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Mon, 17 June 2013
"Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears" is a story from Africa that explains this little mystery. Perhaps knowing why they do it will make it a little more tolerable this summer, but we doubt it. This is an example of a cumulative tale, which means the plot keeps repeating and building -- think of "The House the Jack Built" and similar poems and songs. And while we're on the subject of insects that sing, we mention cicadas, those elusive insects that hide underground and only emerge every few years -- some species only appear once every 17 years! We come to you from Joplin, MO, a town we were last in two years ago, volunteering with the recovery effort after the devastating tornado hit. We're happy to see that the town has been mostly rebuilt and is thriving. We've just opened our 25th summer tour, premiering our new show in Rio Vista, CA, then dashing off to Hope, AR. We have several more shows in Arkansas and one in the Chicago area before heading to the East Coast. Happy Listening! Episode Links:
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Wed, 15 May 2013
It's a sneak preview of Tops and Bottoms, one of our new stories for the upcoming season, and aren't you lucky to be hearing it now? Hailing from Scandinavia, this is a variation of a popular tale in many cultures, including the Southern U.S., where it was often passed down by African-Americans, and it has been published in a popular picture book. The story is of a type known as a trickster tale, which generally involves a smaller and weaker animal getting the better of a larger and stronger one. Examples can be found in Native American lore, which often features the Coyote Trickster. We come to you from Portland (the one in Oregon, not the one in Maine – or Nebraska, if there is one there), having come up from Los Angeles and vicinity since last we met. We presented several shows in the Bay Area and Northern California (including the second and third of our school residences funded by Target). Despite our sometimes hectic schedule, we managed to find time to take a simulated parachute jump at iFly before taking the long drive up the coast and through the redwoods to Oregon and Washington. All while rehearsing, sewing, composing music and making props for our new production opening next month.
Happy Listening! |
Mon, 18 March 2013
In honor of the Cherry Blossom Festival and Frog Month (you do celebrate that every year, don't you?) we bring you "The Two Frogs", a fable from Japan. We come to you from Holbrook, Arizona as we make our way back to the West Coast. Along the way, we visited The Blue Hole in Santa Rosa NM, The Mesalands Dinosaur Musuem in Tucumcari NM and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR. Catch an upcoming show live on stage in Los Angeles, Irvine, Palo Alto, Modesto, orTiburon, California in March and April. Find out how to bring Act!vated to your school for free for two days. Happy Listening! |
Wed, 20 February 2013
"The Farmer and the Werewolf" is a tale from Ireland, a country that traditionally has spun many yarns about such supernatural and sometimes frightening critters. The werewolf in this tale, however, is not an entirely vicious monster; he’s also a human who is appalled by his darker side, and wants to make amends. This is also one of those folk tales about the importance of keeping a secret, and the sometimes dire consequences of failing to do so-- a story somewhere between Ali Baba and Lohengrin. As it happens, this motif figures prominently in "The Bridge and the Dream", a Middle Eastern story that we're currently preparing for our new production that opens this summer. We just spent a week conducting a residency at Holy Family School in Jacksonville, Florida, and what a memorable week it was. After presenting two performances Monday morning, we settled in for a week of teaching workshops in theatre arts, writing, mask making, folk dancing and other skills related to our final project: a performance by the entire student body of our story of "How the Ice Cream Cone Was Invented". That's right: we turned what is normally a 2-person story into a 452-person story. While we were in Florida, we returned to St. Augustine and the St. Augustine Alligator Farm, with its specimens of all 23 known species of crocodilian (the only facility in the world to have all of them). This time, something new has been added: Crocodile Crossing, a zip-line/ canopy tour above the reptiles. They might look up at you eagerly hoping you'll fall, but it’s quite secure. Good thing: these fanged beasts may not be quite as terrifying as werewolves, but they’re close. Happy Listening, Dennis (Narrator, Farmer, Animals)and Kimberly (Wife, Werewolf, Neighbors, Animals)
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Tue, 15 January 2013
"The Girl Who Married a Snake" is from Bhutan, an Asian country that borders China and India. The tale bears a certain resemblance to the Frog Prince story types common in Europe, except that even when the good guys live happily ever after, the story continues until the bad guys get their comeuppance. We present it especially for Chinese New Year, on Feb. 10, when the Year of the Snake comes slithering in. We come to you from Stone Mountain Park, Georgia. Stone Mountain is not exactly a mountain, but it is one huge rock, and only about 10 percent of it is actually what you see jutting up some 800 feet above the ground. You can hike up to the top (we did) or you can take a funicular car (we did). That's one of those bus-size cars suspended from a cable. Stone Mountain has many fun activities during the summer months, but during this time of year, about the only thing available is Snow Mountain, where you can go snow tubing in 70 degree weather (we did). And marvel at the largest bas-relief in the world, a 90 foot by 190 foot carving of three Confederate leaders. Happy Listening!
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Tue, 18 December 2012
"The Long Winter" is an appropriately seasonal tale from the Dene tribe of Canada. The Dene tribe is often called the Slavey tribe, because they were sometimes enslaved by their enemies, the Cree. Similar to our popular Zuni story we call "Coyote and Eagle", this nature myth about rescuing warmth (in the case of the Zuni myth it's the sun itself) from a weather thief is a charming explanation of the cycle of seasons. We come to you from the North Pole (which looks suspiciously like South Carolina at the moment), where we're busy feeding Santa's reindeer, outfitting his sleigh and sewing holes in his gift bag. Have a happy holiday season, and we look forward to seeing you in 2013. Happy Listening! Dennis (Narrator, Frog, Fox, First Cub) and Kimberly (Narrator, Duck, Eagle, Mama Bear, Second Cub)
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Sat, 17 November 2012
Though it's not really a holiday story, "The Drum" from India seems suitable for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, with its theme of giving and gratitude. It's about a different kind of little drummer boy, who brightens the lives of many people with his generosity and creative use of a barter economy. And in the process, he gets what he wants most himself. We come to you from Wilmington, Delaware, where we're performing at the main library for about the fifth or sixth time (but who's counting). We've weathered out the first blizzard of the season, as well as Frankenstorm Sandy, which made it risky for us to drive into and out of New York City to do a performance at a school. But we made it! Happy Holidays and Happy Listening, Dennis (Narrator, Cooking Woman, Potter, Husband, Robbery Victim, Wedding Guest) and Kimberly (Mother, Boy, Wife, Drummer) |
Wed, 15 August 2012
Read Along Read the story as you listen at the Act!vated web site By special request from a fan, we bring you Hans Christian Andersen's beloved fable about judging people (or fowl) by their plumage. It's been the subject of songs and films -- Disney adapted it for the screen twice. In our version, as a further reminder of how uncool it is to tease other people, or talking ducks, for being different, we refer to him as the Somewhat Less Than Attractive Duckling. This story has much in common with The Knee-High Man, which is part of our current production. It also has much in common with Hans Christian Andersen's own life, which turned out to be more glorious than people ever expected. We come to you from Massachusetts, where we are winding down our summer tour. We just met up with our son Zephyr, who came to one of our performances, and then that night we saw him perform in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing". Our own little (non-ugly) duckling who's earned his swan wings. Happy Listening! Dennis (Narrator, Mother Duck, Farmer, Swan One, Wapiti, Other Animals) and Kimberly (Narrator, Duckling, Swan Two, Wife, Chicken, Cat, Other Animals)
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Mon, 16 July 2012
August is the month for peaches, with the month being designated as Peach Month and August 24 as Pie Day. What better time to present the story of “Momotaro, the Peach Boy”, from Okayama Prefecture in Japan. We come to you from Philadelphia, where we are making a repeat appearance at the Central Library. We performed the show one day after hiking 12 miles in Philadelphia's Wissahickon Park and two days after a return engagement at the James V. Brown Library in Williamsport. Since our last podcast we have presented a flurry of performances in Arkansas and North Carolina before arriving in Pennsylvania. And in between shows we took the time to visit Elsewhere, a fabulous museum (of sorts) in Greensboro, NC. Formerly a thrift store, Elsewhere consists of a curious collection of old oddments that the visitor is welcome to touch and play with. We also raced the turtles, fluttered with butterflies and roared at animated dinosaurs at Clyde Peeling's Reptileland in Pennsylvania. Here's hoping that your summer is peachy keen. Happy Listening,
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Sun, 10 June 2012
Like the Cadillac, the ice cream cone has an exalted place in American culture. So it's appropriate, we suppose, that we are near the famous Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, TX bringing you the story of how the ice cream cone may have been invented at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis. Our characters are based on actual individuals supposedly involved in the development of this iCone (that's our word for an iconic cone): Charles Menches, the former acrobat and circus manager who was the alleged inventor; Estelle Bordeaux, the daughter of a steamboat captain and the object of Charles' affection; and Earnest Hamwi, a Lebanese immigrant who was selling zalabia (a waffle-like sweet from which the cones may have been invented). Like the fair itself, the invention of the cone was the stuff of legend - so nobody knows exactly what the real story is. But we like the version of our tale, because it shows what can happen when you "dream big". Which just happens to be the theme of of the summer reading programs at libraries across the country. Which happens to be why we're performing this story at many of them. Which is why we happen to be in Amarillo, having just opened our new production in Albuquerqe, and now headed to our next performances in Arkansas. As for the reason we stand on our hands when we visit a place like The Cadillac Ranch... well, we just don't have a rational explanation for that. Happy Listening,
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