One Mic Stand is All About Stories and Laughs

Twice a semester, members of the community in and around PVCC are invited to the Maxwell Black Box Theatre in the V. Earl Dickinson Building to share their thoughts, writings, and performances in the One Mic Stand open mic night. The first of these two events was held on Sept. 11, welcoming people in with gentle jazz to bid farewell to summer on a warm night filled with poetry, stories, and song.

One Mic Stand, as always, was hosted by award-winning filmmaker and founder of the Indie Short Film Festival Ty Cooper. Cooper has been hosting One Mic Stand and welcoming speakers for a decade now, and he is passionate about what the space means to people.

“I think one of my favorite things is it provides a platform for people who are not necessarily performers, per se, but sometimes they have this burning desire to get on stage and get in front of people,” said Cooper. The speakers and performers at One Mic Stand are students, faculty, and community members around PVCC. Anyone is welcome to sign up in the box office or outside the theater before the event. The atmosphere in the small theatre is cozy, relaxed, and supportive. 

One Mic Stand is open to almost any performance. Poetry, both spoken and slam, is popular, as well as reading short stories, retelling personal anecdotes, and performing comedy sets. A student performing at the Sept. 11 show handed two members of the audience a tambourine and maracas and encouraged them to follow the rhythm while he played the guitar and sang selections of songs from across North, South, and Central America. Cooper notes that they’ve never had a dancer perform, but dancers are welcome as well.

For people with fears of public speaking, One Mic Stand is an accepting and encouraging environment to overcome anxiety. The Sept. 11 event featured both experienced and new performers, all of whom had an engaged and responsive audience of about 20 people. Those present who didn’t sign up to speak were still invited to take the stage if they decided they had something they wanted to share after all. 

“They fight their fears, and they overcome their fears,” said Cooper. “The room is a safe space.”

One Mic Stands are always held on Thursdays at 7 p.m. in the Maxwell Black Box Theatre in the V. Earl Dickinson Building. The second One Mic Stand of the semester will be held on Nov. 13, and the One Mic Stands in the spring semester will be held on Feb. 12 and April 9. Admission is free and the event lasts 1-2 hours, depending on how many people perform.

Cooper encourages everyone to come to One Mic Stand. “People clap for you, we encourage you, and we just want to hear what you have,” Cooper said. “It doesn’t matter your color, your creed, your religion, your sexuality, or whatever the case may be. It’s open for everyone, and we open up for almost every type of performance.”