Oxford’s inaugural fringe festival, The Art-er Limits, is home to a storytelling contest called the Yoknapatawpha Liars Club.
Participants will compete with 3-minute stories on a topic “Stranger than Fiction”. Anyone can enter, as long as they are over 18 years of age. Winners will take home prizes and a lifetime member of the Yoknapatawpha Liars Club.
Wayne Andrews, director of the Yoknapatawpha Arts council, explained: “Writing, reading, and storytelling are so important here. Oxford has famous authors, a nationally recognized independent bookstore in Square Books, and Thacker Mountain Radio. We have a town that values and supports storytellers. It was natural in a performing arts festival to debut the Liars Club contest.”
The Liars Club is an interactive performance where the audience members buy votes for a favorite storyteller. Proceeds will benefit the Hill Country Chapter of Gaining Ground that works to educate and encourage sustainability in the region.
“We all have a Big Fish story, a family holiday story for the ages. We’re asking Oxford to join a national movement of grassroots performance art,” said Meghan Gallagher, the AmeriCorps VISTA to the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council.
Prizes for the festival are inspired by three famous local authors: William Faulkner, Larry Brown, and Barry Hannah.
The contest is Friday, August 1st at 8:30 p.m. following Tupelo-native Lacey Roop’s poetry reading at Southside Gallery. The entry fee is $5. A vote costs $1. Find more information and register online at oxfordfringefest.com.
Calling All Liars — To Fun Fringe Festival Frolic
