World Storytelling Day - a global celebration of stories and storytelling #wsd2012

World Storytelling Day is a global celebration of the art of oral storytelling. It is celebrated every year on the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere, the first day of autumn equinox in the southern. On World Storytelling Day, as many people as possible tell and listen to stories in as many languages and at as many places as possible, during the same day and night.

We've been celebrating WSD here in Newfoundland for a while now (listen to a recording of the 2007 concert here). This  year's event is being organized by Sharon King-Campbell, and will include storytelling for kids and for adults. Check here for more details.

Anyone, anywhere, can organize and host their own event. There is no charge to participate. Please use the WSD logo, designed by Swedish storyteller Mats Rhenman, free for storytelling events on March 20th.

To register your event, check out the World Storytelling Day website. If you are tweeting about your event, use the hashtag #WSD2012

• WSD2012 Educational resources
• WSD on Wikipedia

A mouse, a bird, and a sausage walk into a bar...

"The sausage stayed by the pot, saw that the food was cooking well, and, when it was nearly time for dinner, it rolled itself once or twice through the broth or vegetables and then they were buttered, salted, and ready."
                     - from "The Mouse, the Bird, and the Sausage" by the Brothers Grimm.


Last night was a fun night at the St. John's Storytelling Circle, with stories by yours truly, Crystal Martin, Chris Brookes, Sharon King-Campbell and Stella Mair Evans.

Stella told a Chinese-Tibetan story where a household of strange items, including a mud pie, an earthenware jar, a sewing needing, a grain of wheat, a fly and a turnip divide the house's chores between them, with disastrous results. It reminded me immediately of the Brothers Grimm tale The Mouse, The Bird and The Sausage. A somewhat obscure story, and one that is rarely told anymore, this was the second time in the past month that the story had reared its little head. When things make themselves known, they must be doing so for a reason. And so, here is that story, from the Brothers Grimm, translated by Margaret Taylor in 1884.

Exploring storytelling: From The Crow's Nest to The Turnip Princess

It seems like I've been gone for ages, so I'm delighted to be back hosting the St. John's Storytelling Circle this Thursday, March 8th, at 7:30 pm at the Crow's Nest Officers Club. If you haven't been in the Crow's Nest before, it is a great space, one of my favourite hidden gems in St. John's. The open mic storytelling circle has been running there every month (except Decembers) for the past six years, and you never know what you'll hear.

Over the years, a group of regular storytellers has evolved, who tell tall tales, ghost stories, personal narratives, and recitations, but it is a rare night when there isn't someone new who gets up and shares some kind of story. All kinds of stories are welcome; the only rule is that stories must be told from memory rather than read from the page. Come out, and chances are you'll hear a story you've never heard before. Tickets $3 at the door.

I've been working for the past few months on Brothers Grimm material with my friend Delf Hohmann, who hosted the Storytelling Circle in January. Therefore, it was with delight that I read something that had been posted on Facebook by local performer and author Sara Tilley, about five hundred new fairytales which have been discovered in Germany.

A collection of fairytales gathered by historian Franz Xaver von Schönwerth has been locked away in an archive in Regensburg for over 150 years, a collection which is now re-emerging.  According to the article in The Guardian, in 1885, Jacob Grimm said this about von Schönwerth: "Nowhere in the whole of Germany is anyone collecting [folklore] so accurately, thoroughly and with such a sensitive ear." Coming from Jacob Grimm, that is a huge compliment, and I look forward to seeing the entirety of von Schönwerth's work.

Many of von Schönwerth's tales are not yet available in English, but you can read one quirky little story already, The Turnip Princess.

Do you know any Newfoundland superstitions about bread? #amwriting #culture

Many people have heard of the traditional Newfoundland belief about having bread in your pockets as a charm against the fairies. But what kind of bread? And what other folk beliefs are out there about bread or baking? I'd love to hear your stories and memories. If you have heard of an old superstition about bread or bread making, send me an email at info@hauntedhike.com or leave me a comment below.

Audience response to Brothers Grimm: 200 Years and Counting

Musician Delf Maria Hohmann and I just wrapped up a short tour of our two-man show “Brothers Grimm: 200 Years and Counting” at theatre venues in Peterborough and Perth, Ontario, and Wakefield Quebec. The show incorporated stories from the Brothers' fairy tale and legend collections, along with historical stories drawn from their lives, alongside contemporaneous folk music, and songs collected by the Brothers Grimm.

The tour was a success, with appreciative audiences in three very different venues: the just-renovated Market Hall Theatre in Peterborough; the Full Theatre Theatre in Perth (a former car wash); and, Cafe Molo in Wakefield.   

Audience comments:

PERTH

Another thoughtful and well-crafted show.  Keep up the good work!

Excellent storytelling, fine music, good times

Absolutely wonderful! Wonderful history and colour.  Thank-you so much

Truly wonderful show. I really enjoyed it

Great show! The musical addition is always a pleasure, look forward to seeing more.
 
A fascinating blend of history story and music. Absolutely mesmerizing

Excellent show! Humour, horror, and a great storyteller! Loved the music! Thank you for bringing this to us!

PETERBOROUGH
 
Wonderful and beautifully done! These tales weave their way through the years changing fitting new situations. The music is well chosen to complement the stories.

WAKEFIELD
 
Fantastic show, thank-you !

Most gruesomely enjoyable, thrilling!

Terrific and of special interest for persons with a German connection. Thanks for bringing something so substantial and enjoyable to Wakefield.

Loved the singing in German. Enjoyed the story of the Grimms Brothers; liked the selection of stories chosen.

What talent! A wonderful, entertaining way to spend a winter’s evening.

Absolutely fantastic! Truly captivating!

Really good! I liked having the history about the Brothers in between the stories. The music was beautiful.

The three performances were tremendously enjoyable, and the tour was a rewarding experience. It allowed us, as artists, to perform in professional theatre venues where we had not performed before, and exposed us to new audiences, many of whom were new to watching storytelling-based performance. Thanks to 2 women productions for producing the tour.

Check out the CBC audio interview online at
http://www.cbc.ca/intownandout/2012/02/11/brothers-grimm/

The first 2012 Storytelling Circle, and tales of rats, rats, everywhere...

Last night was the first night of the St. John’s Storytelling Circle for 2012. It was a great night, hosted by musician Delf Hohmann. Delf and I performed a few pieces from our new show about the Brothers Grimm, there were recitations from Storytelling Circle favourites Dave Paddon, Chris Brookes, and Hubert Furey (including a few recitations that were new to me) and a story about the Chinese New Year, from the lovely Zoe Wu.

There were a lot of new faces at the Crow’s Nest, which is always great to see. I love the mix of people who come to the monthly event. Last night there was everyone from high school kids, to university students to seniors. It is the type of varied audience that I love about storytelling events in St. John’s, something which I haven’t seen at a lot of storytelling events in other places.

I first met Delf Hohmann through Memorial University’s Department of Folklore, back in 1994. Ten years ago, we started collaborating on Brothers Grimm material, with a show called “Under the Juniper Tree: The Stories and Songs of the Brothers Grimm.” This year, 2012, marks the 200th anniversary of the publication of the Grimm’s first edition of their Kinder- und Hausmärchen – the famous collection of tales that would be the most translated book ever produced in the German language.

To celebrate that anniversary, Delf and I have been working on a new show, and we tested out of one of our new pieces on the audience last night. The piece weaves together two stories taken from another work by the brothers, Deutsche Sagen, German Legends, which was published in two volumes in 1816 and 1818. The two stories are united by the theme of retribution, and by a cast of thousands... of rats.

One of the pieces, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, is well known to North American audiences, while the other, The Mouse Tower on the Rhine, is perhaps less familiar. In it, the evil Bishop Hatto burns a group of hungry peasants alive, mocking them as rats that only consume food meant for their betters. The Bishop meets a rather grisly end at the teeth of rats sent as a form of divine punishment.  You can read a 1910 English version of the tale here.

Delf and I are off to perform our new show in February in Peterborough and Perth in Ontario, and in Wakefield, Quebec. Check out the 2wp website for details.

Newfoundland audiences will get a chance to hear the show later this spring. Stay tuned!

Norma Cameron on cultivating narrative intelligence #storytelling

I love the TED talks series, so it was with great delight that I saw a mutual friend had posted a recording of the wonderful storyteller Norma Cameron giving a talk at TED Victoria.  Norma was a teller here in St. John's at the storytelling festival a few years ago, and was a crowd favourite. Here she is, talking about narrative:

Ghost Stories and Murder Ballads, Saturday 9pm, at the Rocket Room!

October 29th, Saturday 9pm
Rocket Room (3rd Floor of Rocket Bakery, 272 Water St.)
Ghost Stories with Dale Jarvis, Pearl- Ann Gooding, with Murder Ballads by Gerald and Tobias Pearson! 
$10 at the door

Dale Jarvis tells ghost stories, legends and traditional tales from Newfoundland and beyond. Founder of the St. John's Storytelling Circle, he was Storytellers of Canada’s representative at the inaugural meeting of the Federation for European Storytelling (FEST) in Norway, 2008. Since 1997, Dale has been the host of the St. John's Haunted Hike, named “Event of the Year” by the City of St. John’s. Author of four books on Newfoundland folklore and ghost stories, Dale has also taught workshops across North America on historical storytelling. He has taught hundreds of children to tell their stories, and is a passionate supporter of the oral tradition.


Pearl-Ann Gooding is a recognized storyteller in Canada and has been telling and teaching stories nationwide since 1995. In 2007 she recorded her third CD with Children's Stories entitled AGAIN and has had her stories published in an anthology for the grade 4 curriculum in Alberta. Her love of a great tale and spine tingling anticipation has drawn her to develop a haunted hike in her home town. Intrigue, mystery and reaching into the realm beyond bring her 'October Repertoire' to you! Pearl-Ann resides in what she claims to be 'the most haunted small town on the prairies', Wainwright, Alberta.

Tobias and Gerard Pearson were born in Merasheen, Placentia Bay, to Aggie Wilson and Cecil Pearson. Their grandmother, Kate Wilson, was a powerful traditional singer who passed her songs to the boys and their mother. Tobias and Gerard also learned the old songs from their father, whose origins were in Petit Forte, Placentia Bay. The brothers have performed at various folk festivals in Newfoundland. As well, Tobias has performed at traditional music gatherings in Boston and New York. Gerard's lovely tenor voice and Tobias's sense of humour place them in high demand at folk festivals and ballad sessions.

Part of the St. John's Storytelling Festival!

Tickets selling fast for "Come Into My Parlour"! Tickets remaining for:

"Come Into My Parlour: An Evening of Victorian Ghost Stories" opens tomorrow night, Tuesday, October 25th, at 8pm at the Newman Wine Vaults, 436 Water Street. Tickets are $15 per person. Seating is limited.

As of today, Monday, at 5pm, the following number of tickets remain:

Tuesday, October 25th - 20 tickets
Wednesday, October 26th - 15 tickets
Thursday, October 27th - 26 tickets
Friday, October 28th - 4 tickets!

Advance tickets (CASH SALE ONLY!) are available at Britannia Teas and Gifts, 199 Water Street, and will be on sale until 6pm before show time.  If tickets are left, they will also be available at the door, but some nights may sell out in advance, so buy yours now to avoid showing up the night of the show and being disappointed.

You are welcome to come in Victorian, Gothic, or Steampunk attire!

Come into my parlour: an evening of Victorian ghost stories

Come join me, storyteller and author Dale Jarvis, for an evening of Victorian ghost stories, perfect to get you into a suitably macabre mood for Hallowe'en!

8pm
October 25-28, 2011
Newman Wine Vaults Provincial Historic Site
436 Water Street, St. John's
Victorian, Gothic, or Steampunk Attire Welcomed (but not required)

The show will be about an hour long, by candlelight!

Tickets are now available at Britannia Teas and Gifts, 199 Water Street, St. John's.
Tickets are $15 each, first come, first served, CASH SALE ONLY!

Seating is limited!

• Facebook event listing

(Awesome poster design by Graham Blair)