Kentucky public librarians-Earn up to 1.05 CRP toward certification for the entire conference.
(see CRP credits in schedule below. Sign in required at each session.)
Teachers-please check with your district to learn what professional development credit may be earned through your conference participation.
All Events are included with your Conference Registration
Fees are: Postmarked by October 25: $15 KSA Member, $20 Non-Member
Registered after October 25, or at the door: $35
To attend Evening Storytelling Events: Pay at door each night: $5.00 per person, $10 per family
Two years ago, our family was introduced to the world of storytelling. Our previous experience with storytelling had been library programs for preschoolers and episodes of Barney the Dinosaur that included storytellers. But at the urging of our librarian, a storyteller herself, we followed her into a world of creative professionals that were doing everything that we were doing at home, out in PUBLIC! And, I might add, getting paid. Astounding.
Many people are not sure exactly what storytelling is, and it's much easier to demonstrate than to explain. At the recent Smoky Mountain Storytelling Festival, one of the featured storytellers was Andy Offutt Irwin. He tells hilarious stories, plays the guitar and sings and he taught a few of the workshops for the youth. About storytelling, he says "I look at storytelling as a form of theater. I’m on stage doing what I’ve done for years, but now it’s just me. Now I can do all the theater I want without having to worry about sets, costumes, lighting and working with a big cast. It’s very economic, storytelling."
The stories that are told by Andy and other tellers can often be side-splittingly funny and the question is asked how storytelling differs from stand-up comedy. In answer to that question the wikipedia article about Andy Irwin, says this: "Prior to deciding to become a full time storyteller, Irwin worked as a stand-up comedian "for a few minutes". During this time, Irwin won the Farber Invitational stand-up competition at the Punchline comedy club in Atlanta. However, Irwin came to see that the days of storytelling comedians, like Bill Cosby, had passed. Irwin also realized that his style of performance was at odds with the main venue available to comedians today; comedy clubs. (Irwin joking refers to comedy clubs as "evil, smelly places".) Some of his stories are an hour in length and Irwin notes, "[t]here was a time when comedians could do that but they can’t anymore because the clubs give them three minutes, and they are timing the laughs per minute." Using storytelling as a theatrical form allows Irwin to create more fully drawn characters and to explore darker subject matters as well. "Although I like to think of my storytelling as funny, I can have these serious moments. I’m not depending on the audience to laugh the whole time. . . I hope there’s content with the form."
Besides Andy Irwin, at the storytelling festival, we were treated to very informative and thought provoking stories from naturalist Doug Elliot and lots of fun mountain music from him and his son Todd. Storyteller Donald Davis shared hilarious stories from his childhood. Elisabeth Rose hosted the event and told stories as well, of folk and legends. And all of the youth brought stories ranging from fantasy to real life to fractured fairy tales.
Storytelling goes on around us everyday, and if you look, you will see opportunities to attend events where storytellers and listeners gather. On the sidebar of my blog, there are several links for some great storytellers and on each of their sites, there are things to see and places to go. If you are a young person and are interested in storytelling competitions, check out your state storytelling association. In Kentucky, we have the Kentucky Storytelling Association or KSA. There is a link on the side bar as well as a link to the National Youth Storytelling Showcase. If you go to that site, there will be info about participating in the 2010 showcase...the dates, the rules, what to expect. Check it out. If you are interested in any of these things and you don't know how to get started, e-mail me at thecuriouscottage@yahoo.com for more information.
"Not far from our school there was a railroad tunnel that a man could climb up into, and you could lay down between the rafters in the bottom of the mountain, stare down at the tracks and watch the trains come underneath you. Now I say a man could do this, ‘cuz no woman would ever be stupid enough to." - Bill Lepp, The Seventh Second
Storytellers and storytelling is new to me. It's not new to me so much as a way to communicate, as I come from a long line of storytellers on both sides of my family. My mom is from a small town in western Kentucky and my dad is from Dublin, Ireland. It's as natural as breathing. We craft self-contained stories for everything from childbirth to car wrecks to the shenanigans our kids get into. We enjoy reading and watching movies and talking...and talking and talking. What I didn't realize is that storytelling is an entire creative genre where the tellers are not only dedicated to their craft, but also to other tellers like family and to the desire to see this genre have a future in the next generation.
We were introduced to this genre by a librarian at our local library that we all call Miss Pockets. She was the children's programmer for several years and she read stories and told them to children of various ages. She also encouraged innovative programming and one of the programs she worked hard to get off the ground was storytelling. She encouraged those she knew who used the library programs to prepare a story to tell and to compete in the Kentucky Youth Storytelling Showcase. Our daughter Emilee has always enjoyed reading stories and writing stories and she has had the opportunity to "tell" stories through the local community theater. So, she wrote a short story that she could use to enter the showcase and in the end, was awarded the Kentucky Torchbearer for the high school division last fall. It was unexpected and exciting.
After her win, we were told that her story was being submitted to the National Youth Storytelling Showcase committee for consideration at the national level. 20 kids from age 6 to 17 would be chosen, and only 4 of those at the high school level...and she was chosen. What a thrill for us and especially for her! Buck Creacy, the president of the Kentucky Storytelling Association, came to see A Christmas Carol where Emilee was performing as the narrator at our community theater and he announced to the audience after the program that she would be going to Pigeon Forge, TN for the Showcase. Buck has been such and encouragement to her and is a great storyteller himself. (See my storytelling links)
Emilee & Buck at Glema Mahr Center in Madisonville, KY
As I've mentioned here, we went to TN to attend the Showcase and it was 4 days of a great education in storytelling. There were many workshops and concerts featuring professional storytellers. Emilee had the opportunity to participate in interactive workshops with the other kids and to receive instruction, criticism and encouragement from: Bill Lepp, Carmen Deedy, Willy Claflin, Kim Weitcamp, Bill Harley and others. At the concerts, we heard hilarious stories, musical stories, scary stories and inspiring stories. I want to do it all over again...and we may get the chance if Emilee's audition for Jonesboro, TN means she gets invited to the National Storytelling Festival. If not and even so, we now have a storyteller on our hands and we're looking forward to whatever opportunities come her way.
Please visit my storytelling links, and find out what storytelling is all about!
