WILDCARD! SHINY THING SHOWCASE!
WILDCARD! Shiny Thing Showcase
Presented by In a Nutshell Storytelling
True Stories Told Live By You
Something big is happening on November 14th. And we want you there for all of it.
All year, WILDCARD! has been building something — a monthly open mic story swap where anyone can walk in, put their name in the NOT HAT, and tell a true, personal story in front of a room that actually listens. Eight storytellers. Eight minutes each. And at the end of every night, the storytellers themselves vote for their favorite story.
The winner gets fifty bucks and a feature spot the following month.
But what happens when all the winners come back?
This.
Welcome to the WILDCARD! Shiny Thing Showcase.
Our season's best storytellers — the ones who moved the room, won the peer vote, and earned their place — return for one extraordinary night. Twelve minutes each. Their best true story. Their moment to shine.
And here's the thing about this particular competition: everybody wins.
Every storyteller takes home a Shiny Thing. Because that's who we are — a community that believes in celebrating the people brave enough to stand up and tell the truth out loud. And then, at the end of the night, the audience votes for one story to take home the Even Shinier Thing.
Because some stories are just that good.
This is WILDCARD!'s Grand Slam. Sacramento-style. With our own twists. And it is going to be a night.
The Storytellers:
Michelle Wood — WILDCARD!'s inaugural winner. She walked into the NOT HAT in June, told her story, and walked out with $50 and a feature spot. Then she came back in July and wowed as a feature. Michelle is the reason the Shiny Thing Showcase exists.
Victoria Goldblatt — actor, playwright, award-winning director, and Neuroscience Health Consultant, which remains the most interesting combination of credentials we've ever put on a WILDCARD poster. She brought a story about the day everything changed. The room has not fully recovered.
Frances Southwick — friendly family doctor, storyteller, and nonfiction writer from Davis. They brought a tale of love and narcolepsy and won the room completely. Bobby and Small (the cats) are very proud.
THERE ARE TWO SPACES LEFT! WILL YOUR STORY BE ONE OF THEM?
(More storytellers will be added as our season continues. Watch this space.)
The Venue: Two Rivers Cider Company
Let's talk about where we're doing this, because the venue is part of the night.
Two Rivers Cider Company is Sacramento's original micro-cidery — founded in 1996, before micro-ciders were even really a thing, by someone who loved fermentation enough to figure it out from scratch. Nearly three decades later, it's become a genuine neighborhood institution in Land Park: a creative space with a real stage, live music, food trucks, and a cider lineup that will make you very happy you came.
On November 14th, here's what your evening looks like:
You arrive at Two Rivers. There's a food truck outside. You grab something good to eat. You go in, you get a cider — try the Pomegranate if you want tart, the Huckleberry if you want something sweeter and floral, the Blood Orange if you want something that makes you feel like you made excellent life choices. Go ahead and meander; there are good people everywhere.
Then the lights go down. The stories start. Everyone gets a shiny thing. And then, at the end of the night, somebody takes home the Even Shinier Thing.
Two Rivers has spent nearly thirty years supporting local art, music, and community in Sacramento. We are proud to be part of that tradition.
Come for the cider. Stay for the stories. Leave with something you'll be thinking about for days.
Your Nutshell Three:
Keith Lowell Jensen — host, comedian, and the rare human who can walk into a room full of strangers and make it feel like a living room in about four minutes flat. He's been holding WILDCARD! together all season, and he is going to absolutely nail this one.
Amy Bee — creator, producer, and the woman who dreamed the Shiny Thing Showcase into existence because she believes Sacramento deserves a storytelling scene worth showing up for. Tonight is proof she was right.
Aaron Carnes — author, music journalist, structural backbone of WILDCARD!, and according to Amy Bee, an absolute treat to look at. He would like you to know the cider is excellent. We know, Aaron. We know.
Everyone gets a Shiny Thing. One story gets the Even Shinier Thing. All of it is true.
We are building something wonderful here in Sacramento. Tonight is where we celebrate how far we've come.
Come be part of it.