King of the Birds

He may not exactly look like the cock of the walk, but the sparrow is officially the King of the Fowl – at least according to this folktale from India. But he paid a price for the foul behavior he exhibited in acquiring his crown. We present this story with the aid of guest stars Mike and Patricia, birds of a feather who tell us all about the pet cockatoos they’re so proud of and the peacocks that roam around the neighborhood.

We’re in Los Angeles and vicinity, catching up with a whole flock of old friends, some of whom we haven’t seen in years. Thanks to one particular family we know, we were able to become seagulls for a few days, living on their boat at the Long Beach marina. Nothing like having the waves rock you to sleep at night!

One bird that has been on the wing for quite some time now is the eagle, the character in our Zuni story we call “Coyote and Eagle”. We recently had a chance to perform it for a group of storytellers in Phoenix, who put together an evening of story swapping especially so we could participate while we were flying through. Needless to say, our own eagle made quite an impression when she squeezed through a tennis racket. And for a bird’s eye view, it’s hard to top the Sandia Tramway in Albuquerque, the longest aerial tramway in the world. It took us WAAAAAY up to Sandia Peak, which was covered with snow that was being heartily enjoyed by a few late-season skiers.

And now, we’re back in our old aerie of California, where we’ll be exercising our talons – er, talents, for the next few weeks. Hope to catch you at one of our shows!

Happy Listening, Dennis (Narrator, Owl), Kimberly (Mynah), Mike Steele (Eagle), Patricia Pizer (Narrator, Sparrow) Buster Keaton and Nikolai (themselves)

• Zephyr interviewed as Captain Jack Sparrow on QATV
• Sean Buvala, Storyteller