Pride Storytelling
In this unique event, academics who study the diaries, memoirs and other egodocuments of LGBTQIA+ “Amsterdammers” team up with experienced storytellers. The result is an entertaining night of hidden stories. These relatively unknown people who contributed to Amsterdam’s vibrant queer history have stories to be celebrated. The academics ensure the stories are accurate and full of vibrant details. The storytellers ensure the stories are engaging for a wider audience. Together, they offer the perfect way to celebrate World Pride in Amsterdam.
We will hear an early story of a trans person who migrated for gender-confirming surgery. Their memoir and the storytelling performance based on it shows the evolution of trans experience, as well as its universality. We will also listen to a contemporary story of a queer person who is born in the Netherlands with a non‑Western background. It highlights a journey in navigating obstacles such as stereotypes, non‑accepting environments, and the absence of role models to relate to.
These are just a few of the engaging and inspiring stories on this unique night. Come join us to find out more!
Elyzabeth Gorman is the passionate founder and sole researcher behind Badass Tours, dedicated to uncovering and sharing Amsterdam’s hidden histories. Elyzabeth has performed at renowned venues like the Amsterdam Museum, Van Gogh Museum, and Jewish Museum and has been a regular storyteller at Mezrab House of Stories.
As a toddler in India, Bipin Upadhyay was introduced to the nitty-gritty of communication through stories with allegories, metaphors, and tropes. Now that he is all grown up and what not, he struggles to have a simple conversation without delving into long, self-indulgent stories. Thankfully, he has friends who invite him to cook up stories and perform them to unsuspecting audiences.
Guus Møystad is a visual artist, writer and storyteller based in Amsterdam. He is a chaotic hodgepodge of identities that never settle for long and finds his inspiration in history, subcultures, and folklore.
Irina Koriazova is an Amsterdam-based storyteller. She has a dry sense of humor and loves to turn things upside down: victims become protagonists, and terrifying monsters turn into creatures worthy of love. Her work is sometimes described as raw and unsanitised — like dirt under the fingernails, it clings and lingers. Irina regularly performs and hosts at Mezrab, as well as other storytelling venues and festivals across the Netherlands.
Joseph Kearney is a storyteller and film producer from Ireland who is a regular host and contributor at Mezrab House of Storytelling. As an out and proud queer man, he works in the LGBTQ+ space, including running a storytelling event at Theater Bellevue called Brave Space.
Rissa Ellis is from Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. As a current Master's student in European Studies: Identity and Integration at the University of Amsterdam and a tour guide, she is passionate about sharing the untold stories of those who helped build a better society for all.
Mert Anaç is a Bachelor's student in European Studies and student assistant at the Humanities Faculty’s Diversity Office of the UvA. Born in the Netherlands to Turkish migrant parents, Mert focuses on contemporary stories of non‑Western queer people born in the Netherlands.
Marleen Rensen is associate professor of Modern European Literature at UvA. She specialises in literature and life writing, with a specific focus issues of identity and belonging.