Storytellers shared tales from different periods in downtown Phoenix’s history to a crowd of more than 100 people at the Phoenix Center for the Arts on Wednesday.
Carol Poore, the executive and producer of the Phoenix Phabulous Experience, handpicked each guest speaker to cover a certain time period of downtown Phoenix in less than six minutes.
“I was delighted to hear the variety of stories from such a diversity of people who love Phoenix and have such personal connections to different time periods of Phoenix,” Poore said. “I don’t think that I would have changed anything for tonight. It was very touching.”
Poore worked to develop the storytelling event, in its inaugural year, with downtown Phoenix historian Jim McPherson.
Many of the guest speakers Poore chose are well-known in Arizona, including Kathy Nakagawa, Ivan Makil and Bob Boze Bell.
Pat McMahon, a speaker famous for his role as Gerald on the locally produced children’s television series “The Wallace and Ladmo Show,” spoke about his time on the show that ran from 1954 to 1989.
RJ Shannon, the 2013 chair for the AIDS Walk Phoenix and 5K Run, told an emotional story for 2001 until today about a woman she met who was HIV-positive.
A story that many audience members found heartbreaking was the story of Henry Ong Jr.
Ong, 91, is an Arizona veteran that served in World War II and was a former prisoner of war. He was inducted in 2005 to the Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame.
Ong had four other brothers serving in WWII. He was the only one who made it back home.
“We didn’t have a parade, we didn’t have a welcome party,” Ong said to the crowd. “The only person that was there was my father.”
While Ong’s story passed the six-minute mark, he still received a standing ovation from the crowd as he exited the stage.
During the open mic segment of the show, three audience members were able to share their stories to the crowd. Due to time constraints, Poore said they were unable to allow for a more “surprising and random” experience for the open mic portion since those three guests were already chosen prior to the event.
Although 3D-projected visuals were planned for each speaker, technical issues prevented full use of the displays, Poore said.
Joe Atredies, a 47-year-old history buff, attended the event after running into Frank Barrios, one of the guest speakers, before the event.
“It was extremely informative,” Atredies said. “There’s a colorful history of Phoenix that people really don’t suspect most times.”
For spring 2014, Poore plans on expanding the open mic segment for the second showcasing of the Phoenix Fabulous Experience.
Contact the reporter at bcsteine@asu.edu
