Windy City Story Slam returns to Metro for May Day

April 29, 7:28 PMChicago Literary Scene ExaminerRobert Duffer

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The Windy City Story Slam returns to the Metro  (3730 N. Clark) this Friday (5/1/09) to honor May Day. Makes sense that the raw, working-class, Studs-inspired and distinctly-Chicago reading series would gather to commemorate over 120 years of organized labor and the riots that subsequently erupted in Chicago's Haymarket Square.

The Slam will include David Peak, Tim Stafford, Luis Tuebens, at least two musical acts, a round of vignettes from the working-class experience, and Donna Seaman reflecting on Chicago working-class icon, Studs Terkel. Despite the lineup, I doubt it will match the Slam's All-City Championship at Metro in January, when over 900 people packed the place for a literary event without any international literary stars. It was an inimatable night for storytelling in the city of big shoulders.  Ambitious producer and Slam founder Bill Hillman knows how to put together a good show, even at the last minute. If it's raw and chaotic, with no chance at getting everything he wants done on the stage, then it represents the Slam--and May Day--perfectly.