23 Facts About Slash Coleman

Slash Coleman was born on August 13,1967 and is an American storyteller, producer, and writer who lives in Richmond, Virginia.

Slash Coleman's work is often compared to that of author David Sedaris.

Slash Coleman is a first-generation American and a third generation artist descended from a grandfather who was a dancer at the Moulin Rouge and a father, Mike Coleman, who is a prolific sculptor.

Slash Coleman's mother, Nicole, is a Holocaust survivor who was born in France.

Slash Coleman legally changed his first name to Slashtipher with his barmitzva money to illuminate his Jewish past and to honor his grandparents who worked for the French Resistance during the war.

Slash Coleman spent his formative years in his father's art studio learning to draw and paint.

Slash Coleman went on to earn a degree at East-West College of the Healing Arts and furthered his studies at the Upledger Institute and Oregon College of Oriental Medicine.

Slash Coleman produced, wrote and starred in a PBS Special in 2008 entitled The Neon Man and Me which is a tribute to his best friend, Mark Jamison, a neon artist from Roanoke, Virginia who was electrocuted while hanging a neon sign.

Slash Coleman began hosting Home Grown Theatre out of his southeast Portland apartment.

Slash Coleman moved to Northampton, MA in 2003 and produced his first solo show "Love in Boxes," at the Northampton Center for the Arts on February 14,2004.

Slash Coleman portrayed 6 characters in the production which chronicled a young boy named Jeffrey Rabbit who practiced a peculiar courtship ritual that involved giving women unusual cardboard boxes while struggling with his attempts at love and his anxieties about rejection.

In observance of Governor Kaine's Month of the Grieving Child, Slash Coleman produced a tour of student monologues relating to friendship and loss that was performed at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

In conjunction with his solo performance work, Slash Coleman began to collaborate with other Richmond performers and directors in the summer of 2006.

Later in 2007, Slash Coleman began to explore unresolved personal themes within "The Neon Man and Me," mainly around issues about identity and those regarding his family and their experience with the Holocaust.

Slash Coleman created a solo show that revealed his own connection to this profound material.

In 2009, Slash Coleman was invited to perform at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, TN at which time Susan O'Connor, director of programs declared herself, "a real fan," of his work.

Slash Coleman was invited to participate in two artist residencies:The International Storytelling Center and Portland Story Theater.

Slash Coleman was invited to perform at Pete Seeger's Clearwater Festival, The Timpanogos Storytelling Conference, and Gimistory International Storytelling Festival in the Cayman Islands.

In 2012, Coleman signed with Jean V Naggar agency and moved to New York City to begin work on his second PBS special about the rebirth of storytelling in the United States.

Slash Coleman was invited to give a TED Talk at Tedx MillRiver on the creative process.

In 2018, Slash Coleman received his certification as a Laughter Yoga Leader from Laughter Yoga University and began a yearlong laughter experiment.

In 2019, Slash Coleman was contacted by Dr Madan Kataria, the founder of Laughter Yoga University.

Slash Coleman travelled to Bangalore, India to study with the doctor in addition to being presented with the US Laughter Ambassador Award.