is a good way to spend his time.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Samuel Jacob back to the Testify stage. He'll be sharing his story, "Olivia" for our storytelling show, Furry Tales.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Gh7s4acHN/

Sam is a seasoned storyteller who has performed at events such as Backyard Storynight, Hyde Park Storytelling, Austin Bat Cave, Drinking with the Saints, and, of course, Testify.

Sam is also an attorney and an active member of the defense bar who recently graduated from the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers trial college in Huntsville. When he’s not fighting for justice, Sam enjoys swimming, yoga, and hiking.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Lisa Watry Blanton to the Testify stage. She'll be sharing her story, "The Power of One Moment" for our storytelling show, Furry Tales.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Gh7s4acHN/

Lisa Blanton is a recovering CFO who left the safety of spreadsheets to tell the kinds of stories most people avoid. After surviving a near-fatal crash and the invisible aftermath of PTSD, she learned how a single moment—especially the wrong words at the wrong time—can do lasting damage.

Her storytelling sits at the intersection of vulnerability, discomfort, and dark humor, where honesty matters more than polish. She lives in Austin with her service dog, Chloe, who has better instincts than most executives.

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Pets have a way of bringing out the best in us, even when they’re at their most chaotic. They tumble into our homes, curl up on our couches, and quietly rearrange our idea of what family means. Life shifts the moment we let this strange, beautiful creature cross our threshold and claim a spot in our daily routines.

They sense our moods, celebrate when we’re joyful, and hover close when we’re broken. They don’t use words, but they answer our loneliness, our stress, our long nights. In their own clumsy, perfect way, they try to take care of us just as fiercely as we take care of them. That’s the heart of these true stories: not just about pets, but about the families we become because of them.

**NOTE performances may contain strong language and adult content.**

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Lisa is a retired teacher and coach based here in Austin. After a career spent teaching students how to follow the rules and stay disciplined, she’s here tonight to share a story about the one time she completely ignored her own advice.

This is a story about her 2009 honeymoon in the Canadian wilderness and a very unexpected discovery about her own survival instincts.

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Susan Mack is a writer, storyteller, mother and advocate. She's the founding producer of the quarterly Stories on the Lawn storytelling show at the Neill Cochrane House Museum.

When she isn't telling stories, writing random essays and short stories about beautifully weird moments, or fighting for LGBTQ rights at the Texas Capitol, She can be found coaching high school students on college essays, walking her dog, or cooking ethnic foods her children are unlikely to eat.

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Please join Testify in welcoming Angela Maldonado to the Testify stage. She'll be sharing her story, "From the Heart" for our storytelling show, Furry Tales.

You can get your tickets here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Gh7s4acHN/

Angela Maldonado is a Corpus Christi–born writer, improviser, and storyteller based in Austin. She works in communications for the organization that supports all 254 Texas counties and has produced the storytelling show Testify since 2017.

She shares her home with three dogs, two cats, and more books than free time.

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Our May show is this Thursday! Join us for "Furry Tales" a storytelling show.

Our storytellers are Lisa Blanton, Susan Mack, Lisa Hallee, Sam Rosen, and Angela Maldonado. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/testify-presents-furry-tales-a-storytelling-show-tickets-1986939054198?aff=oddtdtcreator

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Join us this Thursday for "A Cautionary Tale!"

Event in Austin, TX by Testify on Thursday, April 2 20265 posts in the discussion.

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We defy gravity every morning when we get out of bed. When you're sitting on the couch and your dog wants to go out for the fourth time to bark at a squirrel, you are defying gravity.

Gravity is intended to hold us down and it's good to have your feet on the ground. It's also good to know that you can run, walk, fly, soar. It's true that you will eventually come back down, but in that moment, you have defied gravity.

Sometimes in life we are told "no," and sometimes we ignore that "no." We can surprise ourselves with our own resilience, with our own bravery, and with our own strength. Defying Gravity means learning to fly, even when you are used to being held down. Sometimes it's others who try to ground us, sometimes it's ourselves. In either instance, learning to fly can be frightening and freeing.

6 storytellers telling their true tales of "Defying Gravity."

Hari Rao, Jeff Knight, Juan Recondo, Matthew Weatherbee, Humaira Zafar, and Brian Reiseman.

*NOTE performances may contain strong language and adult content.*

Doors open around 7:00 pm. This is a general admission show, arrive early to assure you have a seat.

*NOTE performances may contain strong language and adult content.*