The Topol Fellows’ annual Moth Day took place on May 22 in the Black Box theatre. A diverse group from the Boston Latin School community, from sixies to seniors and students to staff, chose to tell personal life stories to a room of both friends and strangers.
Moth Day takes inspiration from Moth Radio Hour, which is a weekly radio program that airs the stories of millions of people on over 500 radio stations worldwide. The name of the program comes from the story of the organizer, who recalls when he would tell stories with his friends on his porch and see moths fluttering around the lights late at night. The show is critically acclaimed and yields over one million listeners every week.
At Moth Day this year, students presented many humorous and enthralling anecdotes. Stories were ten minutes each and ranged from vile food poisoning to vegan cults, that left the audience laughing and even tearing up. These tales posed the question: How are the stories of those we have never met able to elicit such strong emotion?
Anna Davidson (I), one of three organizers of the event, explains why she chose to speak this year and help run the event: “In BLS, it’s hard to personally get to know a lot of people, so it was a good way to bring together a bunch of people from different classes, and even some teachers, to get to know each other a little bit.”
Being able to share these highly personal experiences with others allows the BLS community to grow tighter, even if listeners have never met the person on stage. When students are able to laugh, gasp and cry together over the stories they hear, it brings them closer together.
The environment also helps form the connection between participants and the audience. Concerning Moth Day’s standout performance, Davidson reflects, “A lot of bigger events are held in the auditorium. In the Black Box, it feels more personal, and like you’re really fostering that connection with other people.”
Writing and telling stories to others also helps broaden students’ writing capabilities. When stressed about receiving good grades or completing assignments, it is easy for students to neglect the beauty in simply writing from the heart.
Ilana Schwartz (I), another organizer of the event, explains further: “A lot of the writing we do is essay-driven, and so we don’t really have time to foster just normal stories. Moth Day gives a platform for that.” Storytelling is a transferable skill across many different parts of our lives. Making people laugh or cry is one of the things that makes life truly interesting. Events like Moth Day give students the ability to exercise their storytelling skills, which often go unexplored through much of high school.
The stories told at events like these allow students and staff alike to get to know people they’ve never even met before. The Black Box helps the room feel cozy, and the vulnerability put on display by the speakers bonds the room with emotion.
Students and staff who spoke at the event additionally got to experience the enjoyment and catharsis of sharing a personal story. In the words of BLS English teacher Mr. Robert Oakes, who spoke about a childhood memory of stealing from a record store and returning to pay for it at a previous Moth Day, “If someone feels like they got a good story to tell, I think that can be a pretty powerful experience to tell it.”
The event will continue to be held yearly and is always looking for new speakers. The BLS community can count on this fun and unique event to help bring everyone together for years to come.