February 27 show: The People Who Made Us
featuring true stories about how family shapes us
If you thought January’s “Stories of ‘Substance’” had your hardy Nutshell crew walking through minefields, turns out a theme centering on family also needs an open mind, a soft heart, and a delicate touch.
The People Who Made Us is an evening of true, personal storytelling about family in all its complicated, emotional, funny, painful, beautiful forms.
Some of these stories are warm. Some are tender. Some are hilarious. Some are heavy. All of them are deeply personal, and yet you will catch glimpses of yourself in each and every one. That’s the magic of live storytelling.
We can’t wait to see you there, humans!
The Storytellers
Meghna Bhat
Meghna shares a story about becoming a big sister before she fully understood what that meant, and how her younger sister, over time, became someone who shaped her just as much. It’s a story about the roles we’re born into, the identities we grow from that, and the implicit ways siblings raise each other.
Brian Copeland
Brian brings an excerpt from his acclaimed solo show Grandma & Me: An Ode to Single Parents, comparing his grandmother raising five children alone in the '70s with his own experience raising three children as a single father decades later. It’s funny, moving, and deeply relatable.
JP Frary
As a boy, JP used to hide in the creek behind his house and watch other families through their windows at night: families eating dinner, doing homework, living their lives. What he was avoiding at home, and what he discovered about himself and other people in the process, makes for one of those stories that stays with you long after you hear it.
Joe Klocek
Joe tells the surreal story of being placed in a state‑run mental health facility at 13 and having to go to court to prove he was sane enough to leave . . . while his parents argued that he should stay. It’s serious, funny, strange, and completely unforgettable.
These are stories about the people who surround us and, for better or worse, help shape who we become, leaving lasting echoes of what family means well into our adult lives.
They’re not all laugh‑forward. They’re not all light. But they are incredibly engaging, honest, and beautifully told.
This is the kind of night where you might laugh in one moment and feel moved in the next.
And that’s exactly what live storytelling is meant to be.
The Night
📅 Friday, February 27, 7p (doors at 6p)
📍 The Sofia, Sacramento
🎤 Live, true storytelling
👥 Come alone, with a partner, or bring friends. All are welcome!
If you’ve been meaning to come to In a Nutshell, this is a really special night to start.
And if you’ve been before, you already know how powerful it can feel to sit in a room where stories like this are shared.
Tickets
🎟️ Tickets are available through The Sofia box office.
Call (916) 443-0394 or purchase through their website here:
We can’t wait to see you in real life, humans!
xoxo,
Amy and her chosen family, Keith and Aaron
If you enjoy what we’re building here, one of the most helpful ways to support it is by becoming a paid subscriber on Substack. That support helps us pay storytellers, keep live shows going, and keep producing our podcast (now called The Nutshell True Story Hour), which is free for everyone to enjoy.
No pressure at all, but it truly does make a difference.
xoxo, Amy