Diane Kastiel is the producer and host of First Person Live. A writer and storyteller from Chicago, she’s a three-time winner of the Moth StorySLAM; her work has been featured on the Moth Radio Hour, its podcast, and at special events for WBEZ, NPR’s Chicago affiliate. Diane has told stories on stage at The Second City, Steppenwolf, the Park West, Victory Gardens, The Writers Theater and others, as well as comedy clubs, art galleries, the basement of a tattoo parlor - she even did a show in the middle of the woods! Diane works with libraries, schools, community centers and homeless shelters to bring storytelling to a wider audience, and leads storytelling workshops at Northwestern University. Diane is an alumna of The Second City Conservatory and the University of Chicago’s Great Books program. She also has an MBA from Northwestern University…just in case. 

Bill Larkin is an actor, comedian, songwriter and pianist. His recently released second album of comedy songs, "Knowing Your Audience,” was recorded live at the legendary Green Mill Jazz Club in Chicago. Born and raised in Bedford, Mass., Bill moved to Orlando in 1991, working as an actor for Walt Disney World and Universal Studios, and co-writing a Muppet traveling show at Epcot. Bill moved to Chicago in 2002, where he sang in the Chicago Gay Men's Chorus and worked the piano bar circuit for many years. Bill currently performs at the Redhead Piano Bar in Chicago and The Paper Machete, a live weekly news magazine at the Green Mill. Lastly but not leastly, Bill improvises songs on Twitch and once crashed a biker rally. 👍

Mary Hoefler is a psychotherapist and finds that everyone has stories to tell - stories that shape who they are, and stories they need to release to move forward. She landed in Chicago as a new empty-nester to two grown-ish children after fleeing Milwaukee for San Francisco in the mid ‘80s and another long stint in Denver. Mary first appeared on a Moth stage in July 2023 and continues to hone her craft, earning nine StorySLAM wins and two Grand Slam wins (!). She is excited to premier her solo show, Fine is a Four Letter Word, in April at The Edge Theater in Chicago. Mary loves all things dog and would own a senior rescue in a heartbeat if it wouldn’t emotionally dismantle her. She loves to travel and maintains an ongoing fantasy of living abroad - an idea she revisits regularly, usually while unpacking.

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Lawrence Wood is the supervisory attorney at Legal Action Chicago, which provides free representation to and advocates on behalf of people who are living in poverty. For 22 years he was a Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago Law School, where he taught a seminar on housing and poverty law that Justice Antonin Scalia dismissed as a “waste of time.”

Larry has won three Moth StorySlams—one of his stories was featured on The MOTH Podcast—and eight New Yorker caption contests. He is the author of “Your Caption Has Been Selected: More Than Anyone Could Possibly Want To Know About The New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest.” Bob Mankoff, The New Yorker’s legendary cartoon editor, wrote the foreword.

Jim Petersen was the sex editor of Playboy magazine for almost 40 years years. (USA Today once called his column, The Playboy Advisor, “the premier source of sex information in the country.”) As the Playboy Advisor, Jim did stand-up sex therapy on 125 college campuses, wrote about sex when sex was new, and appeared on Late Night with David Letterman. (Note: If you followed his advice and were injured trying the Chinese Basket Trick, be advised that the statute of limitations has run out.) Jim is a regular at Moth StorySLAMs and other storytelling shows around Chicago.

Joe Mellen works is a health guide and a licensed acupuncturist. He majored in acting in college and pursued that in his 20s, but now enjoys writing and storytelling. Joe told his first story at an all-company meeting about finding his chosen family and has been going to storytelling events ever since. He’s also a big reader, with a kindle filled with gay paranormal romance novels(!).

Tim Schreiber has studied English, Journalism, German, Linguistics, Education, and Library Science, and was a professional librarian for 13 years. Then, for his first mid-life crisis, he got married and had two kids. Tim discovered live in 2018, competing in Moth StorySLAMS and doing other shows around Chicago. His middle-aged dad hobbies include playing tennis, reading long history books, and creating spreadsheets for his solar panels.