Come out of your shell!
Carapace is a monthly event of true personal stories at Manuel's Tavern in Atlanta, every second 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.

Every second 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.
Help support the work of Carapace by kicking us a few coins!
Tuesday, April 14, 7p, Manuel’s Tavern
In honor of the Oscars, we're going with Sinners as this month's theme. So. Many. Juicy. Thoughts. There's a million ways you can take it.
Did you indulge in one of the seven deadlies? Did you get judged by someone who thought themselves holier-than-thou?
Perhaps you thought you should be ashamed of something all your life but came out the other side, vindicated. Take us to the moment when you discovered you didn't get hairy palms, when you let your anger get the best of you, when you found Father McAllister drunk on the communion wine, when you failed the Blue Book exam on Dante's Inferno, or when your lust for life turned into a death wish.
Our original prompt for this month's theme was 99 Problems. Folx seemed to be a bit befuddled by it, so we added in Sinners as maybe a bit broader and easier to run with. Here's more on the theme of 99 Problems...
Ever find yourself up to your eyeballs? In hot water? Running around like a chicken with your head cut off? We wanna hear about the time when it seemed like you just couldn't catch a break. When you wished that Calgon would just take you away. And maybe in the midst of it all, you found a whole new perspective...
Whatever your story, we’ll be piously, worked up and waiting, as we always are on the second Tuesdays of the month, at Manuel’s Tavern. While the show begins at 7p, we encourage folx to get there early and get their orders in with the finest wait staff in town.
As a reminder, we welcome story listeners and storytellers alike—just as long as you’re a connoisseur of stories (and of Manuel’s food).


There’s never any pressure to tell a story, but you’ll never experience a more welcoming environment to try out the mic.
Photos by Andrew Huang


