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Press Play to hear Brother Wolf takes questions from his audience on the Art of Storytelling Show on the future, current health and past history of the podcast. This is 1 of 3 shows commemorating the 100th Anniversary episode of the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf Show.

Each of the people asking questions on this show have there own work and I can hardly expect anyone to get all the way through this episode with out having to listen two or three times…

Audience Members who Participated in this Show…
Judith Black – Show ID http://www.tellingstoriestochildren.com
Robert Kikuchi-yngojo – Show Introduction – http://www.ethnohtec.org
Bill Lepp – Guest Bio – http://www.buck-dog.com
Anne Shimojima storyteller – Wonder and Amazement – http://www.storytelling.org/shimojima/
Lisa Eister – How did the Art of Storytelling Start? – http://www.scstorytellingnetwork.org/guilds.html
Fiona-Jane Brown, aka Story Esquine What do you think of having children tell true life stories? http://www.grampianstorytellers.org.uk
Jeff Gere of the Talk Story Festival – How has this process effected you? – http://www.jeffgere.com
Mylinda Buttterworth – Can you tell us more about Eco Tales? http://www.storymasters.org
Donna Washington – Thanks for Contributing. – http://www.donnawashington.com
Tim Errneta – What is your listenership like? – http://storytelling.blogspot.com/
Judith Alexander – How long are you going to be keeping up this podcast? – http://www.seattlestorytelling.org

Thanks to all the people who participated in the making of this episode.

Never apologize before performing – if you have to apologize due it at the end of your performance where people can except your apology as a part of there approval of your good performance. I have been a little delayed in my production of this episode. Scratch this delay up too a desire to make the show decent and a fear of success that seems to be over taking me at this point. More on the that in a few days.

The writer is Eric Wolf Storyteller

Art is not limited by state budgets, the few hours of life apportioned or others acceptance. The only limitation of art is our desire to embrace art as we know it and to love that expression that calls us into our passion – into our being – into the voice of God. Of all the arts, storytelling is the most able to thrive despite budgets cuts, institutional ignorance and community apathy. Storytelling brings people together and serves as a beacon for community healing.

To be an artists is to give yourself over to a creative process that promise no fruit with each effort. But instead enlightens our lives with a gift that can only be declared – soul. Art in it’s purist form is God’s hand in our mortal lives. A living testament that their is more to our lives then this simple physical frame. To be an artist is to see the world, not only as it is – but as it can be or will be by our will.

Art makes meaning where there is none, gives power to the powerless, heals wounds long scarred, and above all hold love triumphant for the entire world to see. Successful art brings people together through compassion, forgiveness and understanding. Art and storytelling is held and holds community in it’s sacred trust. Art binds the sinews of the mortal world into a tapestry that ancestors hold in their immortal coil.

When we examine what it means to be dyslexic in a modern society we find ourselves looking at an entire class of creative types who are artists by definition. Though their creative efforts may be far from what society defines as “art”. They as a group fall in the range of artist by their very necessity of invention. Their inability to fit with the bounds of normality causes them to rush into the worlds of creativity that others will never experience. Not to say that to be dyslexic is to be born a painter, actor, poet or artist. Far from that. Dyslexics make the best storytellers by the requirements of the world bent down upon them.

Storytelling is the refuge of sinners and survivors. Storytelling is an art long associated with lying and dishonesty. Oral Narrative is held in disrepute for the same reasons it is so widely successful. The ease at which storytelling can be adapted and used to support the powerless and the oppressed is the same ease that allows sinners and con artists to bends it to their will.

Press Play to hear Jimmy Neil Smith about the future of the International Storytelling on the Art of Storytelling Center with Brother Wolf.

Photo Curtsey of Fresh Air.

Tired of the tin sound? Purchase a HQ Mp3 File of Interview #096 Jimmy Neil Smith for $2.23 The Future of the International Storytelling Center

Jimmy Neil Smith writes...
In the early 1990s, I attended a conference of the Tennessee Arts Commission in nearby Johnson City. During the session, potter Bill Strickland spoke about the arts-based Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild and Bidwell Training Center in inner-city Pittsburgh—an institution, founded by Strickland, that teaches low-income, inner-city youths an employment skill.

Strickland spoke eloquently about his institution and its program. His address was stirring and powerful. Then, as a closing, Strickland said, “I challenge each of you to go home and build an institution that confirms and makes real what you know.”

Strickland’s challenge inspired me.

Less than a year later, the National Storytelling Association announced the development of what would become the International Storytelling Center—the organization’s first permanent home in 30 years and a “launching pad” for a series of national and international programs, products, and services.

It was Strickland’s challenge that would give birth to the institution that has become the International Storytelling Center. The Center campus—now composed of the elegant Mary B. Martin Storytelling Hall, Historic Center Inn, and the Storytelling Community Park—opened in June of 2002.

Through the work of ISC, we are seeking to confirm and make real what we know about storytelling—the ancient tradition that is as old as humankind yet as modern as this morning’s headlines. Now, in 2010, ISC is launching an expanded vision—a journey to a New Horizon—a better life, a better world, through the power of storytelling.

To achieve this vision, ISC is:
• Building international awareness, appreciation, and audiences for storytelling
• Teaching individuals, organizations, and communities across the globe how to tap into the power of storytelling to build a better life and a better world
• Enhancing the Center’s role in Jonesborough as the worldwide beacon for

Brother Wolf said, on 1/12/2010 1:10:00 PM

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The Art of Storytelling Show has had over 115, 000 downloads since it began podcasting in 2007. Created by Brother Wolf (Eric Wolf) in the spring of 2007 , the show brings the best and brightest of the storytelling community to the world stage.

The Art of Storytelling Show is the world’s sole interview- format show dedicated to exploring the art and science of storytelling in all its forms. With over a hundred interviews available for listening to online at http://www.artofostorytellingshow.com, this podcast is becoming the premier resource for understanding and practicing the art of storytelling worldwide.

World-wide listenership of the Art of Storytelling Show continues to climb with over 44,000 downloads in the second half of 2009. International participation in the audience of the Art of Storytelling show has climbed to 37% despite the URL and name change. Here is a map of countries with more then 85 downloads in the last six months of 2009:

Born as the Storytelling with Children Show, the Art of Storytelling Show has changed its name and broadened its scope, while retaining a lively interest in children’s storytelling. Storytelling has numerous aspects and subtopics; on the user-friendly website, the interviews have been divided into various categories . Topics include storytelling and African Americans, Artistic Marketing, Beginning, Coaching, Digital, Environmental, Festival Organizing, Healing, International, Literacy, Resources for Parents, Peace, Personal Narrative, Professional Development, Scary, Singing, Ceremony, Community, Libraries, Schools and Storytelling on the Street.

Upcoming shows recorded and waiting for release include …

01/13/10 Interview #096 Jimmy Neal Smith – The Future of the International Storytelling Center.

01/27/10 Interview #097 Lloyd Arneach – Perspective on Native American Storytelling.

02/10/10 Interview #098 Ben Nind – Storytelling is Essential to Community Health.

02/24/10 Interview #099 Emil Wolfgrramn – Inside the Pacific Island Storytelling Culture.

03/03/10 Interview #100 Brother Wolf – Answers Questions on the Art of Storytelling.

03/17/10 Interview #101 David Ambrose – The International Storytelling Festival of Wales.

03/31/10 Interview #102 Ruth Slater – Working with String and Stories.

04/14/10 Interview #103 Tejumola Olosboni – Street Storytelling, the Real Deal.

04/28/10 Interview #104 The Storytelling Kid – interviewed by Jim May – What Youth Storytellers can tell us.

05/12/10 Interview #105 Victorea Burnett – Storytelling and Singing.

For Further Contact
Eric Wolf
http://www.ericowlf.org
937 767-8696
[email protected]

To listen to an episode:
http://www.artofstorytellingshow.com/

For Further Information:
http://www.artofstorytellingshow.com/category/press-release/

Press Play to hear Michal Malinowski speaking on the Storytelling Museum of Poland on the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf.

A storyteller - shaman from Altay in Siberia at the festival of Intangible Heritage organized by the Storytelling Museum.

Michal Malinowski writes...
The Storyteller Museum is a unique institution devoted to the collection, preservation and promotion of oral heritage from all over the world. Our mission is to save the vanishing examples of intangible treasures, acquaint new generations with the oral tradition of a variety of cultures and revive the custom of storytelling. Nonetheless, our attention is also devoted not only to tribal storytelling but also to contemporary trends in oral expression. The Museum has been the leading place in Poland to developed the storytelling revival movement. We have organized Storytelling Festivals and workshops in our location and other places in the country

The Storyteller Museum has an innovative approach to collecting and exhibiting different cultural artifacts by applying the latest achievements of digital technology. Our interests pertain not only to narrative texts but also to other indirect elements, such as gesture, movement, dance, sound, music, costume and body coverings. We have been engaged in work on various exhibitions, elaborating unexplored topics, such as African Griots: Local Knowledge -Global Polish Oral Tradition, A Panorama of European Oral Tradition, The Storyteller Museum supports all initiatives of transcribing oral traditions into tangible platforms. For such an end it has initiated a special program called Indigenous Writers, aiming to give the opportunity to tribal people to enunciate their oral art, so that it can be preserved in various forms, such as books, audio-visual recordings and museum digital displays. We are currently working on the book "Folktales from Burkina Faso"

Michal Malinowski - biography
Folklorist, writer, storyteller, computer graphic artist, born in 1966 in Warszaw, graduated from Academy of Fine Arts in Lausanne - Switzerland diploma in painting and computer graphics, started his carier as multimedia artist designing animation movies in Switzerland and Japan. Simultaneously discovered his passion for writting which he has realised as animation script writter and free lance journalist for various magazines in Europe and Asia. In 1997 traveled to Papua New Guinea where discovered traditional storytellers and decided to create the new type of museum based on interactive technology presenting oral traditions and intangible heritage. In 1999 quit Japan in the goal to extend his knowledge in cultural studies and went for one year to Folklore and Mythology Department at Harvard University. After retourned to Poland and opened in 2002 the Storyteller Museum in the house he built himself.

He has contributed to the beginning of Polish storytelling revival mouvment , organizing since 2002 various storytelling events ( storytelling evenings, workshops and Festivals in the Museum venue and all over Poland). He performed his storytelling programs life on stage, libraries, schools or since December 2007 regularly on the III Chanel of the Polish National Radio. Recently performed in the storytelling festival

Press Play to hear Christine Carlton and Jenni Cargill have a conversation on Australian Storytelling on the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf.

Tired of the tin sound? Purchase a HQ Mp3 File of Interview #092 Christine Carlton and Jenni Cargill 2 Australian Storytellers for $2.23 Examining the Skeletons in the Cultural Closet.

Written by Jenni Cargill-Strong

Eric asked what does it mean to be Australian? Ask 20 different Australians these questions and you might get 20 different answers.
Christine explained and I’d agree, that it can be hard to define the Australian identity, because we have such a diversity of cultures. Many Australians arrived in recent decades since World War 2. The Aboriginal population is less than 2% and most Aborigines live in isolated inland rural areas, whereas most Australians live in cities on the coast, so most Australians don’t have much direct contact with Aboriginal people or culture.

I would agree with Christine now that yes, if you were to generalize, as a people, we are mostly laconic, relaxed, friendly and we have a great sense of humor. Like any country, we also have our shadow, our racism and unresolved issues. However at least Aboriginal issues are much more on the table to be openly discussed now, our Prime Minister gave the apology* to the stolen generation** that many of us had been waiting for and progress is slowly happening with land rights.

Despite all the struggles of Aboriginal Australians, as we both mention in the interview, we now have not only very strong traditional Aboriginal art, dance and storytelling, but the most wonderful flowering of contemporary Aboriginal dance, film, art, theatre and even comedy that keeps building momentum.

I loved Eric’s’ reference to ‘the elephant in the room’. The apology was an important step in our national history and in the development of our identity, because it acknowledged one of the big elephants that had been sitting in the room of the Australian psyche – the facts and the pain of the stolen generation.

I feel that stories that connect us to country are also very important, especially in the context of the level of social dislocation and the state of the environment. A Maori*** friend told me about the Maori concept of your ‘tangata whenua’ which translates to your lineage and the land you come from or ‘the ground you stand on’. It makes you stronger to cle

Press Play to hear Esyllt Harker speak on stories out of Welsh History and land of Wales. on the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf.

On the teller...
Esyllt Harker is a versatile singer and storyteller, performing in English and/or Welsh. Her material draws primarily on her strong Welsh roots - myth, legend and history mix with gleaned fragments found in the features and memories of the land. She is noted for her easy interweaving of the Welsh and English languages, making for effortless understanding. She also moves smoothly between spoken and sung material, bringing a new - but age old - inflection to her telling. She has performed frequently at Beyond the Border International Storytelling Festival, and was part of the second Rough Guide to Wales tour in 2002. She tells in theatres, festivals, museums, schools, parks, shopping precincts, living-rooms, castles, on clifftops..........
Mae Esyllt yn cynnig ei gwaith yn y Gymraeg ac yn Saesneg.

To learn more about her Website check out the Welsh Storytellers at http://www.bodyandvoice.co.uk/

Last summer I pushed for the recording of important sessions of the National Storytelling Network’s (NSN) 2008 Conference I was recording my session on the future of storytelling online for this podcast. I figured why not do a little more? I exhausted myself and recorded the membership session and the regional NSN rep session. These recording are the property of NSN. Unluckily I work for myself like most artists and it took me two months to edit the work – then having finished it - I promptly forgot about it. Finally in November I got my copies to the NSN board. Jo Radner, the NSN board chair was very excited about getting some key sessions recorded. I got the feeling the board would have liked faster service – but you know the old saying you get what you pay for and I was free.

Others recorded the Keynotes and the Master storytellers concert. I don’t know what happened to these files. I’m sure the NSN got a copy of them somewhere. The master storytellers performance - Doc McConnell’s last performance - was almost not recorded! I saw the volunteer putting his equipment away before the performance, and when I asked why, I was told by NSN volunteers that the storytellers would never agreed to their work being recorded.

So I walked up to each storyteller and asked them for permission to record their performance “for NSN” with any other uses to be worked out later. They all said yes with a great deal of passion and Doc McConnell said we could do anything NSN wanted with his recording. I’m sure I was too pushy for bystanders

The reality is that storytelling has an advantage over other art forms, because new work is always being created. We all have material that we have not performed in years. We all have stories that were once primary to our performance, but now no longer capture our attention. What if all of that material was still available? Mostly I try to downplay storytellers’ fears by asking this one question: Reframing the whole debate… Do you want to be a part of the historical record?

That is how I would frame this debate over recording conference sessions.

Five years from now if this material is available will it still matter to you? Won’t you be on to other things? Wouldn’t it be nice to have this historical moment recorded? The question is not “Do we record our conference sessions?” The question really is ”When do we release our conference sessions? One year? Two years? Five years from now?”

The storytelling skill set is timeless – the skills and abilities we have today will not, unlike computers, internet or blogging, become old fashioned – they are ageless. I personally know that the storytelling movement has a lot to offer the world and think it’s time we stepped up to the plate to offer our skills. NSN or any other national organization could be the vehicle for that delivery. Who ever builds a content delivery system around the art of storytelling first will win that race and be the source for the international storytelling movement for the next twenty years. My website www.storytellingwithchildren.com is well on the way to being the source for all things relating to storytelling with children, but what about storytelling with seniors, in business, marketing, or any of a dozen different topics that I have not had time or resources to cover in the depth that should be covered?

NSN could be so much more then a network, using it’s conference it could bring the separate candles of the storytelling community into a bright light that would shine forth across the world.

Eric Wolf

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Tune in to hear Connie Regan-Blake on the Art of Storytelling with Children Podcast at 8pm ET on Wednesday. Join the Email Alert list to get the invitation.

Connie writes…
It was October 7, 1973, in Jonesborough, Tennessee – an afternoon that changed my life . . . and the course of storytelling in the United States. The setting was the first National Storytelling Festival.

I had been hired two years earlier by the Public Library in Chattanooga, TN, as a full time storyteller - another life changing event for me. So when I heard about a festival devoted to storytelling, I was thrilled - and knew I had to go. My cousin, Barbara Freeman, who was also a teller, was up for the adventure so we jumped in her little yellow truck and headed off on an adventure.

There I met and heard Ray Hicks, who was to become the patriarch of Southern Traditional Storytelling. He was perched on a flatbed truck, telling Jack Tales to a group of 35 of us, sitting on folding chairs in front of the County Courthouse, hanging onto his every word. When they asked if anyone in the audience wanted to tell, I jumped at the chance and have been involved ever since.

That day, I also met Jimmy Neil Smith, who had the brilliant idea to have a storytelling festival. His vision included an organization to promote the art of storytelling and two years later “NAPPS” came to life – the National Association for the Preservation and Perpetuation of Storytelling. With the town’s support for seed money, a Board of Directors and lots of volunteers, the word began spreading.

And now, over three decades later, storytelling is thriving. That first intimate gathering inspired many to go home and start their own events. Now hundreds of storytelling festivals take place in almost every state in America and around the world from New Zealand to Austria. Today Jonesborough is home to the International Storytelling Center. The National Festival continues to be the premiere storytelling event in the country with an audience that has grown from the original 35 listeners to over 10,000 people who make the journey every year to listen to and tell stories. For many, it is a transformative experience; reawakening the comfort, joy, and pathos that is storytelling. Elizabeth Ellis sums it up best – “The festival is more fun than you can stand!”

For my own professional path, storytelling has taken me across the world. As a partner with Barbara Freeman, we were known as The Folktellers for 20 years and trail-blazed the art of tandem telling. During the past decade I have continued telling stories as a solo performer and workshop leader, as well as collaborating on a unique blend of storytelling and chamber music with the Kandinsky Trio.

Every autumn since 1973, I continue to be drawn to Jonesborough, and welcomed onstage with the distinct honor of being either a featured teller or an emcee. Now, after almost 40 years as a fulltime, professional storyteller, my life’s work continues to be a privilege and a blessing. And I always remember, as the storyteller I have the best seat on the house!

Bio

Connie Regan-Blake is one of America’s most celebrated storytellers. She has captivated the hearts and imaginations of people around the globe with her powerful performances and workshops. Entertaining audiences in 47 states and 16 countries, she brings the wisdom, humor and drama of stories to main stage concert halls, libraries and into the corporate world.

Both as a solo artist and a member of the acclaimed Folktellers duo, Connie has been featured on seven award-winning recordings – five audio and two videos produced by PBS. New Age Magazine, School Library Journal, and Southern Living have praised her work. She has been a guest on NPR’s All Things Considered, ABC Good Morning America and CNN.

When Connie takes the stage she generates a brightness and warmth, drawing in listeners with her engaging humor and Southern charm. Her stories range from hilarious traditional Appalachian Mountain tales to poignant true-life drama. A consummate professional, Connie’s rare talent can transform a convention hall into a wondrous landscape and turn a packed theater into an intimate circle of friends.

Connie has performed at the nation’s top folk music and storytelling festivals in Chicago, Philadelphia, and San Francisco, as well as the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. Her groundbreaking collaboration with the Kandinsky Trio - an innovative blend of storytelling and chamber music - has been hailed as a “new art form.”

As a founding board member of the National Storytelling Association (formerly NAPPS), and a frequent host and featured performer at the National Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee, Connie helped ignite and shape the American storytelling revival.

Connie resides with her husband, two dogs and a frisky cat in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. For more info, see www.storywindow.com

Tune in to hear Connie Regan-Blake on the Art of Storytelling with Children Podcast at 8pm ET on Wednesday. Join the Email Alert list to get the invitation.

Connie writes…
It was October 7, 1973, in Jonesborough, Tennessee – an afternoon that changed my life . . . and the course of storytelling in the United States. The setting was the first National Storytelling Festival.

I had been hired two years earlier by the Public Library in Chattanooga, TN, as a full time storyteller - another life changing event for me. So when I heard about a festival devoted to storytelling, I was thrilled - and knew I had to go. My cousin, Barbara Freeman, who was also a teller, was up for the adventure so we jumped in her little yellow truck and headed off on an adventure.

There I met and heard Ray Hicks, who was to become the patriarch of Southern Traditional Storytelling. He was perched on a flatbed truck, telling Jack Tales to a group of 35 of us, sitting on folding chairs in front of the County Courthouse, hanging onto his every word. When they asked if anyone in the audience wanted to tell, I jumped at the chance and have been involved ever since.

That day, I also met Jimmy Neil Smith, who had the brilliant idea to have a storytelling festival. His vision included an organization to promote the art of storytelling and two years later “NAPPS” came to life – the National Association for the Preservation and Perpetuation of Storytelling. With the town’s support for seed money, a Board of Directors and lots of volunteers, the word began spreading.

And now, over three decades later, storytelling is thriving. That first intimate gathering inspired many to go home and start their own events. Now hundreds of storytelling festivals take place in almost every state in America and around the world from New Zealand to Austria. Today Jonesborough is home to the International Storytelling Center. The National Festival continues to be the premiere storytelling event in the country with an audience that has grown from the original 35 listeners to over 10,000 people who make the journey every year to listen to and tell stories. For many, it is a transformative experience; reawakening the comfort, joy, and pathos that is storytelling. Elizabeth Ellis sums it up best – “The festival is more fun than you can stand!”

For my own professional path, storytelling has taken me across the world. As a partner with Barbara Freeman, we were known as The Folktellers for 20 years and trail-blazed the art of tandem telling. During the past decade I have continued telling stories as a solo performer and workshop leader, as well as collaborating on a unique blend of storytelling and chamber music with the Kandinsky Trio.

Every autumn since 1973, I continue to be drawn to Jonesborough, and welcomed onstage with the distinct honor of being either a featured teller or an emcee. Now, after almost 40 years as a fulltime, professional storyteller, my life’s work continues to be a privilege and a blessing. And I always remember, as the storyteller I have the best seat on the house!

Bio

Connie Regan-Blake is one of America’s most celebrated storytellers. She has captivated the hearts and imaginations of people around the globe with her powerful performances and workshops. Entertaining audiences in 47 states and 16 countries, she brings the wisdom, humor and drama of stories to main stage concert halls, libraries and into the corporate world.

Both as a solo artist and a member of the acclaimed Folktellers duo, Connie has been featured on seven award-winning recordings – five audio and two videos produced by PBS. New Age Magazine, School Library Journal, and Southern Living have praised her work. She has been a guest on NPR’s All Things Considered, ABC Good Morning America and CNN.

When Connie takes the stage she generates a brightness and warmth, drawing in listeners with her engaging humor and Southern charm. Her stories range from hilarious traditional Appalachian Mountain tales to poignant true-life drama. A consummate professional, Connie’s rare talent can transform a convention hall into a wondrous landscape and turn a packed theater into an intimate circle of friends.

Connie has performed at the nation’s top folk music and storytelling festivals in Chicago, Philadelphia, and San Francisco, as well as the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. Her groundbreaking collaboration with the Kandinsky Trio - an innovative blend of storytelling and chamber music - has been hailed as a “new art form.”

As a founding board member of the National Storytelling Association (formerly NAPPS), and a frequent host and featured performer at the National Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee, Connie helped ignite and shape the American storytelling revival.

Connie resides with her husband, two dogs and a frisky cat in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. For more info, see www.storywindow.com

Greetings! I look forward to sharing with you on Tuesday evening October 29, 2008, at 8pm. The focus topic on this pod cast of Storytelling With Children is “Breaking Barriers Through Storytelling”.

My introduction to literature and the planting of seeds that later bloomed into storytelling, came in the 1950’s. In the midst of a social, political and cultural climate that suggested that my family and community were devoid of intellect, history or culture, my father began reading to me the literary diamonds and jewels that came from within our culture. Somewhere around 6 years old, my father read out loud the words of James Weldon Johnson, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Gwendolyn Brooks and Langston Hughes. My father relished and touted the genius of these writers. He handed me the Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar, selected a poem for me to memorize and launched me, as a child, onto a spoken word path. Numerous church banquets, teas and special community events were staging grounds for “a reading by Miss Charlotte Blake”.

I’ll share some memories of that time and fast-forward to the place where those germinating seeds and my experience in an independent school crossed paths with storytelling and an immediate realization of the power of this art form. On I faculty of 70, I was one of three faculty members of color. One particular event at the school served as a reminder of how invisible we often were, of how a genuinely well-meaning (and I really mean that!) community could unknowingly participate in perpetuating stereotypes and marginalizing members of their community. My concern was the statement those actions made to the children in the community. When I encountered storytelling, I immediately saw it as a window, a bridge, a tool I could use; a way in which initially children, could access, affirm, value and appreciate a cultural perspective that was different from their own.

That two-story repertoire (plus a set of Kiddie Rock& Roll songs!) later expanded to incorporate stories for all ages. I’ve since told at home and abroad in schools, festivals, concert halls, detention centers, a refugee camp; in collaboration with jazz musicians, choreographers and symphony orchestras. One of my most storyteller-reaffirming moments happened in a refugee camp in northern Senegal. So come on in! It’s okay. This will not be psychologically heavy duty! I am not an academician. This will be a chance to peek inside my head, listen to my heart and perhaps hear a perspective, a view that might serve you well in your own work.

“See you” on the pod cast.

This Tusday at 8pm September 16 ET Dale Gilbert Jarvis will be speaking
on How to collect true scary stories for Halloween. You are welcome to join the call - just sign up for the event alert list on the top of this page before September 13th, 2008.

Near to where I live is a small lake with the delightfully ghoulish name of Deadman’s Pond. According to local legend, the pond is bottomless, and I’m sure many people know of similar stories for lakes near where they live. These lakes and ponds offer us tantalizing doorways to another realm. Peering into the reflective surface of a still body of water and wondering what lies beneath provides us with a link to the unexplained. Perhaps this is why they fascinate us. It is not so much that we think they actually are bottomless, but that part of us wishes that they might be.

So too with ghost stories. I’ve told ghost stories to literally thousands of people over the past 13 years, and they continue to be the stories most often requested when I do work with school kids. Most of the stories I tell are true, or at least were thought to be true by the people I learned them from. I love collecting stories that are tied to specific places, and sharing them with people who love that delicious shiver that runs up one’s spine when they are well told.

“A teller of spine tingling tales that are so convincing, that even if you don’t believe in ghosts… you soon will!”
‑Wayne Rostad, On the Road Again

Bio of storyteller Dale Gilbert Jarvis:
Dale Gilbert Jarvis is a storyteller, professional folklorist, and writer living and working in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada. Dale tells ghost stories, faerie stories, legends and traditional tales from Newfoundland, Ireland, the United Kingdom and beyond. Dale is the founder of the St. John’s Storytelling Circle, president of the annual St. John’s Storytelling Festival, and a member of the board of Storytellers of Canada/Conteurs du Canada.

As a storyteller, Dale has performed locally and at international festivals, but is perhaps less well known than his alter ego, the distinguished Reverend Thomas Wyckham Jarvis, Esquire. Since 1997, The Reverend has been the host and guide of the St. John’s Haunted Hike, a walking ghost tour through the haunted streets of St. John’s. Under his supervision, locals and tourists have been introduced to the vengeful lovers, murdered soldiers, and mysterious fires which await those brave enough to explore the secrets that lie in wait in St. John’s darkest corners. Mixing history, humour, and traditional storytelling, Dale has been winning over audiences and throwing in the odd scare here and there, and has been covered by a wide variety of local, national and international media. Over the past years, the Hike has grown from a small idea to a fixture in the St. John’s tourism industry.

Dale is the author of two books of local ghost stories, “Haunted Shores: True Ghost Stories of Newfoundland and Labrador” and “Wonderful Strange: Ghosts, Fairies and Fabulous Beasts of Newfoundland and Labrador” both published by Flanker Press, and a collection of world ghost stories for young adult readers, “The Golden Leg and Other Ghostly Campfire Tales” also published by Flanker.