International Storytelling Festival

StoryFest: International Storytelling Festival Singapore showcases the best of storytelling from Singapore and around the world.
Dates: Fri – Sun, 2 – 4 June 2017
Venue: The Arts House, Singapore

Presented by The Storytelling Centre Limited and The Arts House, the festival features a variety of performances including family and adult audience shows, workshops and local commissions – a Young Storytellers Mentorship Project Graduation Showcase and Stories for Change showcasing key storytelling and spoken word organisations.  2017 will mark our first edition.

It may be worth while for schools to contact the organisers to see if there are opportunities to get visiting storytellers to come to their schools.

STORYTELLER: Cassandra Wye - Asia tour in Nov/Dec

Stories in Motion

With Cassandra Wye

On tour Singapore November – December 2012

A firm favourite with Singapore audiences, Cassandra has been invited back to Asia once again!

Stories in Motion: her unique blend of circus, theatre and dance, with an exuberant, expressive and energy-filled approach to storytelling, has taken Cassandra around the globe from Barbados to Borneo, from the depths of the rainforest to the roof of the world.

She has worked across the educational spectrum, from universities to nurseries, creating intimate shows for profoundly disabled children and on the streets with audiences of 1000’s. She has inspired adults and children to tell stories around the world and directed performances of young people for local, national and international festivals.

She offers international schools a wide range of performances, workshops and staff training that can be tailored to suit either the needs of your national curriculum or to International Baccalaureate system. 

Her performances celebrate the finest of folktales from around the world and are often bespoke creations to suit the school – to meet a range of themes from human rights to healthy eating

Her workshops introduce children and young people to a kinaesthetic approach to story-telling, story-making, creative writing and collaborative performance.

Her staff training inspires educators to use storytelling as a catalyst for learning across the curriculum from maths to music –making, from kindergarten to senior school, both indoors and outside the classroom

What people have said about her work:

“Being her usual exuberant self, Cassandra delivered her stories with much gusto and enthralled her young audience who simply loved the gestures and repetition used in her storytelling sessions” Director British Council Penang

“Her impish enthusiasm is infectious” South China Morning Post Hong Kong 


 “An incredible skill in engaging the children's imagination, teaching with a tremendous sense of fun” Festival Coordinator Barbados

For more information, reviews and photos of her work – please visit her website: www.storiesinmotion.co.uk or email cassandrawye@yahoo.co.uk  or ring her via skype.

   

Kirsty Murray visiting Singapore May 7-31

Kirsty Murray will be in Singapore from May 7-31. 

For information about Kirsty, please use the link below:

http://www.nexusarts.com.au/view_performer_details.php?id=99

If interested, contact Sue Russell at Nexus arts.

Stories for Moral Education- 2 new books by Roger Jenkins

---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: Roger Jenkins <rogerstoryteller@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Feb 6, 2012 at 4:12 PM
Subject: Stories for Moral Education- 2 new books by Roger Jenkins
To: Roger Jenkins <bellyboy@singnet.com.sg>

Dear Friends

As more emphasis is placed on values teaching, there is a need for practical, age-appropriate resources to make this difficult, abstract subject more accessible. I am pleased to present two new books, STORIES FOR MORAL EDUCATION (Juniors – for ages 7 – 12; Teens for ages 13+)  Both books offer more than 70 stories demonstrating key values in action. Please view the sample pages in the attached PDFs for the Juniors or Teens book - I recommend you use the view 2-page spread option when viewing the pdf.  Despite the title and their purpose, these stories make for a good read in themselves!

Why use stories? People listen to stories because they want to (stories are enjoyable!) and without feeling they are being preached at.  Stories help people to connect and, whereas 'Thou shalt not' is soon forgotten, 'Once upon a time' lasts forever.  Drawing on my experience as a professional storyteller, I have selected stories from around the world, and particularly Asia, for their narrative power and wisdom.  As they come from many different cultures, the stories also reflect the idea that these values are universal.

This is a book of values, not vices. While it is possible to teach by showing the negative (eg the perils of lying) I prefer to show the benefits of doing right (the rewards of honesty.) I believe in celebrating people making good choices and I am sure your school culture actively focuses on catching pupils doing good, rather than chasing those who make poor choices.

Values covered include: Honesty, Integrity, Teamwork, Sharing, Kindness, Respect, Family, Good Study Habits, Courage, Friendship, Speaking Right

The stories are short (less than 500 words) so they should only take 3 -5 minutes to tell. For the 50+ principal tales in each book (only two are duplicated), I provide practical tips to confident, lively telling, either in the classroom or an assembly. Additional short anecdotes and jokes (32 in Juniors, 42 in Teens) make each book a rich resource.  The book comes with a CD-ROM containing supporting visual materials (such as PowerPoints and PDFs) to enhance the telling of some stories, as well as videos of me telling stories too.

Specifications:

Size                   A5 

Pages               176, glossy art paper, 1 colour text

Cover                Paperback, 4 colours

Printed by         DigiLab Pte Ltd

Schools familiar with my Stellar-related resources, THE DRAMA TOOLKIT, will know that my work is tailored to the Singapore context and reflects more than 30 years work as a teacher/performer/writer here in Singapore.

Place your order by 29^th February and save $25%  Pay a flat rate of $30 per book (inclusive of postage) 
Delivery guaranteed by 9^h March 2012.

And as I'm self-publishing, if you want to customise a special edition for your school, cluster or organisation, you won't have to purchase hundreds and hundreds!

I look forward to hearing from you. An order form is attached.

Roger Jenkins
9176-1499
www.rogerjenkins.com.sg


Download Junior Book sample
Download Teen Book sample
Download Order Form

Jeeva Raghunath, storyteller, visiting in February

A very happy New year from the team at Tulika Books, Singapore!

We are emailing to inform you about Jeeva Raghunath's visit to Singapore next month.

Jeeva Raghunath is an acclaimed author and storyteller who has written a number of Tulika Books.

A primary teacher by training, Jeeva started telling stories from the age of 5 as she grew up amidst excellent storytellers. Thanks to Tulika Publishers who gave her the responsibility of translating an activity-based storybook into Tamil, she was introduced to the public as a storyteller. She has now grown to be a resource person, representing India at many international conferences.

Jeeva's lively and dramatic storytelling performances keep all ages spell-bound. She believes that she is the best prop for her storytelling though she occasionally uses hand-puppets, paper and sign language. Stories include a wide range of Indian and Asian folk-tales, European tales, family stories, true life incidents, cross-culture stories and modern stories. She is now an author of children's books and has translated 17 books and written two original stories two Tamil (regional Indian language) letters book. She has performed for many private television channels including Vasantham. Her original writings include Malli (bilingual), Gadagada Gudugudu (Tamil), Kasakasa (Tamil).

Her voice can be heard on many audio recordings as well including "Stories from India" with Roger Jenkins- drama plus arts- Singapore. Jeeva's professional experience has taken her all over the globe, including Toronto, Cayman Islands, Toronto, Singapore, Malaysia. She is a founder member of the World Storytelling Institute, Chennai.

Jeeva will be in Singapore in February 2012. She can do readings from any of the Tulika titles. She is also available for workshops to train teachers in improving children's language skills through story telling. Her storytelling rates are SG$200 for a half- hour session and SG$500 for a teachers' workshop.

Catch a glimpse of Jeeva's storytelling:

Please let me know if we can explore this. We would be happy to set up a stall at your school for the sale of Tulika Books during the storytelling as well.
best regards
Jyoti Ramesh
tulikasg@gmail.com
----------------------------------------------
TULIKA BOOKS SINGAPORE
Jyoti Ramesh & Deepika Gopalan
Tel: 65- 8201 4757/ 9069 9070

Storyteller and author Diane Wolkstein available September 2012

My name is Mark Roberts, and I represent world-renowned storyteller and author, Diane Wolkstein. Diane will be in Singapore in September 2012 as a featured teller for the Singapore International Storytelling Festival.

Diane's website is www.dianewolkstein.com. The story she would most like to tell is Monkey King: Journey to the West, which is what she will be performing at the Singapore Storytelling Festival. For more information on this epic see www.monkeykingepic.com. That said, Diane would be excited to perform any of her other storytelling programs, as well. For her full repertoire see http://dianewolkstein.com/about/storyteller/#repertoire.

Diane's programs are best suitable for middle and high schools.

Thank you very much for showing an interest in Diane's work and helping us get the word out about her visit to Singapore next year. Diane is looking forward to it! :)

For booking contact:

Mark Roberts
Wolkstein Publicity
Office: 212.929.6871
wolkstein.publicity@gmail.com
www.dianewolkstein.com
www.monkeykingepic.com

With best wishes and kind regards,
Mark

Diane's retelling of the Monkey King

Further information about Diane's work:

"Diane Wolkstein is one of the greatest storytellers in the Western world."
— Joseph Campbell, author and mythologist

"Diane Wolkstein's Monkey King takes us on a spectacular journey! It's funny, human and transcendent."

— Barbra Abrash, Director, Center for Media, Culture & History, New York University

"You brought my culture back to me in a fuller way. I thought Journey to the West was just a story. Now I can appreciate that it has many profound truths."
— Buddhist Nun, Fo Guang University

Diane Wolkstein is one of the world's most acclaimed master storytellers and mythologists. She is the award-winning author of 23 award-winning books of folklore and has performed to sold-out crowds on six continents. Whether recounting folk or fairy tales to rapt children and families at parks, libraries, and schools, or wisdom stories and epics at some of the world's most prestigious museums, festivals, and performance venues, Diane enters and speaks from the heart of each story she tells. Her unwavering belief in story and its potential to transform people's lives have led her to occupy the forefront of the modern storytelling movement since 1967, with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently naming June 22nd of 2007 "Diane Wolkstein Day" in honor of her 40 years of storytelling for the people of New York City.

Journey to the West, China's most famous epic, is a fun and adventurous tale of the impetuous Monkey King who sets out in search of immortality and learns such extraordinary skills that no one: not the Sun, the Moon, nor the 28 Constellations, can defeat him. After Buddha places a five hundred year "pause" on him, Monkey King agrees to accompany and protect the pure-hearted, determined Tang Priest on his 10,000 mile pilgrimage from China to India. Together they struggle not only with demons, ogres and lusty women, but also with one another, as they seek to bring back the sacred Buddhist scriptures to relieve the suffering of their people.

Wolkstein's chi gong inspired movements and Greene's extraordinary soundscape of 25 instruments offers the audience the most vivid reality. "They blend story and music perfectly," writes Emilee Whitehurst, director of the Rothko Chapel, "masterly conveying the humor and wisdom of one of the world's great epics. It's a rare experience of the best of ritual theatre." For more info: www.monkeykingepic.com

Diane's passion and commitment to Journey to the West have led her on numerous research trips and tours across China, Taiwan, India, Australia, and North America. Recent highlights include performances of Journey to the West at the American Museum of Natural History, Australia's National Galleries in Canberra and Melbourne, the Asia Society in New York, the Fulbright Foundation in Taipei, the Rothko Chapel in Texas, New York University, the National Taipei University, America's National Storytelling Festival, the Clearwater Festival, as well as countless libraries and schools throughout the world.

2012 bookings already include the Singapore International Storytelling Festival in September, San Francisco's Asian Art Museum in May, and a tour of Southeast Asia in February and March. A book publication of Wolkstein's re-telling of Journey to the West in English is also in the works.

The performance of Monkey King requires minimal logistics: An auditorium with a stage or a suitable gallery-style floor space, a basic speaker system, two microphones, lighting, a handful of stage props (a rug, a stool, a gong) is all that is needed to bring this inspiring journey to life. The telling is aimed at adults, but can also be tailored to suit a family audience with children, if the occasion calls for it.

In addition to Journey to the West, her storytelling repertoire includes folk and fairy tales, wisdom stories, and epics. Her participatory Haitian stories from her classic book The Magic Orange Tree are always in high demand for family and adult programs, as are her programs of European, Australian, Hasidic, and Biblical stories. To view her current storytelling and workshops programs visit www.dianewolkstein.com/about/storyteller/#repertoire

What truly sets Diane apart are her spellbinding performing gifts, as well as the depth of knowledge and research she devotes to the stories she tells. Not only does she tell her signature Haitian stories with infectious tenderness and bravado, she spent seven years visiting the Haitian countryside and recording the stories of the people. When she tells Aboriginal stories it is because she has visited their land, met the Australian Aboriginal storytellers, and has been granted special permission to tell these stories. Not only has Wolkstein told the great Sumerian epic of Inanna at the British Museum and The United Nations, she spent years working with one of the world's most pre-eminent archeologists, Samuel Noah Kramer, to create the definitive telling of this great story.

Diane is also considered one of the premier teachers of storytelling. Having pioneered New York City's Department of Parks & Recreation year-round storytelling program, Diane initiated America's first graduate storytelling program at Bank St. College and went on to teach mythology at New York University for eighteen years. She is a founding member of both America's National Storytelling Conference and New York City's Storytelling Center, and has held hundreds of workshops on the art of storytelling throughout her long career. For more information on her workshops visit www.dianewolkstein.com/about/workshops

Please find attached an information sheet about Journey to the West, including a story summary, review quotes, bio, recent performance highlights, and website links, as well as a recent press photo and article on Monkey King.

For more information visit these online resources:

Diane's website: www.dianewolkstein.com
Repertoire: http://www.dianewolkstein.com/about/storyteller/#repertoire
Workshops: http://dianewolkstein.com/about/workshops/
About Journey to the West: www.monkeykingepic.com
PBS Special: http://www.learner.org/courses/worldlit/journey-to-the-west/watch/