Old Adage About Time Rings True It's the 4th week of Summer School already...that old adage is true!
For the past week, my students’ eyes seemed to glaze over at the mention of their impending, first-time telling of folktales. So my heart was truly elated on Wednesday as each person told and did a fantastic job! Now we're really having fun!
Yes, the summer semester is half over. We'll have four weeks of vacation in HOT August, then it's back to school for fall! I have two beginning class for The art of Storytelling at Glendale Community College. One of them is already full! And I am hoping to have a Storytelling II class in the fall. If you live on the west side, or are willing to make the trek to 59th Avenue and Olive (Dunlap), let me know if you are interested in improving your storytelling skills. I will need a minimum of twelve students.
And, of course, there are a myriad number of storytelling classes at the South Mountain Storytelling Institute. If you have a friend who has constantly said, "I have always wanted to get into that." now is the time to get them signed up! There are also classes at many of the other Maricopa Community Colleges in the metropolitan area.
Journeys Storytelling Concert at Whole Life Center
Friday - June 24th - 7:00 PM
Come hear tales, some true and some tall, from friends both familiar and new. Storytellers will include folks from our monthly workshops - as well as others in the Valley storytelling community. It'll be a night all about the joys and sorrows of summer and more.
Tucson Storytelling Concert - Mark Your Calendar - June 26th Sunday - June 26th - 4pm
Tucson Garden Home - 222 E. 14th Street, Tucson, AZ
Direction, Misdirection and Magic: Tales with a Twist
A storytelling concert for grown ups with
Glenda Bonin, Mark Goldman, and Debra Olson-Tolar
Join these three professional storytellers for an entertaining afternoon of traditional and personal tales in a lovely garden setting (but we'll move inside if the weather dictates).
By the way... If you want to "carpool" down to Tucson, let me know and we will try to make it happen!
Workshop with Glenda Bonin Saturday, July 9th - 9:30am - 11:30am
Unscrewed Theater, 3244 E Speedway
The Tellers of Tales in Tucson will hold a free workshop with Glenda Bonin on Saturday, July 2, in Tucson. The workshop is on How to Successfully Deliver Storytelling Programs in Senior Living Communities. This is the same workshop that Glenda is proud to be presenting at the National Storytelling Network Conference in Kansas City, Missouri on July 22.
If you can't make it to the NSN Conference, this is a great way to experience Glenda's expertise with this often misunderstood population!
Here's a TBT: Throw-Back-Tip. I thought it would be useful to post this again (first posted in February of 2015). I recently used it in the Journeys Workshop and all the participants said it was very useful. I hope you agree.
I created a form that I use in my Community College Storytelling classes that has proved to be quite useful. The students must fill it out prior to even practicing their story in small groups. The information may change once they have told the story, or even several times before they do their required telling in front of the entire class
The form has some basic information about the story (title, origin, genre), but also has a few sections that I believe are important to help understand and craft the story in a more thoughtful and conscious way.
I recently, AGAIN, updated the form and I am offering it here for evaluation and feedback. You may use the "comments" section at the end of this Newsletter, just as one does on Facebook.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A PDF and WORD version of this form may be found at www.StorytellersWorkbook.com Feel free to download it, edit and use for yourself or your students as needed (with attribution) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Length of story: ____________ (must be between 5-8 minutes)
This may seem silly, but I believe the teller must know how long the story is when told, or at least have a "first draft" understanding of how long it will be. Many students don't understand the difference between ;"going over the story in their head" and actually speaking it out loud. Keeping them to between 5-8 minutes is a means to make sure they present enough content, and help them keep focused on the most important part(s) of the story.
What’s the POINT or THEME of the story? What's the story about?
"What's the story about?" is a question Doug Lipman (The Storytelling Coach) asks quite often after the story is told in a coaching session. I have also adopted this tenet. This question is so important, that I believe it is essential to know BEFORE one tells the story. Sometimes, this revelation comes after telling and working on the story for a long time, but if the student can approach the telling with some sense of the theme, they will be in a better position to do justice to their tale.
What do you LOVE about this story?
Another question I learned from Doug Lipman. Most seasoned tellers will admonish newbies to "Tell Stories you love!" This is good, and knowing what you LOVE about a story BEFORE you tell it, can inform your whole being about how you might convey that in the telling.
What parts of YOU or YOUR OWN LIFE connect with this story?
"When something within a folktale resonates with your own story, it calls to you to be its voice. And then the responsibility begins. You do whatever you need to do to get to the root of what it means to you and the truth that resides in the story."
I believe this is true for all types of stories one chooses to tell, not only folktales. By telling a story, we show parts of who we are. We must know all the pieces in the story to which we connect. That gives the story life.
From what VOICE (Point of View) will the story be told? --First Person - WHO is speaking? --Third Person Omniscient (Narrator)? --Second Person - WHO is speaking and to WHOM are they speaking?
Here, I ask the student to make a choice about the "voice" or Point of view of the story. I ask them to think about how the story might change in any way if it was told from a voice other than that of the traditional narrator voice.
First Line:_________________________________
Most storytellers agree that one should not memorize the whole story. But most also agree that tellers should specifically craft and memorize the first and last lines of a story. (See my previous Tip on First and Last Lines)
What will be the first line of your story? Is there something other than the traditional, "Once upon a time"? First lines can set the scene, tone of the story; introduce characters; tell when and where the story takes place, etc. But the first line must also draw in the audience and make them want to hear more.
Last Line: _________________________
How will you end your story? (See my previous tip about Endings) The end to your story needs to clearly say "The End", but it is best said in the context of the story. Endings should "put a button" on the story; wrap it up in some way...or not. An ending that leaves the audience wondering what really happened can be just as effective...sometimes. Again, the point I want to stress is that I want the student to give some thought to what their last line will be. Ending the story with a great line can make it the most memorable story the audience has ever heard. And isn't that part of what we want?
On the BACK of the form...
BREATH MARKS - Notes on other specifics - Language; Gestures: Body Movement: Facial Expressions; Pauses, etc.
I ask the students to add any important things about the WAY that they will tell the story. Do they need to take a larger breath before letting out a fast paced list of events in the story, so they won't run out of air? Are there specific (intentional) gestures they will use? Where will they pause? What will their facial expressions be? What specific words or language will they use in a particular spot?
All these things are part of the "crafting process" that need to be attended to for success.
------------------------------------THERE'S A LOT GOING ON EACH MONTH -------------------CHECK EACH WEBSITE OR CALENDAR TO CONFIRM DATES AND TIMES ---------------------------------CALL TO MAKE SURE THE EVENT IS STILL ON
FStorytellers - Female Story Tellers - Tucson
Usually sometime during the first week of the month - but check their website) at 7 pm - TUCSON http://www.fstorytellers.com/index.html
West Side Story Tellers - Storytellers Guild First Saturday of each month - GLENDALE *NO meetings in July & August http://westsidestorytellers.weebly.com
East Valley Tellers of Tales -Storytellers Guild Second Saturday of each month - SCOTTSDALE - *NO meetings in July & August http://www.evtot.com
Storyfind Fourth Saturday of each month (usually - check calendar) - *NO meetings in June & July
SMCC Storytelling Institute
A monthly workshop designed to help storytellers build community and deepen repertoire. See the Calendar
- National Storytelling Network? You should be.
It's the 4th week of Summer School already...that old adage is true!
Saturday, July 9th - 9:30am - 11:30am
