trust the story

Pippin - Fall 2012 1

Nestled in the northern p of the Bruce Peninsula, in a spot known as Dyers Bay, there stands a bright red barn. Inside the walls of the barn stories are born from the mouths of tellers and

these tales are then taken home on the hearts and minds of the folks who gather there. Weaver of the storytell-ing magic is veteran teller Ron Baker. DD: I see that you came to Canada in 1964. How long have you been a mem-ber of Storytelling Toronto? RB: I’m not sure ‐ in the late 80s. I think I my first storytelling at the To‐ronto Fes val was in 1992.

DD: What inspired you to become a storyteller? Was there a par cular mo-ment or person that influenced you? And did that start in England or was it something you developed a er you came to Canada when you were a librarian? RB: I have always told stories but my main interest was in theatre. I had never thought of storytelling as a performance art. At a workshop, I heard Alice Kane tell The Blue Faience Hippopot‐amus and I thought ‐ that is the art for me! No costumes, no make‐up, no scenery, no props, no worry

about other actors fluffing their lines. A completely portable art – just me and a story! DD: Where and what did you learn

about clowning? How does this inter-relate with your storytelling?

(Continued on page 9)


Did you hear them? The crows are cawing out their story. “Beware the Siamese cat. It can scale a tree in a ma er of se‐conds. Last week it took one of

us away. Forever.” Listen ‐ the rabbits are mumbling

about how there isn’t enough water this

INSIDE

A Note From the Editor

Trust the Story ................... 1 A Note from the Editor .......... 1 Nota Bene .......................... 2 New Voices Old Wisdom .......... 3 Parr & Trail Stories... ............ 4 Telling a Favourite Story.......... 4

Book Nook… ........................ 5 On the Storytelling Trail… ....... 6 Storytelling Exhibits at Museums 7 Goldie Takes on Sydney & … .... 8 Stories Goin’ Round ................ 10 Listings ............................. 11-12

summer. “Did you see what the frogs are doing? They’re jumping into peo‐ple’s back‐yard pools.” “They’ll drown,” said one. “Don’t be ridiculous,” said the other, “they’ll be poisoned.”

It seems to me that there is whole lot (Continued on page 2)

An Interview with Ron Baker

Vol.18, No.1

Trust the Story

2 Pippin - Fall 2012

**NOTA BENE**

PIPPIN is the newsletter of Storytelling Toronto

The Storytellers School of Toronto is a registered, non-profit organization that provides a creative home for a community of storytellers,

listeners, and story-explorers. Our mission is to inspire, encourage and support storytelling for listeners, tellers and those who have not yet heard. Since 1979 we have been providing courses and workshops; holding gatherings, festivals and events to celebrate and present the art of storytelling; supporting the creative work of storytellers; and producing publications about storytelling and storytellers.

Pippin Editor Deborah Dunleavy

[email protected]

Design/Layout chris cavanagh

Listings Marylyn Peringer

Program Leaders Festival Director: Dan Yashinsky

Resident Teachers: Marylyn Peringer, Lynda Howes Legless Stocking: Lorne Brown, Catherine Melville

STORYFIRE: Catherine Melville

Website: [email protected]

Board of Directors 2011-2012

Office Director Gail Nyoka

© Storytelling Toronto (formerly Storytellers School of Toronto)

Ph: 416-656-2445 Fax: 416-656-8510

www.storytellingtoronto.org

601 Christie St., Suite #173 Toronto On M6G 4C7

[email protected]

www.storytellingtoronto.org

Every Friday night since 1978 storytellers and listeners have been

gathering in downtown Toronto. Each evening is hosted by an accom-

plished storyteller. Anyone is welcome to tell a story. Every Friday

night is unique.

Suggested donation: $5.00 Time: 8:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.— Innis College Café

2 Sussex Street, Toronto. (corner St. George, one block south of Bloor St. W. St. George Subway - St. George St. exit)

www.1001fridays.org

of storytelling going on in nature. While staying on an island on Charleston Lake, every night around two in the morning the loons held a spooky tell around by the light of the moon. At the same me the crickets, cicadas and others buzzed about the heat.

Being a teller isn’t so much about tell‐

ing as it is about listening. One need only

s ll oneself, listen and learn. The wind,

the waves, the creatures of the sky, land

and waters all have stories to tell. Just

take a moment and you will see there is a

wealth of communica on going on. Wait

a minute…. I hear something….the spar‐

row hawks are screeching at the dog

walkers again. Got go and check it out.

(Continued from page 1)

A World Full of Stories — cont’d

Karen Blair Paul Robert Qaid Silk

Hildy Stollery Molly Sutkaitis

SIGN UP! TWO NEW COURSES FOR DEVELOPING STORYTELLERS

Storytelling Toronto’s 2012-13 course season is featuring two debut courses, both designed for the growing number of storytellers-in-progress within our community. And they’re both coming up soon, so read on! Next Steps is open to “graduates” of Storytelling Toronto’s beginner course and will be taught by veteran storyteller and art therapist Ruth Danziger, who has taught the beginner course for many years. For six weeks registrants will have continuous practice in both storytelling and story listening in a supportive group through a variety of activities, including story research in a chosen genre or area of the world, story-mapping and artwork (no experience necessary!). Next Steps runs on six successive Tuesdays, October 23 to November 27, 7:00–9:30 p.m. in an accessible Toronto Annex location. Seeing More Through Gesture, Language and Colour Experienced tellers wishing to explore more deeply a particular well-loved,often-told story of their own choosing have the opportunity to sign up for Ruby Sinha’s weekend course. They will discover new life and deeper meaning in their story through movement, painting and new use of language. Ruby, skilled as an East Indian dancer, visual artist and storyteller, is the ideal person to lead such a course. Seeing More Through Gesture, Language and Colour is offered on the October 19-21 weekend, at a studio in Toronto’s Kensington Market. Courses for Beginners: Storytelling Toronto is also offering the basics: beginner courses fall and spring, led by Lynda Howes and Joan Bailey, respectively; and Celia Lottridge’s Master Class. Also on the schedule are Lorne Brown’s course for experienced balladeers; Fashion and Fairytales exploration with Michelle Tocher, and 2013’s Summer Intensive, led by Marylyn Peringer, in the church and gardens of St. George the Martyr in downtown Toronto. We have both good and bad news. Bad first: we’ve had to raise our fees (for the first time in ten years!). But the good news is that signers-up can avoid the hike in price if they register by the Early Bird deadline. Further information can be obtained by consulting Pippin’s listings and Storytelling Toronto’s website: www.storytellingtoronto.org


Submi ed by June Brown The campfire glowed red in the twilight as the lusty chants from the paddling voyageurs dri ed over the tree tops. We were pad‐dling down the most dan‐gerous lake in Canada, Lake Winnipeg, under the direc‐on of Zabe MacEachren, a

Kingston storyteller. This campfire and storytelling session was just one of the many enjoyable happen‐ings that took place during the 'New Voices and Old Wisdom' gather‐ing on June 8, 9 and 10th, 2012, near Gra on, Ontario. It was an historic event for Ontario tellers. Never before, had so many of them gathered for the sole pur‐pose of connec ng with each other.

Ontario is a vast province with about 18 storytelling groups. The distance be‐tween groups, our winter weather, the me and date of storytelling mee ngs,

(usually a week day or night) the cost of travel and motels, make visits between tellers almost impossible. The conse‐quences of so many obstacles, is that most storytellers have few opportuni es, other than the internet, to share experiences and stories with tellers outside their own region.

To address this problem of 'not know‐ing each other' Brenda Byers and I, as co‐reps for Storytellers of Canada/Conteurs du Canada, decided to sponsor a gathering of Ontario tellers. The underlying goal was

to make connec‐ons. Tellers who

were emerging would have an op‐portunity to meet established tellers, formal guilds would meet with informal groups, eastern tell‐ers would meet western tellers and northern tellers would meet southern tellers and SC‐CC mem‐

bers would meet non‐members. At the end of this gathering we hoped people would have built stronger connec ons.

Planning is everything and we tried to cover every detail from food to trav‐el. A er many hours of work we came up with a varied program with lots of oppor‐tuni es over three days for the par ci‐pants to interact with each other, have fun and learn something new.

On the morning of the opening day the tellers arrived at the site with huge enthu‐siasm. We had great weather, good a endance, a well‐planned program and volunteer support from Anna Kerz and Connie Hubbarde. As we entered the house Brenda and I breathed a sigh of relief. The hard part was over. All we had to do was run the program. This state of smugness lasted un l we turned on the water. When a silky brown mud poured from the tap we knew we were in trouble. What was missed in our prepara ons was a con ngency plan for a total pumping failure. Some fast thinking, bo led water, a port‐a‐po y and signs posted around the site saved the day. As people arrive we told them to pretend they were camping, and they did.

Our first event was a wine and cheese, followed by a tell‐around under the stars. We heard stories old and new and we discovered that the real Hermione in the Harry Po er stories was probably a story‐teller from England who had moved to

Peterborough! On Saturday there were meet‐and‐

greet sessions, two excellent workshops led by Heather Whaley and Norm Perrin, a discussion about storytelling in Ontario led by Bruce Carmody, and opportuni es for fellowship and fun with a mystery lunch, a pot luck supper, tell‐arounds and a 'Trivial Pursuit' with a storytelling theme that took everyone through the woods. The trail wound its way beside and over a bab‐bling stream, past century old trees, cedar

groves and dri s of royal ferns. Sto‐rytelling ques ons dangled from the trees and bushes tes ng the group's memory and story‐telling knowledge.

(Can you name 3 stories that feature foot‐wear?) Long cedar benches were placed in two strategic spots and as the hikers sat they listened to storytelling giant, Bob Sherman and woodland fairy, Deborah Dunleavy tell them a tale. The hike was one of the highlights of the weekend.

As the weekend unfolded, Brenda and I knew our goal of connec ng tellers had been achieved. All around us we could see clusters of tellers who had never met be‐fore deep in conversa on. We could hear laughter and people making plans to meet again. When the gathering ended forty tellers went home with new storytelling es, a stronger connec on to the art of storytelling and our province. In September, an Ontario 'travel and bil‐

le ng program' will be launched to build

on the connec ons made at the gathering.

This is good news for storytellers and On‐

tario communi es. They will now be able

to hear new storytelling voices and sto‐

ries.

NEW VOICES OLD WISDOM An Ontario Gathering of Oral Storytellers


Submi ed by Anna Kertz With trees as the theme for this year’s World Storytelling Day, it was most fi ng that Carol Leigh Wehking and Glenna Janzen presented a story called The Backwoods With‐out a Butler.

This is the tale of Cathe‐rine Parr Trail and Susanne Moodie. The sisters arrived in Ontario in the early 1830’s to set up housekeeping. Their new home was a land of trees; a land of bogs and mosquitoes; a land with‐out roads, farms and fences; a land in which starva on, disease, fire, flood and weather brought death to the door more o en than a neighbour.

In spite of the hardships, Catherine soon felt at home. She spoke of her “pris ne forest”, and she explored and recorded everything she saw and learned from her white and na ve neighbours.

Susanna was not as adaptable. She saw the “interminable forest” as a place filled

with “mystery and menace” that made her feel like a “person op‐pressed” for her en re life. With two such diverse characters to draw on, the story is perfect for a tandem telling. In this presenta on, Carol Leigh took on the per‐sona of Catherine Parr

Trail, and Glenna that of Su‐sanne Moodie. The two story‐tellers allowed these two “grandmothers of Canadian literature” to sit side‐by‐side, and in a con‐versa onal style, share memories of their home in England, their journey to the new world, and their lives in the backwoods.

As you might expect, their lives were hard and this tale could have been very dark, but Carol Leigh and Glenna regularly

lightened the telling by injec ng humor or breaking into melodious song.

I believe that this was a first perfor‐mance, and as such, there were moments

when the tellers hesitated slightly in the telling, but they supported each other and skated easily over ny rough spots. At the end, the audience was so pleased with this im‐portant bit of Canadiana that I don’t doubt Glenna and Carol Leigh will be asked to retell this tale many mes. The produc on I a ended

was presented at the O’Keefe Co age

Café in Cambridge, Ontario: a warm, cozy

se ng for storytelling. And because the

event came with a wonderful meal, the

whole evening was well worth the drive

from Toronto.

Parr & Trail Stories Come to Life

From a submission by Phyllis Walker A request to tell a favorite story awakens in me a long period of ques oning as I try to decide and answer the ques on: ‘What is my favorite story?’

Pride & Prejudice has to be my favorite ‘comfort’ novel, I never re of it, but to decide on a story for children presents a quandary that almost cannot be solved.

Yet me demands an answer. Recent‐ly I volunteered to read my favorite story to a class of grade 5/6s and as I hesitated between

all of the Anansi stories that I love dearly, I finally decided on The Orphan Boy by Tolowa Mollel.

We can learn a lot about ourselves because of the stories that reveal to us aspects of our personali es that we never thought about. Some years ago I received an invita on to tell in Vancouver and I decided to tell the story of The Horses.

When I first read that tale I wept copious tears and as I tried to study the story I al‐ways tear‐up at the same place and so I could not tell it to any‐one but kept it as my hidden treasure. It always awakened a flood of emo ons about the cruelty of human beings and the need for us to protect the helpless animals in our envi‐ronment. I learned a lot about myself because of that story.

I s ll tremble as I remember that night in Vancouver. I was on top form, as that story demands, and I think that I released the ‘incubus’ of that tale from my mind that night and terrified the en re audi‐ence. People came up to me a er and said that they had never been moved as deeply as that story moved them and that they would never ever forget it.

Neither can I ever forget that story. It has made me realize that I care for ani‐mals with a deep love and passion and

that I could never harm any of them. Another request came from the United Cultures of Canada As‐socia on to send them a story that I had performed for inclu‐sion in a wonderful book, World on a Maple Leaf ‐ a col‐lec on of mul cultural folktales. This presented anoth‐er challenge. How to choose? Some mes I think that as a storyteller I get so a ached to

some stories that it is difficult to become detached. I was delighted to have an An‐ansi story included in this project. We live in a country that celebrates mul cultural‐ism as an official government policy and it gave me great joy to include the story that opens the collec on of stories – Anansi and the Sky-God. To take this old tale and give it a modern twist presented an inter‐es ng challenge and I have enjoyed re‐reading this tale that I have told so many mes before.

Telling a Favourite Story

Susanne Moodie

Catherine Parr Trail


The CCBC – Canadian Children’s Book Cen‐tre annually publishes the “Best Books” Periodical. There are five recommended

books in the 2012 “Folktales & Legends” cate‐gory. They are: Arc c Giants Wri en by Neil Christopher, illustrated by Eva Widerman, published by Iqalit: Inhabit Media Inc.

2011, HC 978‐1‐926569‐09‐3 Can Hens Give Milk Wri en by Joan Be y Stuchner, illustrated by Joe Weiss‐mann, published by Orca Book Pub‐lishing 2011, HC 978‐1‐55469‐319‐1

The Flute Wri en by Rachne Gilmore, illustrated by Pulak Biswas, published by Vancouver: Tradewinds Books 2011, HC 978‐1‐896580‐57‐9

Nearly Nonsense: Hoja tales from Turkey Wri en by Rina Singh, illustrated by Farida Zaman, published by Toronto: Tundra Books 2011, HC 978‐0‐88776‐974‐0 When Apples Grew Noses and White

Horses Flew: Tales of Ti‐Jean Wri enby

jan Andrews, illustrated by Dusan Petricic,

Book Nook


There was a me not so long ago when a member of the public, upon hearing that I was an 1812 re‐enactor would wrinkle their face and declare "Really! Oh?” With the bicentennial of the War of 1812 well under way, upon hear‐ing of my role as an 1812 re‐enactor, that same member of the public becomes inter‐ested and the ques ons begin. Finally, re‐enactors are accepta‐ble!

As a professional storyteller and musi‐cian, I have for many years been the “entertainment” in camp, both first and third person. Now that role is in great demand across the province and in some venues that were not touched by the War of 1812. But...there is grant money out there and everyone wants to include 1812 as a means to draw the public to their event. If they can find a re‐enactor who also hap‐pens to be a well known storyteller, even be er.

One of the most special presenta ons I was asked to write and perform for the bicentennial was for Tourism Burlington. They wanted a first person story to prove to the “suits” on the board, the mayor, councillors, museums, BIA and all those other invited guests that the War of 1812 touched present day Burlington. The lady who hired me wasn’t sure how those im‐portant people would react to a storytell‐er. I didn’t disappoint and came away with another story for my repertoire.

There are a group of us who travel together as the most sought a er exam‐ples of residents of war; Robert Land the shoemaker, Dr. Quimby and his magic, Len the cooper, Penny the po er, Joe the blacksmith, various heritage musicians, our Na ve friends and of course the sol‐diers with their muskets and cannons. As I write this I am preparing to head to Sault Ste. Marie for a week long event to join

my friends there. Laura Secord in first person is always

the most popular but I have other stories available. Quite o en it is an impromptu story of a par cular ba le or soldier.

Goodness, the number of people who are de‐scended from some of those involved in the War of 1812. They want to know more of their famous family member. I have been booked well into the fall of 2013 across the prov‐ince by some venues I would not have dreamed of. If only I had a looney for every picture taken. Laura Secord telling her story on a tall ship on the Detroit River certainly

started the cameras snapping. I was in the wrong end of the province on the wrong body of water but no one else seemed to care.

When History Television contacted Heritage Toronto for a storyteller they recommended me for the voice of Eliza‐beth Gage on the War of 1812 documen‐tary. My presenta on on stories of “Women in Upper Canada during the War of 1812” has been record‐ed for Route 1812, a driving route linking histori‐cal sites and cultural ins tu‐ons in

the South‐

west, Toronto and Niagara regions. My voice and instruments have been record‐ed singing heritage songs along the same route. As a heritage storyteller I found myself in the role of social historian for the Southwest Ontario Barn Quilt trail and historical advisor for the Lincoln Lamp‐lighter Tours for their bicentennial produc‐ons. I am also busy performing for other

venues who have asked for a presenta on other then the War of 1812 bicentennial.

What was the original ques on? Oh yes. What have I been up to this summer? Thus far, presenta ons in Milton, Guelph, Tillsonburg, Barrie, Ancaster, Cobourg, St. Thomas, Rockton, Windsor, Midland, Fort Erie, Sault Ste. Marie, Burlington, Grimsby, Aldershot, Peterborough and Wallace‐burg. Thank goodness the fall will slow down a bit. So far I am booked into Olde Sandwich Towne, Sharon, St. George, Queenston Heights, Rockton, Queenston, Burlington, Hamilton and Jordan. There are a number of teachers out there who have taken my business cards with a though ul smile. I expect that will require more travel me.

A fourth CD is also in the works. I am a bit exhausted but loving every minute of it.

www.paulinegrondin.com

On the Storytelling Trail with Pauline Grondin


Submi ed by Deborah Dunleavy While visi ng friends on their farm near Owen Sound this summer we decided to pay a visit to the Gray Roots Museum. This modern and spacious facility which is owned and operated by Grey County lies down a country road on the outskirts of the city. I was delighted to discover a won‐derful exhibit featuring the stories of the Anishinabe called “The Good People: Know Our Stories, Know Our People”.

The web site explains: “Stories connect people with their history and help keep alive the tradi ons and beliefs that weave the fabric of the past and future genera‐ons. Renowned writer, storyteller, teach‐

er and scholar, Anishinabe Elder Basil Johnston shares the stories of his people and their connec on to the natural world.” The Good People is a recipient of a 2010 Ontario Museum Associa on Award of Excellence and a 2011 Governor

General's History Award for Excellence in Museums Honorable Men on in the History Alive! The exhibit runs un l January 5, 2013. For more informa on visit: www.greyroots.com. Also on one of my

jaunts about the province I

stopped in at the Clarington Museum to see the touring exhibit ‘Tales of Fantasy: Our Myths and Legends’. Developed by The Sherbrooke Museum of Nature and Science, the exhibit explores the great legends of our me. “As the first means of literacy for people, legends were creat‐ed to be told orally. Transmi ed from one teller to another through the genera ons, they travel and evolve as me goes by. Recently storytellers, authors and musi‐cians have contributed to the revival of oral tradi ons. They are bringing back to life a whole spectrum of our cultural herit‐age. Through their efforts these forgo en legends and myths of our na ons are com‐ing back to life.” (From the museum web site)

Dan

Yashinski, Marylyn Peringer and I, are three of several Canadian tellers whose recorded stories can be heard in the ex‐hibit. The layout is very family friendly and invites the curious to explore many as‐pects of our storytelling heritage. ‘Tales of Fantasy: Our Myths and Legends’ will be at the Sarah Jane Williams Herit‐age Centre of the Clarington Muse‐um un l Septem‐ber 16 a er which me it tours to other ci es across Can‐ada. The Sarah Jane Williams Heritage Centre is located at 62 Temperance Street and is

open eve‐ry day from 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM. Admis‐sion is $5.00 per person or $20.00 per family (max. 5). Phone : 905‐623‐2734 For general inquiries please email: in‐[email protected] or visit www.claringtonmuseums.com.

Storytelling Exhibits at Museums

Dream Warrior by Don AhnAhnsis

Basil Johnston


Australia, here I come! I was on my way to perform at the Sydney Interna onal Story‐telling Conference. I would be doing do my Canadian historical piece, Women of the Yukon, which I had performed at the Toronto Storytelling Fes val in 2011. It is

the story of 6 women who succeeded in the Yukon in various occupa ons, includ‐ing dance hall girls, hotel owners and sourdoughs.

I started my journey in Fiji to break up the lengthy flying me and spent two glo‐rious days in this tropical paradise. Then on to Sydney. Well, that's where my bad luck began to plague me. When I checked into the hotel in Sydney, my credit card was declined. When I bought a black pearl ring in Fiji, my credit card company be‐came suspicious at the unduly large ex‐penditure, which was not my normal spending pa ern. So they very nicely, to protect me, put my card on hold. Ergo, I had no credit. Well, never let it be said that I am defeated easily. I simply hunted down ATMs everywhere I went and paid good old cash for everything.

A er a harrowing evening trying to get my luggage at the airport, which came in

on a later flight from Auckland than I did, I headed outside of Sydney the next day to a end the Interna onal Storytelling Fes ‐val. It was a wonderful three‐day fes val. We kicked off on Friday night with a wel‐coming cocktail party. It was a me to

meet and greet the 85 people there from various parts of Australia, as well as some from New Zealand, U.S.A., Singapore and one person from Canada (me). Diane Fer‐la e from Oakland, California was the guest speake.r She carried a rhythm s ck and a treas‐ure trove of stories of inspira on, struggle, love, and humor, some with homespun wis‐dom, some with rhythm and rhyme, all with heart and life.

On Saturday there were many workshops to a end, then an evening concert

with tellers from various parts of Austral‐ia, as well as other countries. The evening came to a close a er many of us had a chance to perform at a story circle.

Early on Sunday morning I woke with one of those dreadful sore throats where

it hurts to swallow. I made a few trips down the corridor of the con‐vent, now a conference centre, where we were staying, to partake of the constant hot water supplied from a wall unit to make a cup of tea. At breakfast I was able to add soothing honey to the tea. By 8:45 in the morning, as I was se ng up the room for my performance and workshop, I thought “I can do this”. By now I had the sniffles as well, so I cleverly placed a huge stack of ssues beside my props so that every me I donned a new prop, I quickly blew my nose be‐fore I turned back to the audience. My performance and workshop was well received, and I was pleased by that and also that I was able to get through it without sneezing, coughing or my throat seizing up. That a ernoon there was more storytelling and then five children

competed in the final of the storytelling contest. The kids were fantas c tellers. Their stories were wonderfully entertain‐ing. Then there was the wrap‐up and the good‐byes as people le to go back to


Goldie Takes on Sydney & The Outback


their various homes. This wonderful fes ‐val was over, but I had made some new friends, taken away some new ideas and had a fabulous me.

A er a few days in Sydney to explore the Opera House, take ferry boats back and forth to various parts of Sydney to see the sights, I travelled to Adelaide to board the Ghan Railway that took me up through the Outback. I travelled many miles seeing red earth, some shrubbery, a few sheep and very li le else. Although there are supposed to be more than one million

camels roaming the outback, the only one I saw was the one I had a ride on at a stop we made. I got off the train in Alice Springs and spent a few days exploring that area and then on to Uluru (Ayers Rock) which is a sacred area for the abo‐rigines. We had a champagne sunset ou ng and then a morning sunrise. This red sandstone “rock” is quite a sight at any me but with the sunset and sunrise, the colours were outstanding.

The final des na on was Cairns, and a trip to the Great Barrier Reef. Although I

didn't snorkel or scuba dive, I did get to see the wonderful sight in a submersible boat. I also went up for a helicopter ride right over part of the reef. It is a wonder‐ful sight, hundreds of miles of living reef.

All too soon my adventure was over. And what a wonderful adventure it was. Once I got home I loaded my pictures onto my computer and with the pictures filling my whole screen, I was able to relive this truly remarkable and memorable trip. Submi ed by: Goldie Spencer

RB: I learned about clowning the way I learn about most things – by doing it. I took some workshops on mime from Paul Gaulin. As a mime clown I learned to communicate through body rather than voice. It is said that over 80% of communica on is non‐verbal. As a clown, when I am sad my whole body has to feel sad, when I am angry my body feels the anger. I carry this body language into storytelling although in a more subtle form. DD: Let's talk about telling a story from the point of view of someone who is in the story as opposed to the outside narrator looking in from the outside. How does this "put new life into the stories and reveal new in-sights" RB: This technique is very effec ve in retelling old and o en familiar stories. It is also valuable in reconstruc ng his‐torical events. Becoming a character (real or imagined) makes the story more immediate and pulls the listener into the story in a very personal way. It not only brings the story to life but also offers a different viewpoint. I don’t write the stories down but let the character find his or her voice and words to tell the story. I let the charac‐ter take over the telling. Very exci ng and a bit scary! One can’t create char‐

acters without understanding their reason for wan ng to tell the story. It is this emo on, which makes both the character and the story memorable. One advantage of this form of story‐telling is that you can only tell what the character might reasonably be ex‐pected to know. One doesn’t have to “dot all the Is and cross all the Ts” of historical fact. DD: In your workshop descrip on of "Telling From the Inside of a Story" you talk about the need to have empathy for all the characters in their stories. Does this mean the teller needs to un-derstand the mo va on behind even the antagonists? I think so, but would like to hear about this in your words. RB: I try not to ‘intellectualize’ my sto‐rytelling. Empathy is the power of en‐tering into another’s personality and imagina vely experiencing his or her experience. This would apply to all the characters in the story. DD: Every Monday night during the summer you tell at your Story Barn up in Dyers Bay with the second Monday of the month as a story swap evening. You must have a vast repertoire to tell 10 stories on each Monday. How do you adjust your stories depending on the audience? Do you come with a

specific theme and then pull from that theme or are you quite spontaneous? RB: Over the years I have told many stories. One day I tried to write down a list of the stories that I had told. I reached 56 and showed it to my wife Rita. She said, “You know more than that” and added another 20 plus over 50 ‘first person’ biblical stories. During the summer I try to revisit as many of these as I can to keep them fresh. Last year I told 33 different stories during the summer. Each evening I have a list of stories that I might tell but then some of them don’t feel right for the audience so I tell different stories. If there are a lot of children I start with stories suitable for them and chal‐lenge the adults to become as li le children – which most of them do with great enjoyment. Later I move on to more mature stories. I try to mix seri‐ous and lighter stories to give a rich experience to the listeners. DD: When did you establish the Story Barn? RB: We started to use the Barn for sto‐ries and retreats about 15 years ago. We held monthly story swaps there in the summer and at our home in the winter. I love to tell stories and I got red of wai ng for people to ask me

to tell stories so I decided to open the



Trust the Story cont’d


Dan Yashinski and Kathy Reid‐Naiman were the featured tellers for the Three Wishes Fes val put on by Storytellers for Children June 8 ‐9. Ariel Balevi performed his rendi on of stories from the great Sufi epic Conference of the Birds on June 15 at the EBA Studios. Sue Charters and Kathleen Bailey gathered a crowd at the Stephen Leacock Home on June 24th. Sue also joined storyteller Bob Graham for "Arcadian Adventures on the Front Porch" for July 15th, July 22nd, and August 12th.

The Backseat Balladeers - Heather Whaley, Meryl Arbing, Joan Bailey, Pat Bisset, Greg Da‐vis, Donna Dudinsky, Ruth Danziger presented two concerts – one for children and one for adults at The Barns on June 30. Dan Yashinsky and Brian Katz, with support from a Canada Council for the Arts Travel grant, performed Talking You In at the Cardiff Children's Hospital and Beyond the Border Wales Interna onal Storytelling Fes val June 27 ‐ July 2.

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Storybarn for weekly storytelling in the summer. If people came that would be a bonus! For the last 3 years there has been an average a endance of 24. DD: The proceeds from the Story Barn go to the Stephen Lewis Founda on. This is very special. How did you come to make this decision? RB: A group of us on the Peninsula felt that we should channel our combined efforts to some worthwhile cause. We looked at various chari es but were moved by the plight of AIDS vic ms and their families in Africa ‐ in par cu‐lar the work of Stephen Lewis and es‐pecially his Grandmother ini a ve. A Peninsula Grandparents group was formed and is very ac ve in sup‐por ng Grandmothers striving to raise grandchildren whose parents were vic‐ms of AIDS. I decided to use my sto‐

rytelling to support the cause. Ad‐mi ance to the Storybarn is free but we encourage dona ons to SLF. About $1000 is donated each year. DD: In your storytelling journeys, such as that to Alberta for the Canadian Children's Book Week, do you have a special memory of telling to an audi-ence that you would like to share? RB: That tour was a great experience with many memorable moments. One that comes to mind: It was late one

a ernoon at a High School. I was tell‐ing in the Gym and the students were seated on the bleachers. I had just started a story a bell rang. No one took any no ce. I carried on and even‐tually a teacher came in and said “The buses are leaving so you’d be er come now”. About a third of the students le and as they were leaving they called out to their friends, “Tell us how the story ends!” DD: How do you find your stories? What is it that appeals to you in a sto-ry - what does it need to have in it that makes it come alive in your imagina-

on? RB: I suppose that it comes from my background as a librarian but I get most of my stories from books. Many of them come from picture books. The language in the best of them is spare and poe c and the pictures carry the story. In telling, the imagina on re‐places the role of the pictures. I also tell Rita’s stories and some of my own. I look for stories that touch my emo‐ons – if they don’t touch me how can

I touch others with them? I also look for a strong beginning and a strong ending (preferably with a twist). When I read them for the first me I have to ‘hear’ my voice. Is this a story for me? DD: What is the most recent discovery you have made about storytelling?

RB: Recently I was telling in a restau‐rant and was cha ng with the diners. One man said to me “Do you know what storytelling is?” I asked what he thought it was. He said “It’s Theatre of the Imagina on.” I can’t think of a be er descrip on of storytelling. DD: Are there other tellers you greatly admire or have learned something from? RB: I loved Alice Kane. Lesley Robbins Conway is one of my favourite story‐tellers (and now a neighbour) and I ad‐mire Jim Blake. DD: Do you have a favorite book for those wan ng to deepen their rela-

onship to storytelling? RB: I am greatly indebted to David Kossoff, a Jewish actor and storyteller whose stories showed me how to cre‐ate characters and tell stories using their voices. His Book of Witnesses was my appren ceship. I love the sto‐ries of Leon Garfield and have a spe‐cial place in my heart for Walter Wangerin, Jr. DD: If you were to give a novice teller three golden wisdom gems to story-telling what might they be? RB: Trust the Story! The Story carries you – you don’t carry the story! Forget yourself – become the

story!



GATHERINGS

PERFORMANCES

Storytellers All is the monthly storytelling gathering hosted by Micki Beck at the main branch of the Belleville Public Library on the 4th Saturday of the month, at 3:00pm. Training workshops will be combined with story sharing. Info: Micki Beck, [email protected]

Dan Yashinsky, Storytelling Toronto’s storyteller-in-residence, and a roster of other storytellers host Bread and Stories most Saturday mornings 10-12am at the Artscape Wychwood Barns, 601 Christie St. In winter we’re indoors at the Storytell-ing Toronto office, Suite 173.. Open to storytellers, listeners and those who like to “talk” story. Come and be mentored as you try out new or familiar stories. Info:[email protected]

1,000 Friday Nights of Storytelling continues every Friday evening at 8pm at the Innis College Café, Sussex Ave. and St. George St., Toronto. Suggested donation $5. Open to all who wish to listen or tell. (416) 656-2445, www.1001fridays.org

Stories Aloud, formerly at The Story Barn in Ba-den, is now held at The Button Factory

(Waterloo Community Arts Centre), 25 Regina St. S. on the 2nd Friday of the month, September to June. 8pm. Info: http://thestorybarn.ca., [email protected] Open storytelling. Suggested donation: $5

The Baden Storytelling Guild, formerly at The Story Barn in Baden, now meets on the 4th Friday of the month, at The Button Factory, 25 Regina St. S., Waterloo. Membership and info:

Mary-Eileen McClear, [email protected] http://thestorybarn.ca

The 1000 Islands Yarnspinners meet the third Monday of the month from September to June at the Brockville Museum, 5 Henry St. at 7pm. Every-one is welcome to come and tell a tale or enjoy listening. Donations at the door. Contact Deborah Dunleavy: 613-342-3463 or [email protected]

The Ottawa Storytellers meet for their Story Swap on the first Thursday of the month, 7pm

At Library and Archives Canada, 395 Wellington St, Room 156, free admission. Info: [email protected]

The Ottawa Storytellers also sponsor Stories and Tea every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month at The

Listings — Fall 2012

Tea Party, 119 York St., Ottawa, 7pm. Suggested donation: $8 or pay what you can. Info: [email protected]

The Dufferin Circle of Storytellers meets the 1st Thursday of the month, 7:30pm. Info: Nancy Woods, (519)925-0966.

The Brant Taletellers Guild, welcomes tellers and listeners to its monthly gatherings September to June, 7 – 8:45pm, on the first Wednesday at the Station Coffee House and Gallery, besides the Brantford VIA Station. Visitors welcome. Fair Trade coffee, Steam Whistle beer, wine and snacks can be purchased during meetings . Info: Barbara Sisson, email [email protected] or phone (519) 756-0727

The Durham Folklore Storytellers (formerly Durham Folklore Society) meets every 3rd Thurs-day, 7:30-9:30pm in the Seniors Day Activity Room, Northview Community Centre, 150 Beatrice St. E., Oshawa. Info: Dianne Chandler, (905) 985-3424, [email protected]

or www.durhamstorytellers.ca

Cercle de conteurs de l’Est de l’Ontario (CCEO) se réunit aux soirées de contes libres une

fois par mois dans diverses communautés de l’Est ontarien. Renseignements: Guy Thibodeau, [email protected], www.cceo.ca

The Hamilton Storytelling Circle will meet again starting Monday, Sept. 10, 7:30-9pm at Temple Anshe Sholom, 221 Cline Ave N., Hamilton. In-fo:BarryRosen, [email protected]

The Guelph Guild of Storytellers meets the 1st Wednesday of each month, 7:30pm at the Coopera-tors Building, MacDonnel St., and the 2nd Wednes-day at 8pm for Stories at the Boathouse, a tea room on the river, Gordon St. Info: Sandy, (519) 767-0017

The Montreal Storytellers Guild meets the 4th Tuesday of the month at the Westmount Library. Info: Christine Mayr, [email protected]

Mary-Eileen McClear is a featured teller September 1, 1pm and 2:30, at Storybook Gardens, 1085 Com-missioners Rd. W. London. On September 22 she takes part in the Heart and Hand Festival at Joseph Schneider Haus, 466 Queen St. W., Kitchener. On September 30 Mary-Eileen tells stories set in the War of 1812 at Sharon Temple’s Weaving Words Festival. Info on this and Mary-Eileen’s Waterloo Region Li-brary performances in late August and early Septem-ber: [email protected]

Every effort has been made to present current information. Sometimes the completion and delivery of Pippin is subject to the volunteer hours available to produce it.

The Baden Storytellers Guild members will perform September 15 at the Kitchener-Waterloo Doors Open, September 22 in the Heart and Hand Festival at Joseph Schneider Haus, and on September 29 in Culture Days “Show and Tell” at the Button Factory in Waterloo. Info: [email protected]

Storyteller and author Aubrey Davis is among the performers at the Northwords Literary Festival, Sep-tember 28-30, Huntsville. Info: www.aubreydavis.com

The Legless Stocking (Lorne Brown and Cathy Melville) opens a season of music and storytelling with La Maison des Contes, December 1, 7:30pm. Stories, ballads, songs and tales from our French heritage. With Sylvi Belleau, Stephanie Beneteau, Marie-Lynn Hammond, Marylyn Peringer, Donna Dudinsky. At The Butler’s Pantry, 591 Markham St., Toronto. Admission $22, $17 if ordered by November 22. Doors open for dinner at 6pm. Info and tickets: (416) 656-2445 or http://www.storytellingtoronto.org/sile/legless-stocking

FESTIVALS

The Fool Festival of Oral Literatures begins with 3 warm-up shows October 18, 25, and November 1 at the Rustic Owl Café, 993 Bloor West (at Do-vercourt) and continues November 9-11 at The Art Gallery of Ontario’s Weston Family Learning Cen-tre. Performers include Jan Blake (U.K.), Ron Evans (Metis), Rene Robitaille and Etienne Loranger (Quebec), Jacques Falquet and Sonia St.Michel (Quebec) plus Toronto artists Celia Bark-er Lottridge, Susan Coyne, Jennifer Dick, Joan Bailey. Info: www.foolfestival.com The Ottawa International Storytelling Festival takes place November 15-18, featuring Stephen Tobolowsky, Kelly Russell, Annie Fletcher, Jan Blake, Michael Kusugak. At St. Brigid’s Centre for the Arts, 310 St.Patrick St., Ottawa. Info: http://www.ottawastorytellers.ca/festival

Jack in the Box Tales: Erika Webster shares stories, rhymes and songs for children 2-4 years with parent or caregiver. 8 weeks starting Wednesday, Septem-ber 19, 1:30-2:15pm at Mable’s Fables Children’s Book Store, 662 Mt. Pleasant Rd.. $148. Info: www.sallyjaeger.ca Mary-Eileen McClear will be giving courses this fall at The Button Factory, 25 Regina St S.Waterloo. Info: http://www.buttonfactoryarts.ca

WORKSHOPS


The Storytellers School of Toronto gratefully acknowledges the support of the following government agencies:

This newsletter is made possible in part by a grant from the Ontario Arts Council’s Literary Festivals and Organizations Operating Funding.

What’s new with you? Where are you telling sto-ries? What new books have you read? Who did you hear telling stories? Send your submissions to Deborah at [email protected]

WHATS UP?

SIGN UP! TWO NEW COURSES FOR DEVELOPING STORYTELLERS Storytelling Toronto’s 2012-13 course season is featuring two debut courses, both designed for the grow-ing number of storytellers-in-progress within our community. And they’re both coming up soon, so read on! Next Steps is open to “graduates” of Storytelling Toronto’s beginner course and will be taught by veteran storyteller and art therapist Ruth Danziger, who has taught the beginner course for many years. For six weeks registrants will have continuous practice in both storytelling and story listening in a sup-portive group through a variety of activi-ties, including story research in a cho-sen genre or area of the world, story-mapping and artwork (no experience necessary!). Next Steps runs on six successive Tuesdays, October 23 to November 27, 7:00–9:30 p.m. in an accessible Toronto Annex location. Seeing More Through Gesture, Lan-guage and Colour Experienced tellers wishing to explore more deeply a partic-ular well-loved,often-told story of their own choosing have the opportunity to sign up for Ruby Sinha’s weekend course. They will discover new life and deeper meaning in their story through movement, painting and new use of language. Ruby, skilled as an East Indian dancer, visual artist and storytell-er, is the ideal person to lead such a course. Seeing More Through Ges-ture, Language and Colour is offered on the October 19-21 weekend, at a studio in Toronto’s Kensington Market. Courses for Beginners: Storytelling Toronto is also offering the basics: be-ginner courses fall and spring, led by Lynda Howes and Joan Bailey, re-

Info: (416) 656-2445 or www.storytellingtoronto.org Next Steps, for people who have taken the beginner course and wish deepen their connection to stories. 6 Tuesdays, October 23-November 27, 7-9:30pm, at a private home in the Annex. Instructor: Ruth Danziger. Fee: $245 ($220 if paid by Oct.9). Seeing More Through Gesture, Lan-guage and Colour: a Course for Expe-rienced Tellers: Participants will do in-tensive work on a single story of their choice using movement, paint and new use of language. Weekend of October 19-21, at a Kensington Market area studio. Instructor: Ruby Sinha. Fee: $345 ($320 if paid by October 4). “Our King Set Forth to Normandy”: Further Adventures in Balladeering, taught by Lorne Brown. October 18, 25, November 1, 8 and 22 , 7-9pm at a pri-vate home. Fee: $200 ($180 if paid by October 4). First Steps Into the Art of Storytelling, weekend of November 16-18, at the Lilli-an H. Smith branch of the Toronto Public Library. Instructor: Lynda Howes. Fee: $257 ($232 if paid by November 1).

STORYTELLERS TORONTIO

COURSES spectively; and Celia Lottridge’s Master Class. Also on the schedule are Lorne Brown’s course for experienced ballad-eers; Fashion and Fairytales exploration with Michelle Tocher, and 2013’s Sum-mer Intensive, led by Marylyn Peringer, in the church and gardens of St. George the Martyr in downtown Toronto. We have both good and bad news. Bad first: we’ve had to raise our fees (for the first time in ten years!). But the good news is that signers-up can avoid the hike in price if they register by the Early Bird deadline. Further information can be obtained by consulting Pippin’s list-ings and Storytelling Toronto’s website: www.storytellingtoronto.org

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