Auditions now open for LTYM Boulder 2025
Everything you need to know to submit a story for the spring show.
🎊 Submissions for LTYM Boulder 2025 are now open! 🎊
This year’s show will take place on Sunday, May 4th, at 4:00 pm at First United Methodist Church in Boulder.
Hold on, what IS Listen to Your Mother?
Listen To Your Mother is a live storytelling event where local writers read their original essays about motherhood—the good, the bad, and the ugly. Also, it’s:
A live 90-minute storytelling show featuring 9-12 readers sharing their original 5-minute stories
A show that strives to include a diverse representation of perspectives, including readers of different ages, ethnicities, religions, and backgrounds
A mixture of poignant, funny, inspiring, and relatable stories that explore all aspects of motherhood
More details here
Video from a previous show here
The audition process in a nutshell:
First, share your written piece (details on how to do that below).
Second, if you advance to the second round of auditions, you’ll read your piece aloud, either in person or over Zoom.
All the details:
To start the process, complete this Google Form by February 17th. (You will need to upload a copy of your essay in that form.)
Your piece should be approximately 5 minutes when read aloud. This is roughly 600-1100 words, but will vary widely depending on content and speaking style. PLEASE PRACTICE BEFORE AUDITIONING, time yourself, and edit appropriately to achieve the desired time.
The deadline to email your audition piece is February 17th; we will contact everyone by February 24th to let you know if you’ve moved on to the second round.
If you make it to the second round, you will sign up online for an audition date and 15-minute time slot.
Live auditions will take place Wednesday, March 12th between 5:30-8:30 pm and Saturday, March 15th between 10:30 am-3 pm. You will have your choice of these days/times when we email you the online signup form.
If cast, you must be able to commit to two evening rehearsals—April 7th and May 1st at 6:00 pm—as well as the afternoon/evening of the show on May 4th.
For those of you who think there is no way that YOU have a story to share, we want to remind you:
If you have a mother, know a mother, or are a mother, you have a story to tell about motherhood.
Your story may be the one that touches someone in the audience who needed to hear it. Your story is unique. Your story is needed.
A few more things to keep in mind before auditioning:
The central theme of the story must be motherhood. We always aim for a diverse mix of stories—we look for funny essays, poignant essays, and everything in between. We welcome all stories of motherhood from all people.
You DO NOT have to be a mother (or even a woman!) to audition.
You do not have to have your piece memorized. In fact, we prefer it if you do not, as this show is a series of live readings (not performances).
You do not have to consider yourself a writer or have experience as a stage performer—we welcome all levels of experience with writing and speaking.
We recommend you check out videos of past shows, including Boulder's 2013-2016 shows, which you may find here.
Previously published work may be accepted as long as you have full rights to read it at this event.
Stories should be…
5 minutes long when read aloud (we know we already told you, but it’s that important)
Written by you (no professional writing experience required!)
True. (Funny, sad, heartwarming, traumatic, mundane, and everything in between can work!)
Stories should not be…
Memorized
Generic (in other words, the more unique to you, the better!)
Vaguely, kind of a little bit about motherhood
Want some support writing your audition piece? We have a workshop for you.
If you’re committed to writing a stellar audition piece but aren’t sure where to begin, get some coaching from the LTYM Boulder producers!
Join us (Pam and Steph, LTYM co-producers) for a three-hour, in-person essay writing workshop on Saturday, January 11th.
We’ll give you the tools, the support, and all the chocolate and herbal tea you need to craft your story.
You’ll learn:
The necessary ingredients of a personal essay
The difference between a story and an anecdote
Brainstorming topics and distilling ideas
How to connect with your reader
The importance of creating scenes
Discovering what your story is really about
How to effectively revise your piece to make it stand out
The balance of showing and telling, and why it becomes even more important when reading your piece on stage
The difference between a piece of writing that reads better on paper versus one that comes alive when read aloud
You’ll also get a chance to write your piece and get feedback from your instructors, Pam and Steph. This workshop is for anyone who wants to hone their writing skills in a supportive group with guidance from professional writers.
While this is a great opportunity to craft a potential Listen to Your Mother story, you’re welcome to work on whatever type of essay you want.
Come with your unpolished ideas and leave with the scaffolding of a compelling personal essay. You can bring a first draft, a seed of an idea, or a few story options to consider.
Saturday, January 11th
1-4 pm
Location west Arvada/Golden area
Space is limited to 12 participants to foster an intimate, supportive environment so don’t wait to sign up. Full details here.
Want to save money on this workshop and more? Become a paid subscriber and save 20% on all our offerings and get access to the WTYM Resource Den. Upgrade to get the discount code below.