Vandergrift native to compete in virtual 'East Coast Regional GrandSLAM'

Mariah Passarelli is going to share her story.

The Vandergrift native who lives in Downtown Pittsburgh is one of eight people competing in The Moth’s first virtual East Coast Regional “GrandSLAM—A Multi-City Showdown” at 7:30 p.m. Monday.

The Moth is a non-profit group based in New York City dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. There had been monthly events in Pittsburgh at the Rex Theater on the South Side.

However, the coronavirus pandemic had them them to a halt.

So New Jersey resident Jenifer Hixson senior director at The Moth, came up with this online idea.

Her team took eight GrandSLAM winners from Asheville, Atlanta, Boston, Michigan, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C.

They will vie for the title — which viewers will decide.

Tickets are $15 per household and can be purchased here.

Be a part of Moth history! We're debuting the first-ever, multi-city #MothGrandSLAM starting with the East Coast on 8/24! 8 winners from recent SLAMs in Asheville, Atlanta, Boston, Michigan, NYC, Philly, Pittsburgh, and DC will battle to be the storytelling champ of champs. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/cJWqdcfXdJ

— The Moth (@TheMoth) August 18, 2020

Passarelli won the Pittsburgh competition in October.

“So many events have been canceled or postponed for in person and done virtually, so we thought that is what we can do, too,” said Hixson, whose dad grew up in Monessen. “This can be a lot of fun.”

The pandemic has left a hole in the lives of people who are missing live theater, music and these storytelling performances, she said. Each competition has a theme; this one is “Fish out of water.”

The rule is the story can’t be written down.

“It should be from the memory in your head,” Hixson said. “We also recommend not memorizing the story. We do encourage you have a specific first line and last line so you know where you are starting and where you want to land at the end.”

Each time slot is 5 minutes.

Passarelli said she is excited for the event, although it will be different not having a live audience.

“It will be pretty cool to hear all of the other people’s stories from different cities,” said Passarelli, who heard about the Pittsburgh event three years ago and liked what she heard so she became one of the storytellers. “I like the experience of stories from people from all walks of life. It’s about the human experience.”

She said it’s a diversion from her every day job as a labor and employment defense attorney for Cozen O’Connor.

“My work is heavy, not fun subject matter,” she said. “This is not quite so serious. The challenge is that the story won’t come out perfect, but it is still your own personal story.”

He story is about her first major filing as a lawyer, which didn’t go as planned.

You’ll have to tune in for the rest of the story.