Casting call for short horror film in St. John's

Baristo Pictures is casting a new short horror film called “Our House” that will be shooting in early October as part of NIFCO’s First Time Filmmaker program, and they are looking for volunteer actors. Yours truly, hopefully, will put in a guest appearance, in my St. John's Haunted Hike persona.

You can follow Baristo's Mike Hickey on Twitter, or check out the casting call.  I'll post more as details come available.

Re-imagining the Brothers Grimm

Next year, 2012, marks the 200th anniversary of the publication of the first edition of the first volume of the Brothers Grimm's remarkable Kinder-und Hausmärchen, which went on to become the most widely translated book ever produced in the German language.

About a decade ago (see archival photographic evidence above) musician Delf Maria Hohmann and I produced a show called "Under the Juniper Tree," a selection of stories and songs from and inspired by the Brothers Grimm.

In honour of the Brothers' 200th anniversary, Delf and I are going back, revisiting that wonderful material and working on a new show which we'll be touring next year.  We're off tonight with the fabulous Chris Hibbs to shoot some promo photos. Keep your eyes peeled (and/or away from doves, if you know the story of Aschenputtel).

To keep you entertained in the meantime, a discussion of the Brothers Grimm, and the telling of dark, grim material, is featured in this podcast by Rachel James of radio station CIUT.

And you can listen to my version of the Grimm Brothers' rarely-told story "The Mother in Law" here.

Wrigglin' Riddlin' Pickets and Palings - Newfoundland Fences

After a chat with Kim Paddon with the English Harbour Arts Centre last night at the Crow's Nest Storytelling Circle, I'm posting a few things related to traditional Newfoundland fence.

First, check out the 1977 Wrigglin' Fence video. This short film, directed by Newfoundland artist Don Wright, follows the Paddy Brothers of Port Kirwan, Newfoundland, as they build a traditional 'wrigglin' or riddle fence around their garden patch.

And, you can download our traditional fence brochure here in pdf.

The Ghost of Deadman's Pond and thoughts on recitations

This video is a small excerpt from my new show "Ghosts of Signal Hill", being performed every Friday night on Signal Hill, in partnership with Parks Canada. The video shows the performance of a recitation called "The Ghost of Deadman's Pond."

The recitation is my own adaptation of a poem written by E.T Furlong in the Newfoundland Quarterly Christmas Edition, December 1939 - Vol. 39(3), p. 27.  The original poem is quite long; I shortened it for performance.

In writing the script for "Ghosts of Signal Hill" I very much wanted to include a recitation as part of the show. Recitations are roughly equivalent to the English tradition of monologues. Folklorist Kenneth Goldstein defined them as "a solo, stylized, theatrically mannered oral performance from memory of a self-contained dramatic narrative in poetic or prose form." It is one of those aspects of traditional Newfoundland performance that I love, a tradition which is still living in many communities.

Recitations, while sometimes told in private settings, were, and continue to be in many Newfoundland and Labrador communities, more often part of public performances, concerts and times. In a sense recitations are more highly formalized than oral stories, following a set text prepared in advance, and often, though not necessarily, in rhyming form.

Special thanks to Trevor Kearsey, Internet and New Media Officer with the Newfoundland East Field Unit of Parks Canada for filming and editing together this piece!

Daring escapes, murdered pirates, ghost ships and more

Daring escapes, murdered pirates, ghost ships, buried treasure, tragic drownings, and headless phantoms: it is all in a night’s work at Signal Hill National Historic Site in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

Or at least it is for storyteller Dale Jarvis, creator of the award-winning ghost tour, the St. John’s Haunted Hike. No stranger to strange stories from old St. John’s, Jarvis has created a new storytelling show for Newfoundland’s most historic hill.

Ghosts of Signal Hill is Jarvis’s newest work: an evening of ghost stories, historical tales and strange adventures. His spooky stories are spun out for eager listeners by lamplight inside the historic Queen’s Battery Barracks, overlooking the Narrows, the entrance to St. John's Harbour.

“There are ghost tours in other historic sites across Canada,” says Jarvis. “Halifax Citadel has a ghost tour, for example, and it seems like a perfect fit for St. John’s. And you couldn’t ask for a more dramatic setting than Queen’s Battery to tell a tale.”

The last North American battle of the Seven Years' War between England and France was fought on the Hill in 1762, after St. John’s had been captured by the French. In September of that year, the British reclaimed the town, marching overland from Torbay.

“The 1762 Battle of Signal Hill provides a great backdrop for the show,” says Jarvis. He portrays a real historical character in the piece, a role he shares with local actor Jedediah Baker.

“Lieutenant Ranslaer Schuyler was a member of the British force sent to take back St. John’s,” explains Jarvis. “We’ve brought him back to life for this show, so to speak!”

Jarvis is passionate about local history and folklore, and believes storytelling is a great way to get people interested in what is often portrayed as a dry and dusty subject.

“When someone starts going on about dates and battles and generals, people tune out,” says Jarvis. “But when you tell a story about real characters, with drama and intrigue and mystery, people love to hear more. That is part of what makes this show much fun. That and the ghosts, of course!”

Ghosts of Signal Hill runs every Friday night at 8pm until September 16th. Tickets are $15 ($10 for kids 12 and under) and are cash sale only, available at the Signal Hill National Historic Site Visitor Centre. There is no performance on Canada Day, July 1st.

For more information, contact :
Dale Jarvis
www.hauntedhike.com
709-685-3444
info@hauntedhike.com

High resolution promo photos available at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dalejarvis/sets/72157626756149194
Photo credit Chris Hibbs

Name that ghost! #namethatghost

Well, the little photograph of what might (or might not) be a ghost in the historic Newman Wine Vaults in St. John's, Newfoundland is getting a lot of attention: reports on CBC radio and television, VOCM radio, the internet, and as of this morning, apparently, it has made the CNN Morning Express television program!

Read the article and see the video here.

What the ghost needs now is a suitable name, and suggestions are already starting to trickle in on twitter and facebook.  So far, names include:

The Lone Tourist
Vinnie
Port-ia
Porthos (which I like!)
Swayze
Charlie
Bob
and (most obviously) Newman

Got a suggestion? Let me know!

The St. John's Haunted Hike turns 14!

1997 was the year of the John Cabot celebrations in Newfoundland. According to legend, heresay, and the provincial tourism department, John Cabot had landed in Bonavista (and definitely NOT Cape Breton) five hundred years before. The Matthew sailed into port, tourists descended, and I started a little summer business called the St. John's Haunted Hike.

Fourteen years later, the Hike is still going strong. We've just started up our season, with people already showing up in the cold and drizzle to hear our stories. So, if you are downtown these evenings, you'll likely see myself, or one of my long-time guides Dave Walsh or Steve O'Connell, leading a group of tourists and fans of the paranormal from site to haunted site.

Hope you'll join us!

The Hike runs every Sunday to Thursday evening at 9:30 pm from the stone steps of the Anglican Cathedral on Church Hill. Tickets are $10, with no need to book in advance.

www.hauntedhike.com

A busy day in the life of your friendly neighbourhood storyteller

I'm in an airport! It is hardly news to anyone who follows me on twitter that I'm writing from yet another airport, but it is true. I'm in Ottawa, having just finished a speaking engagement last night for Memorial University Alumni. It was a great turnout, with some familiar faces in the crowd, which is always a plus for me. Here is the interview done by Dean Verger at the event.

I'm off to Halifax, for another talk and storytelling session tonight at the Elephant and Castle Pub. Last night I was telling ghost stories, Jack tales and some oral history material from Newfoundland. Who knows what tonight will bring, through there will definitely be some ghostly tales, and perhaps the appearance of a sea monster or two.  It has been a great mini-tour so far, and I'm delighted that Memorial University, and their sponsors Johnson Insurance and the Elephant & Castle pubs, have been so supportive. It is great to get storytelling out to new audiences, and introduce Newfoundland stories to new (and old) listeners.

I went out for breakfast this morning with Ottawa's Ruthanne Edward, who was host of the St. John's Storytelling Festival's first story slam earlier this year. It is always great to get to hang out with fellow storytellers, to talk about what is happening in the storytelling community. We talked about how it is that storytellers so often work in isolation, working individually on personal projects, without a lot of opportunities for some of us to collaborate, critique, grow and converse about our art.

I head back to St. John's in the morning, taking every chance I get along the way to run lines for Ghosts of Signal Hill which opens this Friday night at 8pm! Zounds!

Something wicked this way comes! Ghosts of Signal Hill coming soon

I've been working on an exciting new ghost story project, and its launch date is coming closer and closer! This summer, as part of the fourteenth season of the St. John's Haunted Hike, I've created a new show, in partnership with Parks Canada and Signal Hill National Historic Site: Ghosts of Signal Hill.

Daring escapes, murdered pirates, ghost ships, buried treasure, tragic drownings, and headless phantoms: it is all in a night’s work at Signal Hill National Historic Site.

Ghosts of Signal Hill will be an evening of ghost stories, historical tales and strange adventures. Join the dashing Lieutenant Ranslaer Schuyler by lamplight inside the historic Queen’s Battery, and find out what happens on Newfoundland’s most historic hill, after the lights go out.

The show will run every Friday night this summer at 8pm, from June 3rd to September 16th. Tickets will be $15, $10 for kids 12 and under, and price includes admission to Signal Hill National Historic Site Visitor Centre. The role of Lieutenant Schuyler will be played by yours truly, with Jedediah Baker performing the role on alternating nights.

Seating is limited. Tickets will be available for advance purchase at the Signal Hill Visitor Centre. Check the website, and I'll let you know when tickets go on sale!

And, of course, you can like this on Facebook!

UPDATE: here are the promo photos!

Here Be Monsters! Encore Family Performance Sunday 2pm

It sold out its first show, and now the Monsters are back!

Sunday, May 15, 2 pm
Encore Family Performance
Here Be Monsters!
The Rooms, St. John's

In the ocean's depths lurk rarely seen horrors. From giant squid and whales the size of a house, to mind-reading mermaids and the most angry sea-horse you'd ever want to meet, the seas off the shores of Newfoundland and Labrador have seen it all! Join storyteller Dale Jarvis of St. John's Haunted Hike fame for tales of creatures from the deep. You may never want to dip your toe in the water again.

Tickets just $5 and free for Rooms Members.