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Festival of Indigenous Storytellers (India)
Darjeeling, West Bengal
7-10 Dec, 2012
"Storytelling Workshop
Inspired by Tribal Storytelling"
The 3rd Annual Festival of
Indigenous Storytellers (India), is a project of Acoustic Traditional. The Festival Schedule is here. For additional info, please call 0 89723
13930, or e-mail <acoustic.traditional@gmail.com>.
The Storytelling Workshop
described below would occur as part of the Festival. To communicate with Dr. Eric Miller about
this Storytelling Workshop, please call 0 98403 94282, or e-mail
<eric@storytellinginstitute.org>.
Concept
Note for the Storytelling Workshop
This Storytelling Workshop is designed for adults. Teenagers could also
participate.
In this Workshop, we approach and perform storytelling in ways inspired by
Tribal storytelling.
The Workshop would be activity-based. Participants would spend much of
the time telling and discussing stories. Various storytelling
techniques would be presented, and Participants would have opportunities to
practice these techniques. Numerous aspects of storytelling -- as they
may occur in conversation, performance, and ritual -- would be demonstrated
and discussed.
Storytelling as it relates to tribal cultures is the focus of the Workshop.
Thus there is an emphasis on storytelling in relation to the earth, other
aspects of nature (including vegetation and animals), and ancestors; and on
ways in which storytelling can illustrate how all things are connected to
each other.
This Storytelling Workshop works especially with the theme of forests.
We look at stories about: being lost in a forest, escaping into a forest,
meeting someone in a forest, not wanting to leave a forest, etc. We
consider the forest as a dangerous place; and also as a place of rejuvenation
and healing. Story elements we utilise include: leaves, branches, bark,
and roots of trees; tree-houses built on upper branches of trees; the smell
of earth; insects in the earth and on trees; animals and plants of the
forest.
This Storytelling
Workshop might also touch upon the themes of shamanism, shape-shifting, and
journeys in spirit-realms.
In this Workshop, we beckon the stories to come out of the trees and out of
our hearts, and be seen and heard.
Participants are encouraged to prepare for the Workshop by thinking about
their favorite folk tales and episodes of epics -- stories that they heard as
children, and that they enjoy telling to children. They might especially
think about the ways these stories may relate to animals and other aspects of
nature.
This Storytelling Workshop would be led by Dr. Eric Miller, a co-founder and
the director of the World Storytelling Institute, an NGO registered in
Chennai.
Dr. Eric was raised in NYC, was trained as a Folklorist at the University of
Pennsylvania (in Philadelphia), and has settled in Chennai. He has
studied storytelling with professional storytellers in NYC, and with Kani
(Kanikaran) Tribal people of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu.
Dr. Eric conducts various other Storytelling Workshops, such as those
designed for teachers,
parents, screenplay writers, tour guides, and people in the
business world.
World Storytelling Institute
Dr. Eric's
personal website
.
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