2nd Annual Virtual Open-Mic To Kickoff Talking It Out Virtual Arts Festival 2022-23 Season

On September 17th at 7pm EST, the Talking It Out Virtual Arts Festival in support of mental health awareness - an ongoing production of Piccione Arts - will kick off its 2022-23 season programming with their 2nd Annual Virtual-Open Mic Night, where all attendees will be welcome to perform after a brief festival introduction.

Free RSVPs and the Zoom event link can be found at www.eventbrite.com/e/394717419427. More updates and information can be found by visiting www.linktr.ee/talkingitoutfest or following @talkingitoutfest on Facebook or Instagram.

For one night only, the festival will be opening its virtual stage to artists to present a short scene, monologue, poem, short film, or a musical number of their choosing based on the theme of mental health for this casual, interactive event taking place on Zoom. At the start of the event, festival staff will make an appearance to unveil details on the line-up of plays for this year's Main Stage programming; our Second Stage events - including the festival's 1st ever Virtual Art Gallery and the 2nd Annual Virtual Film Festival; and the all-new Talking It Out Educational Workshop Series to be announced on September 6th.

Now entering its third season, the Talking It Out Virtual Arts Festival's current leadership slate consists of Producing Artistic Director Anthony J. Piccione, Associate Artistic Director Ryan Thornhill, Program Manager Maria fe Picar & Literary Manager Angelo Lorenzo. In partnership with Fractured Atlas, a fundraising campaign to support expanded programming launched earlier this month and is scheduled to end on September 18th at www.fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/piccione-arts-production-fund.

Founded in 2020 by Mr. Piccione during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the original Talking It Out performance was presented live at the Dramatists Guild Foundation's Music Hall on March 10th, 2019. At the time of the initial readings, Michael D'Antoni wrote a rave review of the event for Five-Star Arts Journals, describing it as having "nothing less than pure, unadulterated, genuine, unpretentious focus on the agonies and anguish of mental illness, while also celebrating the triumphs and accomplishments over those living with, or those living with someone who suffers from mental health issues."

Originally intended to be a one-time event of minimalistic staged reading of short plays, the event has since been revived as an ongoing festival of plays - as well as an expanding line-up of additional arts programming - presented online via Zoom. Upon the first live screening of Talking It Out in November 2020, playwright & critic Jan Ewing praised the festival in a review for Hi! Drama for having "drawn from a wide range of ages and genders" and for "detailing the pain and distress encountered not only by those suffering from the various disorders but also those who support them." Each of the plays is presented by an ensemble of actors from different corners of the world, highlighting various issues of mental illness - ranging from anxiety, depression, autism, ADHD, PTSD, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, dementia, and more.

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