STORYTELLING – THE SPOKEN WORD – THEATER
“Since we gathered in the dark caves long 'go we are a people have been retelling stories to one another. The Irish known to be the greatest at the art of conjuring a tale into life while bringing the listener into another time and world often leaving them there as they slip out the back door. As the old Irish Proverb says, Bíonn siúlach scéalach, 'Travellers have tales to tell' and the Irish have always been great wanderers of this world. There are two types of Storyteller, the Scéalaí and the Seanchaí the former who recounts the urban legends and the latter the teller of international traveling folktales and Sagas, which by all accounts in the days before television and the modern attention span, would go on for three days and three nights.
Nowadays, though, all Irish storytellers are known as the Seanchaí!
Who's telling tales now?” - Máirtín de Cogáin
STORYTELLERS
Tracy Chipman - I am a Storyteller - Lover of beginnings middles & ends, a Listener, Story Carrier, Myth Maker, Aural Alchemist, Truth Teller...Folklorist, a Dancer with the Ebb & Flow and most at home in the Wild. This dance with storytelling began with a great love for the Celtic Myths, and from there my travels took me throughout Ireland, Scotland & Wales. In the 1995 research with The Hebridean Folklore Project brought me to Scotland’s Outer Hebrides islands. There my apprenticeship with the oral tradition bearers of the Island began. Those connections with the good folk, the evocative landscape and the rich stories of the islands still sing in my heart and are told to those who listen in.
A native of Wisconsin, I have been listening, wondering, gathering, spinning & telling tales around the US and beyond since 1995. My repertoire is a wild and wide open global collection of folklore, wonder-wisdom tales, myth, Celtic lore, personal narrative and original material. I share the magic of storytelling in schools, libraries, cafes, at festivals, retirement communities, in living rooms (& house concerts), bookstores and in the deep woods around cozy fires. Everyone loves a good story well told! Tracy Chipman, Menomonie, WI though travels far and wide, (715) 292-1513, tlchipman@gmail.com www.listentoatale.com and www.facebook.com/pages/Listen-to-a-Tale-Storyteller-Tracy-Chipman/479944548733645
Máirtín de Cógáin
With two All-Ireland's under his belt and generations of storytelling handed down to him, Máirtín gets no more joy out of life than the telling of stories. In his unique style, Máirtín gives examples of some of the different genres of Irish Storytelling which he studied in University, with an emphasis in folklore, including The Ulster Cycle, The Fenian Cycle, 12th century writings, the International traveling folktale and the urban legend.
Máirtín is also available for workshops. If there is an opportunity to give multiple workshops, Máirtín demonstrates deeper and teaches the idea of the Mask of the Storytelling, which is a crucial element in delivery, and also imparts how to make a story your own, along with discussions about important nuances in storytelling such presentation and cadence of speech. Solo Performer - Storytelling, songs in English & Irish, Bodhrán playing Mairtin lives in California, travels to Minnesota often and is willing to travel all around (310) 447-4839 mairtinmusic@gmail.com www.MairtinMusic.com www.Facebook.com/MdCProject
John Dingley John Dingley and the Biggest Pack of Lies You Ever Heard John's one-man show is a unique collection of embellished personal experiences, humorous insights and a Welsh song or two by the Dingley-est Welshman of them all. John is available for all sorts of storytelling in all sorts of settings. John Dingley, Twin Cities, MN - (651) 280-7232, John.Digley@gmail.com
Northstar Storytelling League is a Minnesota nonprofit serving storytellers and listeners throughout the state. Northstar sponsors regular storytelling events in the Twin Cities, including an annual all-day Tellabration! festival at Open Book in Minneapolis. Events are open to the public, and Northstar membership is open to all.
http://northstarstorytelling.org/
IRISH THEATER
Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre (formerly the Celtic Collaborative) is a cultural and performing arts troupe dedicated to animating the drama, poetry, fiction, music, and dance of the Celtic world, both past and present.
Since 2011, the Celtic Collaborative has produced six original collage shows: Nobel on Yer Bicycle: Ireland's Nobel Laureates (2011); Scenes from the 1916 Easter Rising (2011/2012); Scenes from a Celtic Album (2012); Scenes from Dracula's Celtic Album (2013), Monsters and Demons: Scenes from Dracula’s Celtic Album, and 1,000 Years of Irish Poetry (March 2014), and The Harp and the Loon: Literary Bridges Between Ireland and Minnesota (November 2014).
Performances have been held at venues including: the Celtic Junction, the Black Dog, Brits Pub, the Irish Fair of Minnesota, the Rochester Irish Festival, and the historic Cass Gilbert designed Dayton Avenue Presbyterian Church.
Follow the Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre on Facebook: www.facebook.com/outofthemisttheatre/
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The Phoenix Theater – the resident acting group at the Celtic Junction Arts Center. Innovative Irish theater presented in an energetic and playful way. Patrick.ODonnell@normandale.edu
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