TRUE STORY NIGHTS
Top storytellers confess all
in English
Bex McLaughlin - ©
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Thomas Toppler - © Schrotthfer
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Annika Lisia - © Jaqui Dresen
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Turan Ali - ©
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Termine
On October 22nd 2025, the hugely popular TRUE STORY NIGHTS from Vienna Storytelling Collective celebrates the 3rd anniversary of its first performance of monthly shows at Volkstheater’s Rote Bar. It has been sold out for every show since October 2022. These exciting storytelling evenings have been bringing you a different line up of performers each time, with surprising, moving, hilarious and sometimes shockingly true stories. Your host as ever is Turan Ali, producer of BBC drama/comedy, who welcomes you to a rollercoaster evening of gripping, high quality true stories – some from Vienna. Our ever-changing quartet of storytellers for each show includes novelists, comedians, radio, TV and film professionals, screenplay writers, performance poets, singer-songwriters and theatre-makers. It feels like being the priest at a confessional, hearing such personal revelations …. but you don’t need to keep all these a secret!
WHAT THE AUDIENCES HAVE SAID: “Exhilarating”, “A brilliant evening every time”, “Funny and very moving”, “Incredible stories!”
True stories guaranteed to astonish, amuse or amaze you with their honesty.
The line-up for our October 22nd 2025 TRUE STORY NIGHTS is Turan Ali, Romana Carén, Alan Burgon and Alicia Edelweiss.
Turan Ali has been producing, directing and writing BBC Radio dramas, comedies and documentaries for 20+ years. He’s the creator, host and producer of True Story Nights. He has Austrian/Turkish parents, has been an on-stage storyteller since 2012 and a stand-up since 2021. His recent tours have included Vienna, Scotland, Budapest and Istanbul. He won the Creative Edinburgh Leadership Award 2024.
Romana Carén is an award-winning writer, director and actress from Vienna, now a PhD student at De Montfort University, UK. She created acclaimed short films such as No Mother (2021), winner of multiple international awards, and Heartbeat (2013), screened at Cannes & Raindance. She’s also Director of Postgraduate Studies/Film-making at Raindance Film School, with her first book on self-directing due in 2026.
Alan Burgon is an award-winning British actor, director, writer, and a graduate of Scotland’s Royal Conservatoire. He has performed with Dundee Rep, National Theatre of Scotland, on German TV (Tatort Mainz, Das Netz) & international films (Thank You For Bombing, Me We). He co-founded Vienna's Open House Theatre, and is Bjørn in Austria's biggest ABBA tribute band The Magic Of ABBA.
Alicia Edelweiss is an Austro-British singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist (especially accordion), artist and yarnspinner, with dark folk tales and witty auto-biographical sketches. She won the Hubert von Goisern Cultural Award (2022) and released 2 albums, “When I'm Enlightened, Everything Will Be Better” (2019), “FURIE” (2025). She has performed in festivals across Europe with her chamber pop band of strings.
WHAT THE AUDIENCES HAVE SAID: “Exhilarating”, “A brilliant evening every time”, “Funny and very moving”, “Incredible stories!”
True stories guaranteed to astonish, amuse or amaze you with their honesty.
The line-up for our October 22nd 2025 TRUE STORY NIGHTS is Turan Ali, Romana Carén, Alan Burgon and Alicia Edelweiss.
Turan Ali has been producing, directing and writing BBC Radio dramas, comedies and documentaries for 20+ years. He’s the creator, host and producer of True Story Nights. He has Austrian/Turkish parents, has been an on-stage storyteller since 2012 and a stand-up since 2021. His recent tours have included Vienna, Scotland, Budapest and Istanbul. He won the Creative Edinburgh Leadership Award 2024.
Romana Carén is an award-winning writer, director and actress from Vienna, now a PhD student at De Montfort University, UK. She created acclaimed short films such as No Mother (2021), winner of multiple international awards, and Heartbeat (2013), screened at Cannes & Raindance. She’s also Director of Postgraduate Studies/Film-making at Raindance Film School, with her first book on self-directing due in 2026.
Alan Burgon is an award-winning British actor, director, writer, and a graduate of Scotland’s Royal Conservatoire. He has performed with Dundee Rep, National Theatre of Scotland, on German TV (Tatort Mainz, Das Netz) & international films (Thank You For Bombing, Me We). He co-founded Vienna's Open House Theatre, and is Bjørn in Austria's biggest ABBA tribute band The Magic Of ABBA.
Alicia Edelweiss is an Austro-British singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist (especially accordion), artist and yarnspinner, with dark folk tales and witty auto-biographical sketches. She won the Hubert von Goisern Cultural Award (2022) and released 2 albums, “When I'm Enlightened, Everything Will Be Better” (2019), “FURIE” (2025). She has performed in festivals across Europe with her chamber pop band of strings.
The hugely popular TRUE STORY NIGHTS from Vienna Storytelling Collective continues its 4th year of monthly sold-out shows at Volkstheater’s Rote Bar. These exciting storytelling evenings have been bringing you a different line up of performers each time, with surprising, moving, hilarious and sometimes shockingly true stories. Your host as ever is Turan Ali, producer of BBC drama/comedy, who welcomes you to a rollercoaster evening of gripping, high quality true stories – some from Vienna. Our ever-changing quartet of storytellers for each show includes novelists, comedians, radio, TV and film professionals, screenplay writers, performance poets, singer-songwriters and theatre-makers. It feels like being the priest at a confessional, hearing such personal revelations …. but you don’t need to keep all these a secret!
WHAT THE AUDIENCES HAVE SAID: “Exhilarating”, “A brilliant evening every time”, “Funny and very moving”, “Incredible stories!”
True stories guaranteed to astonish, amuse or amaze you with their honesty.
The line-up for our November 18th 2025 TRUE STORY NIGHTS is Turan Ali, Thomas Toppler, Bex McLaughlin and Annika Lisia.
Turan Ali has been producing, directing and writing BBC Radio dramas, comedies and documentaries for 25+ years. He’s the creator, host and producer of True Story Nights. He has Austrian/Turkish parents, has been an on-stage storyteller since 2012 and a stand-up since 2021. His recent tours included a 5 star run of his Queer Folks’ Tales show at Edinburgh Fringe, plus shows in Czech Republic, Istanbul, Cyprus and the UK. He won the Creative Edinburgh Leadership Award 2024.
Bex McLaughlin is a comedian and improviser, born in the British city of Bristol, and she now lives in Vienna. She specialises in observational storytelling, sharing tales of cultural misunderstandings, perpetual failings in love and work, and her dysfunctional family. It is all backed with dry, British sarcasm and a flair for various accents.
Thomas Toppler is a classical percussionist who’s performed with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and many others. A graduate of the École Philippe Gaulier (Paris) he co-founded the Bouffon theatre company Ship of Fools, directing/performing many acclaimed productions and The Erlkings, a group that reimagines the songs of Schubert and Schumann, which performed internationally. His many plays include the Bouffon theatre piece, "Ein bescheidenerer Vorschlag" (2022) which won the Austrian Theatre Award „Nestroy" for Best Off Production.
Annika Lisia is an artist, singer-songwriter, producer, and DJ whose sound is deeply rooted in Soul, R&B, and Pop. She studied jazz vocals at Music and Arts University, Vienna, and blends soulful beats, rich melodies, and emotive storytelling. Annika has released a debut album and several EPs, including her latest "Milk & Honey". She’s been featured on radio & TV and toured across Europe plus she’s performed in LA.
WHAT THE AUDIENCES HAVE SAID: “Exhilarating”, “A brilliant evening every time”, “Funny and very moving”, “Incredible stories!”
True stories guaranteed to astonish, amuse or amaze you with their honesty.
The line-up for our November 18th 2025 TRUE STORY NIGHTS is Turan Ali, Thomas Toppler, Bex McLaughlin and Annika Lisia.
Turan Ali has been producing, directing and writing BBC Radio dramas, comedies and documentaries for 25+ years. He’s the creator, host and producer of True Story Nights. He has Austrian/Turkish parents, has been an on-stage storyteller since 2012 and a stand-up since 2021. His recent tours included a 5 star run of his Queer Folks’ Tales show at Edinburgh Fringe, plus shows in Czech Republic, Istanbul, Cyprus and the UK. He won the Creative Edinburgh Leadership Award 2024.
Bex McLaughlin is a comedian and improviser, born in the British city of Bristol, and she now lives in Vienna. She specialises in observational storytelling, sharing tales of cultural misunderstandings, perpetual failings in love and work, and her dysfunctional family. It is all backed with dry, British sarcasm and a flair for various accents.
Thomas Toppler is a classical percussionist who’s performed with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and many others. A graduate of the École Philippe Gaulier (Paris) he co-founded the Bouffon theatre company Ship of Fools, directing/performing many acclaimed productions and The Erlkings, a group that reimagines the songs of Schubert and Schumann, which performed internationally. His many plays include the Bouffon theatre piece, "Ein bescheidenerer Vorschlag" (2022) which won the Austrian Theatre Award „Nestroy" for Best Off Production.
Annika Lisia is an artist, singer-songwriter, producer, and DJ whose sound is deeply rooted in Soul, R&B, and Pop. She studied jazz vocals at Music and Arts University, Vienna, and blends soulful beats, rich melodies, and emotive storytelling. Annika has released a debut album and several EPs, including her latest "Milk & Honey". She’s been featured on radio & TV and toured across Europe plus she’s performed in LA.