RISK! to Return to Caveat in June for First In-Person Event in Over a Year

RISK!, the live storytelling show and podcast where people tell true stories they never thought they'd dare to share in public, will return to its New York City home of Caveat (21 A Clinton St, New York, NY 10002) in the Lower East Side of Manhattan on Thursday, June 17 @ 7pm ET. The show will feature incredible true stories from Kevin Allison, Vernon Payne, Christine Gentry, Jim Christy and Michele Carlo.

The show will be the first in-person event RISK! has held since February 2020, following over a year of highly successful livestreams. Tickets are on sale now for $30 adv / $35 door, or for $15 to access the show as it's livestreamed from Caveat. All performers, attendees, and staff are required to be fully vaccinated, and provide proof upon entry.

"I'm going to be thrilled and hope to soak it up as much as possible," said Kevin Allison, host of RISK!, when asked how it's going to feel stepping on stage for the first time in over a year. "I think I'll be a little more mindful of really looking into the eyes of audience members, taking the time to take in the whole room, and just improvising with tiny little ways that having people in the same room and able to respond to you right out loud is fun."

RISK!, which was founded by Allison in 2009, abruptly moved to an online format at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The first livestream held on March 26, 2020 was an instant success, leading the show to be featured in both The New York Times and Forbes. The online shows proved so popular, RISK! continued to host at least one livestream per month, all hosted by Allison, save for its October Halloween livestream hosted by Jonah Ray (Mystery Science Theater 3000).

"We got a much, much more vivid feeling for RISK! fans being like a family," said Allison about hosting RISK! exclusively online the past fourteen months. "The first livestream felt like having a giant support group out there -- people were crying and texting in how much it meant to them all night and through the weekend."

With storytelling being such a personal medium, the pandemic will undoubtedly influence the stories told on upcoming shows. "People are more and more aware that storytelling is an essential way of making sense out of and making peace with our thoughts and feelings in challenging times," said Allison. "So things are getting more real in a potent and exciting way."

Caveat will host its first shows since reopening at the beginning of June, and will be enforcing strict policies to keep their audience, performers, and staff safe. All attendees must present proof of full vaccination to enter. Proof can be via the New York State Excelsior pass, a physical copy of the CDC card, a photo of the attendees' CDC card, or other electronic record of vaccination that includes a name and date. In all cases the name must match that on the attendee's photo ID. The full list of Covid-19 regulations in place is available on Caveat's website.

When asked if RISK! would continue hosting online events as venues reopen, Allison said, "Most likely yes, from time to time. Our Common Coeur events mean the world to so many people, including us here on the staff. They're these facilitated conversation events where RISK! fans have one on one conversations in Zoom breakout rooms and are provided with prewritten conversation prompts. We're still very open to the idea of how we might do hybrid (on stage AND online) or online-only events of various kinds."

Tickets for RISK!'s upcoming show at Caveat on June 17 @ 7pm ET are on sale now $30 adv / $35 door, or for $15 to access the show as a livestream. Doors for the show will open at 6:30pm ET.

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