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Sun, 20 July 2014
"The Precious Cow" is a little-known fable from Africa about the importance of valuing strong family ties above material wealth. As we point out, it offers a bit of a twist to the "rule of three", a common characteristic of many popular folktales. We come to you from Chapel Hill, NC, having just completed a return engagement at the High Point Library. Among our audiences there were some regular podcast listeners, the delightful Singleton family, so we decided to let them say howdy on the next podcast – namely, this one. We also discuss our adventures climbing Pilot Mountain in North Carolina, and zip lining in North Carolina and Arkansas. Happy Listening,
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Mon, 23 June 2014
The Golden Spinning Wheel is a story from the country formerly known as Bohemia, and then Czechoslovakia, and now The Czech Republic. The story is the subject of a picture book by Lisl Weil in which musical notes are printed across the page along with illustrations of the story. The musical notes are from a piece of music inspired by the story, composed by Czech composer Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904), who was fascinated by the folklore and folk music of his country, and infused much of his music with the flavor of both. He did the same for American folk music after spending 3 years here, and his masterpiece, the symphony called "From the New World", has been featured in Hollywood westerns. (The snippet of his music we use during the spinning wheel scene is from "Songs My Mother Taught Me".) We come to you from Heber Springs, AR, after making our annual trek across the country to begin our summer tour – which commenced this time in Fayetteville, AR. We had time along the way to see some interesting sights, including the Omaha Zoo, the Buffalo National River in Arkansas and Bluff Dwellers Cavern in Missouri. Are we having fun yet? Czech! Happy Listening, |
Tue, 20 May 2014
"The Woman Who Flummoxed the Fairies" from Scotland is a sort of trickster tale, a type of story in which a seemingly helpless individual triumphs by his (or in this case her) wits. It's also a cumulative story, meaning that it involves repetition, as new elements are added to the plot – somewhat like baking a cake, as our heroine does. We come to you from Reno Nevada, our annual pit stop where we put an old show into storage and whip up a new one in our theatrical kitchen. We think of the month of May as an excuse for Kimberly to sew new costumes and Dennis to write new scripts and music. We hope you can sample the end result of our recipes in the near future. Happy Listening, |
Tue, 22 April 2014
Our story this month is "How the Kangaroo Got Its Pouch", an Australian nature myth. Since it deals with kangaroo mothers and how they acquired the ability to carry their young around easily, we thought it would be a suitable story for Mothers' Day, which is hopping up in May. We're coming to you this time from Reno, NV, where we made a brief detour to buy a new touring vehicle. We bought it and got it ready in about 3 days, during which time we were able to spend Easter with Kimberly's parents. Now we're headed back to the San Francisco Bay Area, where we have a few more performances before we start gearing up for the summer season and our annual trek across the continent. We hope to catch up with you somewhere in the Outback. Happy Listening, Mate |
Thu, 20 March 2014
From Norway comes this classic story about a princess who was very charming except that she had no sense of humor. This tale is rather unusual in that it's both a Rule Of Three story and a cumulative story. Rule Of Three refers to the three-part structure that many stories (and jokes) have: The Three Little Pigs, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, etc. In this case, there are three brothers who each undertake a task in turn. A cumulative story (sometimes called a chain story) involves a series of actions in which something is repeated -- in this case, the actions all involve the goose. For additional examples of cumultive stories we have done, see Simple Ivan, The Drum, The Gingerbread Man and Something From Nothing -- as well as the familiar nursery rhyme "The House That Jack Built". We come to you from Needles, California, having driven across country as we do at this time every year. In just a few days, we have endured sub-zero termperatures and monstrous sandstorms, and now we're in beach weather again. Whatever the weather where you are, we hope your day will be brightened by this story. Happy Listening, |
Sun, 23 February 2014
The Tichborne Dole is a legend from England that may be true or based on true events. It supposedly occurred around 1150, and may explain the origin of a yearly custom in Hampshire, England, in which the aristocratic Tichborne family gives flour to the poor every March 25. The custom supposedly follows the last wishes of Lady Maybela Tichborne, who was very charitable and also, apparently, very tough and determined. She was reputed to be such a heroic figure that even the wind, normally very blustery in March, cooperated in securing her legacy. We come to you from the very windy Oklahoma, having just driven from Jacksonville, Florida to Albuquerque, and then made our way back east toward Memphis. Phew! With all of our driving and residencies at schools and libraries, we still managed to drop in for a "spell" at The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter in Universal Orlando, and take a leisurely train ride from Albuquerque to the colorful and historic little city of Santa Fe, where we indulged in a walking tour. Happy Listening, |
Wed, 15 January 2014
The Tar Baby is a classic African-American story from slavery days, inspired by a similar story from Africa, presented especially for Black History Month (February). The Tar Baby is a trickster tale about the Rabbit (often called Brer Rabbit), who is a recurring character in these folktales. The story is a study in irony, because (spoiler alert) first the Rabbit gets into a jam only by putting up too much of a fuss and becoming unnecessarily angry; and then he gets out of it by pretending to fear something he really loves. It's like stepping into quicksand, getting stuck because you struggle too much, and then getting your enemy to help you out of it by convincing him you really don't want out. We come to you from Boca Raton, Florida, as we get ready to make appearances at the Davie/Cooper City Library in Davie. (We guess Cooper City lost the coin toss.) It's one of our presentations funded by Target grants, for which we are ever grateful. And we discuss our recent adventure at the Brevard Zoo and Treetop Trek in Melbourne, FL. Happy Listening, |
Mon, 23 December 2013
Winter has officially begun. And in honor of the season of Christmas trees, hot chocolate, ice skating, and heavy traffic at the mall, we bring you a story about winter – and summer – from the Acoma tribe of Native Americans in New Mexico. More specifically, it's a story about the changing seasons, and the importance of cooperation and balance. We come to you from Greenville, SC, where we've been welcoming winter every year for the past few years. Looking forward to Florida next month and wishing you the jolliest of holidays. Happy Listening,
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Fri, 22 November 2013
"The Crocodile, The Zebras and the Hyena" is a story that we adapted from a traditional tale related by Likua Kambembe, an African storyteller. He's a member of the !Xun (We dare you to try to pronounce it) Council of Elders, and helps direct the Kulimatji Project, which preserves the tribe's folklore. This is an origin story; i.e., a story that's intended to explain how something originated. In this case, it's about how the crocodile came to hide in the water and ambush other animals. We come to you from Greenville, SC, after a busy couple of weeks presenting performances and workshops for school and library residences, thanks to Target grants. And we returned for our third engagement at The National Theatre in Washington, DC. Happy Listening and Happy Thanksgiving! |
Sun, 20 October 2013
From Uganda comes this tale about how two jungle critters who were once friends became foes, and in the process tells why frogs have no tails and why lizards have puffy cheeks. It seems appropriate because like the frog and the lizard, we recently swung on a rope from a tree when we went ziplining in the back yard of some friends near Lima, NY, where we recently performed. We come to you from Abington, MA, where we've been geting into the fall spirit by performing at a haunted attraction, as we love to do at this time of year. And we ask your help in finding a couple of stories requested by a young fan who left us an absolutely adorable message. Happy Listening,
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