Carapace Atlanta

Come out of your shell!

A place for story connoisseurs…

Carapace is a monthly event of true personal stories at Manuel's Tavern in Atlanta, every fourth Tuesday of the month (except December). While the show begins at 7p, we encourage people to get there early to meet their neighbors and enjoy a meal before the mic goes live.

Raconteurs + Rapt Audience
= Really Good Time!

Every fourth Tuesday of the month, ordinary raconteurs tell true, personal, five-minute (or so) stories on a pre-selected theme. Topics have included, for example, "Scars," and "Feuds & Rivalries."

Our hilarious host, Cris Gray, guides us through.

Names are drawn from a hat. No one is required to tell a story; attendees can just listen. It's free.

Learn More

Next Month’s Theme:

9 to 5

Tuesday, September 24, 7p, Manuel’s Tavern

Work, work, work. It’s complicated. For some of us, what we do for a paycheck is, at least partially, where we draw a sense of identity. For others, it’s just a necessary grind.

Do you feel like you’re barely getting by, that it’s all taking and no giving? Some of our wildest stories sure do come from work. We learn a lot about ourselves along the way from giant missteps and epic failures. Of course, there are also those endlessly fascinating and frustrating characters that show up in the adjacent cubicle—the ones that steal our burrito from the fridge, steal our promotion, maybe even steal our hearts!

So, when was a time you went from Working Girl to Girl Boss? Did you stick it to the man? We wanna hear about the time you flipped the tables and walked out because you didn’t have 27 pieces of flair or the TPS report cover sheet?

We always pour ourselves a cup of ambition and show up at Manuel’s Tavern on the fourth Tuesday of the month, which’ll be Tuesday, September 24 at 7p. Story connoisseurs of all varieties are motivational to us—tellers and listeners alike. If you find yourself wanting to go for the promotion and throw your name in that tellers' hat, it'll be waiting for you. See ya there!

Notes for a more purpose-filled storytelling experience…

*no notes (even and especially on your cellphone)

*no political rants

*no stand-up comedy routines

This is OG storytelling, like our ancestors used to do around the fire at night.

*FREE* STORY COACHING: We tend to be at Manuel’s by 6p on the night of the show. If you’d like a little coaching as you prepare to get up on that mic, please feel free to arrive in the hour before to talk through your story’s points for some potential ideas or help with shaping it.

VOLUNTEERS: We always need volunteers to make our events run smoother. Roles include:

*greet people at the door and encourage sign-ups

*keep up the tradition with the wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey stuff

*be our personal paparazzi! (take photos)

Please let us know if you’d like to volunteer!

STORYTELLING TIPS: Many a story can fit into a theme. It’s just about how you introduce or land it. A great first-timer recently almost didn’t try getting up on the mic because she was afraid her story wouldn’t match the theme. With just a little encouragement, we were able to help her find a great way into the story that helped her see her story was great and well worth the risk. Please, if you’re feeling shy, and especially if you’re not sure whether your story fits a theme, feel free to reach out.