Julie Pasqual

NOTES FROM THE FIELD

2012-01-01T21:00:00.001-05:00

HIGHLIGHTS OF 2011
(KEEP SCROLLING DOWN FOR UPCOMING PUBLIC PERFORMANCES)
As I sat and watched all the programs that wrapped up the year that was this week – documenting everything from the best movies, to the craziest youtube videos – I began to think about what my storytelling highlights of 2011 would be. One of the beauties of storytelling is that each performance is unique, while I could tell stories I’ve told before, or perform in a venue that I’ve been in before – there will always be something different each telling, something special, that sets that time apart from any other. So, with that in mind, it’s awfully hard to pinpoint a “top ten” list. But, here, in no particular order or some moments from my 2011 storytelling year.
1)Telling at the Homer Alaska Library - In September I was able to not only see my 49th state (Hawaii, you’re next!), but also to tell at the lovely Homer Library. We were on vacation, but I walked up to the librarian, and asked if I could tell a story or two, and she said yes! It was amazing!
2)Developing long, intense stories for the young men and women at the Morristown Youth Detention Center - This work has helped me to grow in more ways than I can describe. It has caused me to leave behind the part of myself that always goes for the laugh –that sometimes will sacrifice substance for “faster and funnier” – and has developed in me the courage to tell stories where things don’t get wrapped up in a neat, little bow, and that really cause a person to think. In addition, meeting these young people reminded me that all an incarcerated person is, is someone who has made a mistake.
3)Doing a residency in an English as a second language class - Two times a month I get the privilege, to tell stories for middle schoolers who are doing something so very, very hard – starting over in a country and culture that is not their own, entering the tween and teen years, which are difficult enough, while trying to learn a English – which, let’s face it folks, does not make a lot of sense a lot of the time. How I love the way the room goes silent as I tell, and how delighted they are when the story is from their native land.
4)Being my sister’s Christmas gift for the fourth straight year - A few years ago, I realized, of all the classrooms I had been in, one that I hadn’t set foot in was my sister’s, who has taught first grade FOREVER. So now, each year, I give my storytelling to her class as a present. While it is always fun, and has brought us closer, this year was particularly fun because I got there early, and got to see her teach. My sister was magical – warm and organized, firm and funny – and it was AWESOME to see her doing what she loves, and is oh, so good at.
5)Visiting the Newark Libraries to tell stories about saving money and recycling to PRE-SCHOOLERS – Yes, you read that right – financially responsible stories for pre-schoolers. As part of a grant from the bank PNC, I had the opportunity to begin to introduce concepts like saving, sharing, and recycling to the most ADORABLE pre-schoolers in Newark. I loved the challenge of finding age appropriate tales that would fill this mission, and then being able to entertain, and educate eighty or so four year olds. The way they would chant “Recycle!!!!” at me, still makes me smile.

Those are only some of the moments that made me thankful that storytelling is a part of my life, and as I begin 2012, I can only guess where my personal story will lead next. Happy New Year!!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
Ah – it’s school time, again – and many of my performances are in classrooms, assemblies, and residencies, so I can’t invite the general public to those. But, here are the ones you can come to.

February 2012
2/1: Barnegut Branch, NJ 4PM
2/1: Little Egg Branch, NJ 6:30PM
2/2: Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ 10:15, 11:15, 12:15
2/4: Manchester Branch, NJ 2PM
2/9: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:30 PM
2/11: Bernards Township Library, NJ 11AM
2/14: North Plainfield Library, NJ 3:30PM
2/15: Stafford Branch, NJ 4PM
2/15: Toms River, NJ 4PM
2/21: Garden City Public Library, NY 11AM, 2PM
2/28:East Orange Library, 6:30PM
2/29: West Orange Library, NJ 7PM

June 2012:
STORYTELLING TOUR IN ARGENTINA WITH DREAM ON PRODUCTIONS!!!!!!!!
So…where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ - mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well (more info on Devotion Yoga below)And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-12-12T11:15:00.000-05:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
Ah – it’s school time, again – and many of my performances are in classrooms, assemblies, and residencies, so I can’t invite the general public to those. But, here are the ones you can come to

December 2011:
12/10: Scandinavian House, NYC 11AM
12/17: Kwanzaa Festival, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark, NJ TBA

February 2012
2/1: Barnegut Branch, NJ 4PM
2/1: Little Egg Branch, NJ 6:30PM
2/2: Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ 10:15, 11:15, 12:15
2/4: Manchester Branch, NJ 2PM
2/9: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:30 PM
2/11: Bernards Township Library, NJ 11AM
2/14: North Plainfield Library, NJ 3:30PM
2/15: Stafford Branch, NJ 4PM
2/15: Toms River, NJ 4PM
2/21: Garden City Public Library, NY 11AM, 2PM
2/29: West Orange Library, NJ 7PM

June 2012:
STORYTELLING TOUR IN ARGENTINA WITH DREAM ON PRODUCTIONS!!!!!!!!

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ - mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well (more info on Devotion Yoga below)And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

NOTES FROM THE FIELD: I SEE STORYTELLERS!!

2011-11-13T09:31:00.000-05:00

There was a movie, I guess about ten years ago – the name is escaping me – but it had Bruce Willis in it, and the kid who famously said, “I see dead people.” Remember that one? Well, the rest of the line was “And they don’t know their dead.” Recently, I have often had the urge to say, “I see storytellers, and they don’t know that they are!”
In a yoga workshop I was in, the teacher held the whole class in the palm of his hand by telling the stories behind some of the yoga poses and characters from Hindu and Indian mythology that loom large in yogic philosophy. In an English as a Second Language classroom I was about to enter, I watched the instructor bring to life the tale the students were struggling to read in this bizarre language known as English. And as I was getting my haircut, my hairdresser, Ruthie, in her divine use of Spanglish was telling one of the other customers a fascinating tale of the local parking situation on her block. Storytellers all – and they don’t know that they are.
People say all the time, “Everyone can sing!”, frankly, I REALLY disagree with that notion, but I will say that everyone, EVERYONE can tell a story. Some folks might not use dramatic gesture, or change voices, or ever be the person you would pay money to see – but all human beings do have the ability, and I would say, the NEED to tell their tales. When we arrive home at the end of the day, and recount the daily events – is that not storytelling? When we speak of our lives with friends – citing times from our past and upbringing - is that not storytelling? Storytelling is more about connecting than anything else, that’s why there is no fourth wall, that’s why each time I tell a story it is different, because I am communicating with that particular audience, at that particular time. We humans crave that connection, we want to be seen, we want to be heard, and storytelling in all it’s forms does that. Storytelling, now that I think about it, may be one of the few things that EVERYONE does – it is a real commonality amongst people wherever they come from. Sounds a little grandiose, but also, I think, quite true.
So, check it out, have your ears open, and maybe you, too, will hear people telling their stories, sometimes in the most unlikely places, like between downward facing dogs, or clipping off split ends. And maybe you’ll find the urge to say, with eyes wide, and your voice in a whisper, like that kid in that movie (what the heck is the name of it??) “I see storytellers!”

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-11-06T16:07:00.000-05:00

Ah – it’s school time, again – and many of my performances are in classrooms, assemblies, and residencies, so I can’t invite the general public to those. But, here are the ones you can come to…

November 2011:
11/2: Roseville Branch, Newark, NJ 4PM
11/30: Springfield Branch, Newark, NJ 3:45PM

December 2011:
12/10: Scandinavian House, NYC 11AM
12/17: Kwanzaa Festival, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark, NJ TBA

February 2012
2/2: Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ 10:15, 11:15, 12:15
2/4: Elizabeth Public Library, Main Branch, NJ 11AM
2/4: Elizabeth Public Library, La Corte Branch, NJ 2PM
2/9: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:30 PM
2/14: North Plainfield Library, NJ 3:30PM
2/29: West Orange Library, NJ 7PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ - mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well (more info on Devotion Yoga below)And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-09-21T21:50:00.004-04:00

Ah – it’s school time, again – and many of my performances are in classrooms, assemblies, and residencies, so I can’t invite the general public to those. But, here are the ones you can come to…

November 2011:
11/2: Roseville Branch, Newark, NJ 4PM
11/30: Springfield Branch, Newark, NJ 3:45PM

December 2011:
12/10: Scandinavian House, NYC 11AM
12/17: Kwanzaa Festival, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark, NJ TBA

February 2012
2/2: Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ 10:15, 11:15, 12:15
2/9: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:30 PM
2/14: North Plainfield Library, NJ 3:30PM
2/29: West Orange Library, NJ 7PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

KEEP READING FOR THE LASTEST “NOTES FROM THE FIELD”!!!

NOTES FROM THE FIELD: MY 49TH STATE

2011-09-10T22:23:00.000-04:00

If you were to read any bio I have written about myself for say, the last ten to twelve years, you will see over and over again these words - “Julie has performed in 48 of the 50 states.” Thanks to a myriad of musical theatre and children theatre tours, I spent years crisscrossing the continental United States. I played Puck in Nevada, a flying monkey in Texas, and second chorus girl from the right up and down the eastern seaboard, and back and forth between coasts in vans, buses, and – oh luxuries of luxuries - an airplane or two. Many of the states are just a blur – the hotel, the dressing room, and whatever mode of transportation carried me there. Sometimes now, when I’m on a trip as a tourist somewhere, I’ll get an odd sense of déjà vu, and know I’ve stood right where I was standing before, but this time, I’m actually seeing it.
And here’s the thing about this country of ours – it is BIG, and while it is varied, there are parts of it that are very much the same. Malls – check, everywhere from the Dakotas to Connecticut. All you can eat salad bars – oh yeah, the Southern states always have that “banana surprise” pudding, but I’ve saddled up to fill my plate at ones in Milwaukee and Iowa, too. And hotels, there is something so comforting that a Days Inn in Florida, looks EXACTLY like a Days Inn in Illinois when you stay in a different city every night. For one thing, I could always find my way to the bathroom in the middle of the night without turning on the lights because it’s always in the same place!!! Yeah, I LOVE travel, and getting paid to do it, AND perform is GOLDEN!!
When I started to do more storytelling and clowning, I wanted to stay home a bit more, and not always have a suitcase packed, so my work got a bit more centered on NY, NJ, CT, PA – trips where I actually see the place I’m in, and get a chance to soak in the uniqueness of it. My clown work has taken me international, to ports as varied as Paris, China, and Haiti. And, when my husband introduced me to this concept of vacation travel, I was able to revisit places like New England, San Francisco, parts of Canada, and Chicago, that I sort of sped by on my way backstage – as well as London, Amsterdam, and Rome, which were AWESOME to spend time in, and not worry about what time I had to perform something for someone somewhere!!
But still, there was something bugging me, as I got my passport stamped - I had been stuck on ALMOST having not only seen, but performed in all 50 states for years. I mean, I had been to CHINA, and not those last two states – Alaska and Hawaii. So this year, I’m not even sure why, a need in me grew to begin to polish off this great big country of ours.
As we walked through the NY Times Travel Show this year (if you love to travel it is a MUST for you, it just makes you drool – and this year I was – can you believe, paid to perform there!!) my eyes kept landing on the brochures picturing Alaska’s majestic beauty, “Julie,” it seemed to shout. “It’s time!!!” And so, even though my hubby and I are always the PLAN OUR VACATION AT THE LAST POSSIBLE MOMENT people, a plan began to form in our minds. Of course, the Travel Show was in February, and we normally don’t take vacation until the end of August/beginning of September, so there was plenty of time for us to forget this whole call to the great wilderness and all that, and to realize that when certain people say, “Oh, the prices have REALLY gone down!” they don’t necessarily mean so low that we two independent contractor people in the arts can afford it easily. But – and have I said this enough in this blog of mine – I have a MARVELOUS husband, and while I can barely sit down long enough to type this out, he loves to look at a computer screen and do research.
Through websites, and chat rooms he scoured, looking for ways to get us – without having to sell our kidneys - to Alaska. Cruises were out – we aren’t “cruisey” people anyway, we are far too independent – and after starting the summer in Haiti, I think the sight of all those buffets would have made me physically ill – so flying became our goal. Anchorage seemed to offer itself up to us, with flights that were reasonable (if you had three changes of planes – more stops means more states technically, so Jimmy can keep catching up to me – to look on the bright side of things!!) and left from Newark Airport, just 20 minutes or so from our apartment. We managed to get a flight/hotel package, where we’d be staying in one of my old tour favorites The Days Inn, in downtown Anchorage, and after we booked a car (note – the most expensive part of this whole thing, if this leaves you thinking of it), we plotted a trip that would take us to gorgeous Mt. McKinley, the State Fair, a glacier boat ride, and hours of doing what the two of us LOVE to do: amble, explore, and see where the road leads us.
With the trip booked, there was still one last detail for me – would I be satisfied in just seeing my 49th state, or did I HAVE to also perform there?? PLEASE – that’s a no brainer, from the minute we bought those plane tickets all I could think was, “I wonder how cold I’ll be?” and “Where am I going to either dance, clown, or tell a story for ANYONE, so I can say I’d performed in 49 states??”
In our travel “bible” “Alaska for Dummies” (that series has gotten us all through Europe – they are a prize I tell you, especially Paris for Dummies!!) I spied a town called Homer. It appeared to be the artsy town of that region, and when a friend that had lived in Juneau for eight years told me of the arts scene there, I knew that would be the place where I would find someplace to perform.
When we landed in Alaska – and this is what I LOVE about vacations – “performer Julie” fell away, and “just Julie” bloomed. As much as I ADORE storytelling, clowning, and teaching yoga, sometimes I need to just be, and landing in this place of majestic (cheesy word sometimes, but it so fits) so different from my urban lifestyle, allowed my busy little overly active mind to chill. So, suddenly performing in Alaska fell off my “to-do list” for our eight days there. On day number three, as we took a bus tour of Denali Park (big note: DO THIS BEFORE YOU DIE EVERYONE, SERIOUSLY, IT’S AMAZING!!!) I did turn to the people behind us, whom we had been chatting with, and tell them a short tale, explaining my quest, and though it was just one story, because I was in vacation mode, I put a big old mental check next to the state of Alaska, and considered my performance done.
But…and this I suppose is the good news. I love what I do, I love to create and adapt stories, I love to clown, I love to dance, and do yoga, so even when there is breathtaking scenery, and Jimmy and I are having a blast, and getting more sleep than we EVER do, around day six, the need to perform began to grow. It started to yell after a long bike ride, when my body whispered “Movement – we like, and bikes are always where we work on STORIES!!” But, by then, we had plans – we were still going to artsy Homer, but only for a few hours, before taking a day outing to see Glaciers – I wasn’t going to make Jimmy wait around while I tried to find a place to perform when we had such little time to explore this great town that had everything from sea, to mountains, to a yurt village!! I contented myself with the “bus ride” story, and went on.
But, did I mention that Alaskan weather is unpredictable?? And that it had rained part of everyday we were there? And that more storms were predicted?? Well, they were, and one of them was so large all glacier boats were cancelled. What to do? Homer had so much we hadn’t seen, and we had driven past a library – a big, new one – and where there are libraries, there are children who just might listen to a story. As we entered the library, my eyes fell on a flyer that said there would be a 10AM story hour THE NEXT DAY – I knew this was my opportunity. Jimmy walked in with me, but wandered over to look at a computer -this might have been even too weird for him, while I marched up to the information desk, and began. “I know this is going to sound strange, but…” I voiced my request to be allowed to tell just one story at the story hour the next day, and offered my business card with my website on it to the VERY friendly woman sitting there, hoping to convince her I wasn’t a lunatic. She said she had no authority to make those types of decisions, and directed me to another VERY friendly woman who said she didn’t have the authority, either. Finally, I met Anne Dixon, the VERY friendly library director – who, like the other two women, treated me with more respect and seriousness than I really think I deserved – I mean, what I was asking was pretty odd, after all. Anne listened, and said the call would really be up to the woman who was running the story hour, and that I could come back tomorrow at 9:45AM, and ask her. Encouraged, I left.
With success so close, I had time to drive myself crazy with another detail – WHAT WOULD I WEAR?? You see, I had come for vacation, in a place where our beloved Dummies book told me to dress in layers, jeans, and all weather gear. And so I had. My nice stretchy, but dressy looking black “storytelling pants” (look back at the notes from the field entries, and you’ll see my essay on these pants), that allow me to be my full uber physical self, but still look presentable, where in my drawer back in New Jersey, as were any of the nice tops I like to wear when performing. Worse yet, because we had thought we were going back to Anchorage to go on the glacier tour, the better of my two pair of jeans was in that Days Inn, and not the little local hotel in Homer where we were going to spend this extra night. A quick trip to the local boutique proved too expensive for “emergency pants”, and the consignment shop and Salvation Army thrift store had nothing in my size. Oh well, one shabbily dressed storyteller, who can’t lift her legs as high as usual because she might rip her old, tired jeans, I would have to be. Maybe they would think it was a New York City thing!!
That next morning, with hope in my heart, we arrived at the library. They didn’t open until 10AM, but Anne promised she would be on the lookout for me – and she was, as we got out of our car, she smiled, and waved at us, and we entered the building. Standing there, looking like the teacher and librarian EVERYBODY would want was Jolee. “Is this who I have to ask?” I said. And before Anne could respond, Jolee smiled, and said, ‘Come on in. I LOVE storytellers!!”
To say Jolee, Anne, the staff, the children and their families at the Homer Library were gracious, kind, and a wonderful audience would be a GREAT BIG UNDERSTATEMENT!!! They treated this rather ragamuffin looking storyteller like an honored guest, and I had a ball performing three stories for the attentive crowd that appeared. Looking back on it, I can’t think of any place else that I would rather have performed in the entire 49th state. So, to Anne, Jolee, and all you wonderful folks at the Homer Library that day – THANK YOU!! You helped put the cherry on my really wonderful FIRST trip to Alaska.
And, to anybody else who’s reading this – do you know any good libraries in Hawaii? My quest for my 50th state begins today!!!!

NOTES FROM THE FIELD: DREAMS

2011-08-17T21:41:00.000-04:00

There is a folktale that goes like this: two friends set off to “find their fortunes”. One friend has a fantastical dream, and in the morning, even though his friend advises against it, the one young man sets off to follow it. He continues to pursue the vision that came to him in his sleep, and in the end he finds happiness and fortune. After the two friends have parted, the second man has a dream as well, but thinking it improbable, he never pursues it, and in time finds himself in poverty, and alone. Chance brings the two men back together, and when the poorer of the two sees his successful friend he asks how he came by his good fortune.
“Well,” his former companion replies, “Do you remember how I had that dream, long ago? I just followed it. No matter what happened, I kept moving towards it, and it led me to a happier life than I ever imagined!”
“That’s interesting,” said the poor man. “After you left, I too, had a dream.”
“And”, said his friend. “What happened? Where did the dream lead you?”
“Nowhere! I mean, you don’t expect me to follow my dreams, do you?”
Every time I think about that story, I wince, because I see far too many people, who, like that second man, ignore the callings of their hearts, muffle their dreams, and land up, as Thoreau wrote, living lives of “sad desperation”. This month, I have had at least two people ask me about how it is that I have seemed to - to coin that old Joseph Campbell chestnut, “followed my bliss”. While I wish I had answers for these folks, I don’t. All I know is that I didn’t seem to have a choice. Despite what my parents, society, and good plain common sense practically ached at times, for me to do, I just seem incapable of doing anything but what the voices in my heart whisper to me.
There have been times, frankly, when I wished I didn’t feel the need to be – well, ME!! I can’t tell you how much I sometimes want to say to that excited little monkey in my head that yelps life directions at me “NO!!!!” But, I just can’t seem to do it. Because as illogical as those ideas are, they always feel so darn RIGHT, and like a moth to the flame I find myself plunging in – AND LANDING RIGHT WHERE I SHOULD BE. And, here’s the thing, the more I’ve ended up in a place that’s right for me, the more I know my little monkey is worth listening to – even if no one in the entire universe would agree.
In the epic story, “The Ramayana”, Rama is said to be the best of men, because no matter what, he always adheres to the principal known as dharma – the belief that we are all born with our own individual talents, and traits, and it is our duty to express those qualities, no matter what. It’s our obligation to basically be ourselves, and life our lives, and not a version of anybody else’s. When I read Rama’s adventures last month, all I could say was, “Right on!!”
So, I guess what I’m saying is, if there’s anybody out there, saying, “SSH!” to their dreams – STOP IT, NOW!!! Life is too short, and too full of different types of lives, and possibilities, for anyone to discount their imaginings, no matter how crazy they may be. I mean come on – I’m a professional storyteller/clown/yoga teacher – how much odder does it get??!! 
So, to close, here’s a little Jewish fable, about the great leader of his people Abraham. “When I get to heaven, and God asks me – why I was not Moses, I know what I will tell him,” Abraham told a group once. “ I will tell him, it is because, I am not Moses. But, if he asks me why was I not Abraham, what can I say?”
GO BE YOU!!!

UPCOMING PUBLIC PERFORMANCES

2011-08-17T21:26:00.000-04:00

What you see below are my public performances, no school, camp, or private events are listed – hope you’ll stop by one of these public performances

August 2011:
8/6: Hans Christian Anderson Statue, Central Park, NYC 11AM
8/22: South River Public Library, NJ 7PM
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM
8/26: Coney Island Branch, Brooklyn, NY 2PM
8/30-9/8 I’ll be on vacation in ALASKA!! I’ve been stuck on having been to 48 of the 50 states for a long time, so now I’ll have seen 49!!!

September 2011:
Not storytelling but check out: 9/10: “Namast-Play!” a two hour workshop where I’ll be teaching yoga, acro-yoga, and circus skills. Proceeds go to the Big Apple Circus Clown Care, and Clowns Without Borders (see more about these GREAT organizations below!) Devotion Yoga Downtown Studio, Hoboken, NJ 2PM

December 2011:
12/10: Scandinavian House, NYC 11AM

February 2012
2/2: Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ 10:15, 11:15, 12:15
2/2: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:30 PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-08-02T22:08:00.000-04:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
What you see below are my public performances, no school, camp, or private events are listed – hope you’ll stop by one of these public performances!!

June 2011
6/7: Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM
6/10-6/22 I’ll be in Haiti with Clowns Without Borders – visit their site: clownswithoutborders.org I was there in October – look for my blog entry called “The Happy Man’s Shirt” to read about it!
6/24: Montclair Public Library, NJ 11AM, 1PM
6/29:Neptune Library, NJ 3:30PM

July 2011
7/12: Arlington Branch, Brooklyn Public Library NY 2PM
7/13: Hawthorne Library, NJ 2PM
7/15: Ridgefield Library, NJ 3:30PM
7/18: River Vale Library, NJ 2:30PM
7/28: Monmouth Beach Library, NJ 7PM

August 2011:
8/6: Hans Christian Anderson Statue, Central Park, NYC 11AM
8/22: South River Public Library, NJ 7PM
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM
8/26: Coney Island Branch, Brooklyn, NY 2PM

February 2012
2/2: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:30 PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

NOTES FROM THE FIELD: BEING GRATEFUL

2011-06-29T22:03:00.001-04:00

The other day, not more than 72 hours after I had arrived home from my second trip to Haiti in less than a year, someone at a party I was at, smiled, and asked, “So, how was your trip?” I took a breath, and willed away all the words, thoughts, and emotions that question brings forth in me, and said, what was the only appropriate thing I could say, given the festive setting of that moment, “It was intense”, I replied, and looked away.
How can I begin to adequately describe the heart wrenching poverty that is Haiti? How does one explain that children don’t have clothes or food, and that I watched families bathe themselves in the same water they threw garbage in, and drank from - because that’s the only thing they can do? One of the hardest things about coming back from Haiti is figuring out what you can say to whom. Because this type of poverty is inconceivable in this land of plenty, people can’t seem to wrap their minds around it – I know I couldn’t until I had seen it firsthand. Since returning, I have held my tongue after discovering that even those closest to me, couldn’t bear to hear the stories I had brought back from the Western Hemisphere’s poorest land – I can’t blame them, I generally tell tales that bring smiles, not looks of shock and horror.
So, what, besides, “It was intense,” will I tell people when they ask me about my travels? The English folktale “The Old Woman in the Vinegar Bottle” gives me a clue. It concerns a woman who lives unhappily inside of a vinegar bottle, until one day a fairy happens along. The fairy tells the woman all she must do is turn around three times, and she will get the house she deserves. The woman does so, and finds herself in a cottage by the sea. So busy is the woman with gazing at the water, that she forgets to say, “Thank you,” to the fairy. Not noticing this, the fairy flies off. After some time the fairy returns, and finds the woman is not happy with the cottage, and wants a bigger house. Again, the fairy helps her, and again, the woman forgets to give thanks. More time passes, and the fairy once again visits the woman, who now asks for a castle. Once again, the fairy gives her what she wants, and receives no gratitude. Months go by, and one day the fairy returns to find the woman angrily yelling at her, “I want my own planet!!!!” The fairy asks the woman to turn around three times as she did every other time, and this time, the woman lands right back inside of the vinegar bottle.
Just like that old woman, I forget to be grateful - for electricity, plumbing, a roof over my head, more food than I really need to eat. But being in Haiti is a powerful reminder of all I, and every other American, no matter how poor, has. It’s soooooooooooooooo easy to take things for granted, so easy to feel that the modern conveniences I enjoy are a right, and not a privilege that not everyone has access to. So what will I say when people ask, “So, how was Haiti?” I will say, “It makes me grateful for every single thing in my life.”

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-06-29T21:17:00.001-04:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
What you see below are my public performances, no school, camp, or private events are listed – hope you’ll stop by one of these public performances!!

June 2011
6/7: Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM
6/10-6/22 I’ll be in Haiti with Clowns Without Borders – visit their site: clownswithoutborders.org I was there in October – look for my blog entry called “The Happy Man’s Shirt” to read about it! New blog entry about this last trip is coming!!
6/24: Montclair Public Library, NJ 11AM, 1PM
6/29:Neptune Library, NJ 3:30PM

July 2011
7/12: Arlington Branch, Brooklyn Public Library NY 2PM
7/13: Hawthorne Library, NJ 2PM
7/15: Ridgefield Library, NJ 3:30PM
7/18: River Vale Library, NJ 2:30PM
7/28: Monmouth Beach Library, NJ 7PM

August 2011:
8/22: South River Public Library, NJ 7PM
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM
8/26: Coney Island Branch, Brooklyn, NY 2PM

February 2012
2/2: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:30 PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday, Tuesday, and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-06-04T18:34:00.000-04:00

I’m involved in three different school residencies right now, so most of my work is for them at the moment. Below are some places the general public can come and see me!!

June 2011
6/7: Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM
6/10-6/22 I’ll be in Haiti with Clowns Without Borders – visit their site: clownswithoutborders.org I was there in October – look for my blog entry called “The Happy Man’s Shirt” to read about it!
6/24: Montclair Public Library, NJ 11AM, 1PM
6/29:Neptune Library, NJ 3:30PM

July 2011
7/12: Arlington Branch, Brooklyn Public Library NY 2PM
7/13: Hawthorne Library, NJ 2PM
7/15: Ridgefield Library, NJ 3:30PM
7/28: Monmouth Beach Library, NJ 7PM

August 2011:
8/22: South River Public Library, NJ 7PM
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM
8/26: Coney Island Branch, Brooklyn, NY 2PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

NOTES FROM THE FIELD: THE GOSSIP WOMAN

2011-06-04T18:30:00.003-04:00

A few years ago, in a class I was taking on personal essay writing, we were asked to put our own individual spin on something that was common, everyday, and average. A topic that would be completely relatable to your grandparents in Florida, your hipster friend in Brooklyn, and even your eye rolling teenage niece. As I recall there was an offering about food (good choice – who doesn’t eat, right?), stress (another goodie – to use one of my favorite words, good old stress is ubiquitous – love that word!!), and of course MONEY (no need to say anything about that one). After toying around with issues I thought worthy of CNN, or at least the local news, I decided to go with something as (here comes my favorite word again) UBIQUITOUS, it seems, as air - GOSSIP!!
Yup, I went with good old “behind your back, digging in your business, best shared in hushed tones” gossip, because, seriously, who amongst us has NEVER, looked right, then left, leaned into a friend, co-worker, or relative, and whispered some version of this line, “You know what I heard about….” I don’t know for sure, but I suspect that even Mother Theresa shared a juicy tidbit or two while working in the slums of Calcutta. Gossip seems to be one of those things that we humans just can’t seem to get away from, and enough of. Look at the internet, TV, newspapers, and, the grand dame of all readable gossip – the magazines by the check-out line in the supermarket. I know more about some housewives from NJ after an average grocery shopping, than I do about my own sister!!
And then there’s the face to face exchange of information – the checking to make sure the subject of your conversation is not within earshot, the little chuckle and eye brow raise, just before you divulge the secret you have about your gossipee (you, of course being the gossiper). Often these things snowball, one little morsel of gossip leads to another, until your conversation is glutted with “Somebody told me that..” and “Can you believe about…” And while chatting away about that friend, co-worker, politician or movie star, might feel fun and festive, and a perfectly acceptable thing to do in excess with friends – I’ve been finding more and more that, just as eating too many jelly beans on Easter leaves me feeling sick, and somehow shameful – so does gossiping. These days I find myself walking away from a gossip fest wanting to take a shower, and brush my teeth – I feel at once stupid for having gotten into that type of conversation, guilty for any- thing I said to fuel the fire, and bewildered about how – despite my best intentions I gravitated towards the gossip, the way a two year old is transfixed by soap bubbles.
I read somewhere that a good way to break the gossip habit was to not talk about someone who wasn’t in front of you – for ill or good, for a week - do I even have to tell you how impossible that was??? So, this spring, when I was asked to tell “character education stories” – meaning stories that taught some kind of social behavioral lesson to a group of middle schoolers – I knew exactly what my topic would be. Perhaps, my nobler mind thought – I could help these kids jump off the gossip train before they were as addicted to it as I was. And so I told them the story “Feathers”.
There is a woman who is the town gossip, and even though her neighbors are on to her loose lipped ways, they listen anyway. One day a stranger comes to town, and the woman (I know there’s a TV show called Gossip Girl, so we’ll call her Gossip Woman), begins to spread lies that he is a criminal of some kind. After being confronted by some of the town people, and disproving the lies told about him, the stranger demands justice, and goes before the village judge. Once in the courtroom, the Gossip Woman grows frightened, and falls to her knees assuring the judge and all who will listen that she will never gossip again, that in fact, she takes all her words back. As punishment, the judge instructs the Gossip Woman, to take a feather pillow outdoors, shake all the feathers out, and then put them back in. Once outside, the woman finds the task difficult, as the wind blows the feathers in every direction. After hours of trying to capture all the feathers, the woman, defeated, returns to the judge and says, “Your Honor, I couldn’t do it. No matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get those feathers back in the pillow.” The judge replies, “And it is the same thing with words. Once spoken, no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, you can never really get them back.”
These days, when I feel the urge to get my gossip on – I try, I repeat TRY, to remember this tale. And, every once in a while the image of those feathers blowing in the air pops into my mind, and I manage to keep my mouth shut!!

Notes From the Field: A Storytelling

2011-05-04T19:48:00.002-04:00

You know how there are rights of passages in a person’s life – the first two wheeler in grammar school, the learner’s permit in high school, the freshman “15” in college. Well, I’ve always sort of had my own time table. I never went to college – and THANK GOD never did that whole gaining fifteen pounds thing either, but I did learn to ride a bike and drive a car - IN MY THIRTIES!! I didn’t stop growing until I was twenty (thank God, because that allowed me to actually reach five feet!), didn’t need a bra until I was just about eighteen, and I am still waiting to have that feeling that a secure job with benefits might actually be a smart move (at this point, I don’t think that one’s ever coming, thank goodness!!) A guy who did my astrological chart years ago called it right when he said I was sort of a late bloomer, and that I had my own time table in life.
So as I reached a sort of interesting milestone this year, I wonder, am I, as always behind the curve. For it has taken me twelve years of storytelling to really fall in love with the long, serious story. The tale that doesn’t necessarily end happily or quickly; one that doesn’t come with a tidy morale ,or hilarious punch line, a tale that is as mysterious, andas full of the unknown as life. Not to put myself down, or anything, but I have always known that short, fast, and funny is my “sweet spot” – outlandish characters, cartoon like emoting, weird physicality is what I do best. Sure, I’ve told weighty tales – but they were always short, and to the point, with the underlying message highlighted in a bright day glow yellow.
But something happened to me this year. Maybe it’s the yoga, maybe it’s the fact that I’ve been doing more telling for ages eleven and up, instead of my usual kindergarten through third graders set, or maybe as a storyteller, I’m maturing. While I will boast of the ways I have never played it safe in the way I run my life, my choice of tales has always been more towards the “crowd pleaser”. If my stories where movies, they would be the action adventure film featuring two stars everyone loves, not the gritty, low budget art house film that gets great reviews and plays in exactly two theatres. They would be the ones you’re happy to see come on TV when you’re sick, so you could curl up with your tea and tissues, and know exactly what was going to happen from the moment the opening credits ran. Fun, even REALLY good, and at times the PREFECT thing – but there are other movies out there, just as there are other stories out there.
So, this school term, as I went into youth detention centers, middle schools, inner city after school programs, my “bag tricks” wasn’t going to get the job done, and so I went to the always amazing source of folktales, and I read. I read stories that I had never given the time of day to before. Stories where things happened that weren’t readily explained, journeys where the good guy didn’t necessarily win, or if he did, he did it by not being such a “good guy” after all. Stories that not only embraced the grey areas of life, but showed them for what they are – REAL LIFE. For that is one thing I think I have been learning more or less on time, that life is sooooooooooooooooo much more complex, and rich than we tend to think it is. It is full of what my friend B.B. calls, “Big time grown up S***!” . And as I am more and more okay with that as a person, I am more and more okay with that as a storyteller.
Now, let me just say this IN NO WAY means I am giving up short, fast, funny – because at my core I know that will always be how I roll. But, I am open now to tell the tales that maybe ask questions that don’t particularly have an answer.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
I’m involved in three different school residencies right now, so most of my work is for them at the moment. Below are some places the general public can come and see me!!

May 2011:
5/1 Ridgewood Public Library, NJ 2PM

June 2011
6/7: Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM
6/10-6/22 I’ll be in Haiti with Clowns Without Borders – visit their site: clownswithoutborders.org I was there in October – look for my blog entry called “The Happy Man’s Shirt” to read about it!
6/24: Montclair Public Library, NJ 11AM, 1PM
6/29:Neptune Library, NJ 3:30PM

July 2011
7/12: Arlington Branch, Brooklyn Public Library NY 2PM
7/15: Ridgefield Library, NJ 3:30PM

August 2011:
8/22: South River Public Library, NJ 7PM
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-04-11T09:33:00.001-04:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
I’m involved in three different school residencies right now, so most of my work is for them at the moment. Below are some places the general public can come and see me!!

April 2011:
4/9: Elevate Yoga (stories for adults, then yoga class), Hazlet, NJ 2PM
4/13: Keansburg Library, NJ 3:30PM

May 2011:
5/1 Ridgewood Public Library, NJ 2PM

June 2011
6/7: Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM
6/24: Montclair Public Library, NJ 11AM, 1PM

August 2011:
8/22: South River Public Library, NJ 7PM
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program:
is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, an
award winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leading
not-for-profit performing arts institution.
Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots of
improvisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring the
joy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalized
children one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As Meredith
Vieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:
From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody of
medical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,
we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, their
parents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness by
reintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.
A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants from
individuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
• Classroom residencies in schools
• Professional development opportunities for teachers
• Programs in community organizations
• Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

Notes from the Field: Story Triathlon

2011-04-11T09:31:00.001-04:00

Any one that knows me, even a little bit, knows that I am what is called a “gym rat”. I like to work out – HARD, and A LOT. Once a fellow on the treadmill next to me asked what I was training for. I smiled, and said, “My life!” I don’t think he understood, but If he had followed me around this past week, he would have seen me compete in a triathlon of a very untraditional nature.
FIRST LEG: THE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM My first storytelling performance of the week was at an inner city after school program. I’ve been to this school eight times now, seeing different classes, telling stories, and if time permits, doing some follow-up activities. Because it is after school, the population changes according to whose care givers can pick them up when, so, while in theory, I was supposed to have the same group all the time, that really doesn’t happen. The students are 4th-6th graders, tired from a long day of school, wanting (as I know I surely would) to be released from the rules and regulations, or at least the physical bonds of the school building. This, plus some high school helpers that set my tween audiences hormones into maximum drive every time they enter the room, are my particular challenges in this residency, but, because I have “trained” I have a fighting chance against tween-age indifference. I reach into bag of story repertoire and bring out “slightly weird, almost scary” tales. While I stay away from TRULY frightening material – mainly because I scare the pants off myself – these creepy tales are the just the thing to grab the attention of this group who are riding the crest of teenagerhood . They sit forward, wondering how scary it’s going to get, wondering if they are the only one in the room that is wondering that. Telling this type of tale, my whole body is tingling, and I move with tension to the soundtrack of “Jaws” that is playing in my imagination.
SECOND LEG: THE JUVENILE DETENTION CENTER This “event” for me tends to take quite a bit of training and preparation. I know that folktales, though ancient are relevant to the here and now, and are rich with symbolism and mystery – but how can I convey that to these young men and women who, because of life circumstances have made a mistake. I have found that the first thing I must do, is exercise my compassion, and see these students as people who are probably victims themselves, coming from a world of few options, and therefore made the only choice they felt they could. When I look at this assignment in that way, I am able to tell with conviction and confidence any folktale I love, because the world of story is so full of imaginative happenings, it can perhaps open their eyes to a world that is bigger than the one they had imagined – a place where there is more options than they have ever dreamed.
THIRD LEG: THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL As I found myself rounding out my week with a four show day at an elementary school, I feel like the marathoner who has the finish line in site, and being past the physical exhaustion, is now high on the endorphins of the intense work-out. All the training becomes well worth it for the look of wonder, joy, and – there is no other word for it – spunk, that is on the faces of my audiences this day. I LOVE THIS AGE GROUP!!! They have an energy level and a sense of play that resonates in every cell of my body – I feel as if I am home. My actual physical training does come, literally, in to play – as I leap, dance, run, and squat – to bring the characters in these tales to life. But, I am not doing all the heavy lifting – for at this age, they are very much driving the tale. Because their faces are so very easy to read, as I see what they respond to, I adapt to give them more of what they love. Four shows fly by in a heartbeat, and my week – which also included clowning two full days in the hospital, and teaching four yoga classes is done.
Now, every week of my life is not like this – in fact one of the things I REALLY love about my life is that it is always different, but just like in stories, you never know what life will hold, so I find it’s best to train, and be ready. I’d write more, but I gotta go to the gym!!!

Notes from the Field: My Heros!!

2011-02-28T10:18:00.000-05:00

To really understand how ironic what I’m about to write is, you have to understand this about me – when I was a kid, I HATED school. Not disliked, not “I’d rather be watching TV” – we are talking full on LOATHING!!! It wasn’t that I was incapable of doing well, it wasn’t that I was bullied, and didn’t have friends, it wasn’t even that I didn’t want to learn – no, it was just that I was the proverbial square peg being cramped into that round hole. I am, and have always been, a person that NEEDS to dance to their own drummer – schedules, too much structure, make me buck like a horse in the wild west. School, with all it’s rules, and requirements felt like a prison to me, so much so that as a child on Sunday nights, I would stay up as long as I could, hoping to extend my weekend that much longer. But always sleep would take me, and Monday, dreaded back to school Monday, always arrived.
So, in my mind, if school was a prison, than the teachers, were the guards. Like an inmate who knows who holds the power, and the keys to their cells, I eyed them with wariness. I was obedient, and dependable – always afraid of their power of me, over what my parents thought of me, over my life. It was only when I got to high school, and had a teacher, who really SAW me, encouraged me, and in a way adopted me, that I began to see that teachers were actual humans. Mr. Andros, my teacher/mentor/second dad showed me that teachers are heroes who day after day sometimes literally go into battle in their classrooms. They work for little money, and even less respect, it seems, but they have the most important jobs in the world. And now, years after many a school day spend eyeing educators with fear and suspicion, I find myself totally OVERJOYED to offer them whatever I can in my role as a storyteller.
In folktales there are often magical helpers that appear along the way as the hero or heroine makes their way on their journey. Often times they’ll give the hero something that, on the surface at least, looks to be simple, of little relevance to the task at hand. But time and time again in these stories, it is that little object that enables the hero to succeed. I like to think of the tales I tell like little presents, like Jack’s magical beans, that once planted in the minds of a teacher, might just help them in their heroic work of educating our future. I try with each visit to a classroom, not just to introduce the wonderful world of stories to the students, but also to their teachers, knowing I don’t even know a quarter of what they know, but hoping, beyond hope that I have served the story well enough so that it’s wisdom, and timelessness, can be seen by the classroom teacher, and, if they want to, use it in a lesson plan, or a discussion.
Oddly enough, given my history with teachers, it is that aspect that often gives me the most joy in my work with Storytelling Arts. I get to repay all those people, those heroes, who watched me looking at them like they were monsters, but taught me anyway. Who saw my gaze of distrust and fear, and kept offering all they had –day after day. Sr. Ann Robin, Mrs. Franklin, Mr. Manchester – I don’t know where you are today, but believe me - I GET IT NOW!!! I understand what incredible work you do, and while I still live outside, around, and on top of “the box” rather than in it, and too much scheduling still makes my stomach clench – I am trying to repay the debt I owe you, and every teacher whose classroom, my reluctant younger self ever entered! It’s the most I can do, as all you teachers – you hero and heroines go on your daily quests to open the minds of the world.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-02-28T10:16:00.001-05:00

I’m involved in three different school residencies right now, so most of my work is for them at the moment. Below are some places the general public can come and see me!!

March 2011:
3/23: Fairfield Library, NJ 6:30PM
3/27: Franklin Township Library, NJ 1:45PM, 3PM

April 2011:
4/9: Elevate Yoga (stories for adults, then yoga class), Hazlet, NJ 2PM
4/13: Keansburg Library, NJ 3:30PM

May 2011:
5/1 Ridgewood Public Library, NJ 2PM

June 2011
6/7:Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM

August 2011:
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families.(More info on the circus below) Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program: is a community outreach program of the Big Apple Circus, anaward winning presenter of live family entertainment and a leadingnot-for-profit performing arts institution.Using juggling, mime, magic, music, puppetry, storytelling and lots ofimprovisation, we are specially trained “doctors of delight” who bring thejoy and excitement of the one ring circus to the bedsides of hospitalizedchildren one to five days each week, year round, nationwide. As MeredithVieira, our national spokesperson and honorary clown doctor, phrased it:From ringside to bedside! Clown Care makes “clown rounds,” a parody ofmedical rounds where humor is the prescribed treatment. As “clown doctors”,we are professional performers who work one-on-one with the children, theirparents, and hospital staff to ease the stress of serious illness byreintroducing laughter and fun as natural parts of life.A national network of host hospitals, generous contributions and grants fromindividuals, foundations and corporations support Clown Care.
Website: bigapplecircus.org

Storytelling Arts: Here’s the organization I do a lot of storytelling residencies in schools with: They are dedicated to bringing the art of storytelling to underserved populations. Storytelling Arts works with schools and community organizations to bring the benefits of storytelling to a varied audience. Storytelling Arts programs serve to boost literacy and build community through:
Classroom residencies in schools
Professional development opportunities for teachers
Programs in community organizations
Educational services in juvenile detention centers
Website: storytellingarts.net
Devotion Yoga: Devotion Yoga is a community dedicated to creating a safe, peaceful, and non-competitive environment which offers individuals the opportunity to learn the practice of yoga through classes, workshops and related events. We are committed to providing high quality, inspiring, unique, and balanced programming that support our members in living a healthy and fulfilling life.
Website: devotionyoga.com

NOTES FROM THE FIELD

2011-02-08T21:38:00.001-05:00

NOT ACCORDING TO SCHEDULE
I was supposed to have done two storytelling workshops at the Boys and Girls Club by this time. I was supposed to have done three performances at the Grounds for Sculpture by this date. But apparently, I, like everyone else living in the Northeast, has been informed that Mother Nature has other plans for us.
To be perfectly honest, all the snow, and even the ice, makes me smile. I love the way it coats the trees, buildings and cars, making everything look sparkly and magical. Last week, as I sunk knee deep into the freshly fallen snow, I looked up at the archway of “fairy dusted” trees, tugged down my new favorite winter hat, and giggled. When I was a kid, I remember saying that snow was the main difference between children and adults – kids LOVE it, adults HATE it!! I even – and I know how incredibly odd this is going to sound – like to shovel. I do! Maybe it’s my macho “I may be short, but I can kick anybody’s bootie” side – but I dig (pun totally intended!!) pushing aside all that white stuff, like Moses parting the Red Sea. And, of course, the cold weather completely feeds into my OBESSION with winter hats – some people are into the shoe thing, others purses –for me, it’s hats!! With hair that is never more than a quarter of an inch long if that, hats are essential in the cold months, and I embrace that. In fact, if you suspect I keep my hat so short that it makes hat wearing easier, you’d be almost right (the fact that I’m a LMG – low maintenance girl - from the way back, and sweat at the gym , dance class and/or yoga every day are the other reasons) Every year when the Christmas markets go up at Union Square, my husband and I spend one cold afternoon finding me a new funky, outrageous, WARM chapeau (this year’s model is one of those Mohawk ones – LOVE IT!!) So, this year’s weather’s MOSTLY hasn’t made me blue – except that it has disrupted my all important SCHEDULE!!!
You see, I got up at 5:15AM the day after the first snowstorm – okay, blizzard, watched garbage cans flying through the air, and was completely certain I was going to get to where I was supposed to go that day AS I HAD PLANNED, before my husband, practically restrained me from leaving our apartment. And while others were watching the ice form on anything that stood still more than a heart beat from their toasty homes the other day, I was making my way to a gig THAT WAS ON MY CALENDAR, never dreaming it was cancelled – which it was, and they never called me because they assumed I was sane (news flash – not so much!! ) and wouldn’t even venture out. The snow, the ice, the sleet, the hail, the total lack of street parking wasn’t going to stop me, because I HAVE A SCHEDULE!!!! But we all know that quote about what God/Universe does when people make plans…
It’s a lesson that I have a heck of a time coming to grips with – that things DO NOT always go as planned!! I can write it in as many of my little calendars as I like. I can prepare for my performances, get my directions, confirm details with my contacts, but that does not mean things are going to happen the way I have conjured them up in my very creative little mind. In fact they seldom do!! But, a lot of the time, how they turn out, is even better. In one of my favorite stories to tell, Lazy Jack, sets out looking for a job, any job, and he ends of marrying into a very rich family – it wasn’t on his day planner – but it happened. In another story, the Knee High Man doesn’t expect to find self acceptance, but he does. And, in one of my most cherished tales, a woman doesn’t give things to others for a reward, but the gifts of friendship, kindness, and compassion she ends up receiving are as beautiful, as they are unexpected.
So, even though I take ENORMOUS pride in being able to juggle my complex storyteller/clown/yoga teacher schedule – I’ve got to remember that there will be bumps in the road – sometimes figuratively, but sometimes, like this winter – real ones, made of ice and snow.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-02-02T16:12:00.002-05:00

I’m involved in three different school residencies right, so most of my work is for them at the moment. Below are some places the general public can come and see me!!

February 2011:
2/2: Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ 10:15, 11:15, 12:15
2/8: Hillside Library, NJ 4PM
2/21: State Theatre of NJ, New Brunswick 3 shows time:TBA
2/23: Westfield Library, NJ 7PM

March 2011:
3/23: Fairfield Library, Fairfield, NJ 6:30PM
3/27: Franklin Township Library Storytelling Festival, Franklin, NJ Time TBA

April 2011:
4/9: Elevate Yoga, Hazelet, NJ - storytelling and yoga class for adults Time TBA
4/13: Keansburg Library, Keansburg, NJ 3:30PM

June 2011
6/7:Fair Haven Library, NJ 3:15PM

August 2011:
8/23: Oceanic Library, Rumson, NJ 3:30PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2011-01-20T21:31:00.002-05:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school, private performances, or any of my artist in residence work is listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

January 2011:
1/17: Unitarian Society, Ridgewood, NJ 1PM
1/23: South Mountain YMCA, Maplewood, NJ 4PM

February 2011:
2/2: Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ 4PM
2/8: Hillside Library, NJ 4PM
2/21: State Theatre of NJ, New Brunswick 3 shows time:TBA
2/23: Westfield Library, NJ 7PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

A Language Lover is Born

2011-01-20T21:29:00.001-05:00

I saw a young man fall in love with language this month. While that sight would always be a gratifying thing, always make me do my happy dance just a little bit, this was even more remarkable, because this event took place in a small classroom, not in a school, but in a prison.
Over the last year and a half, my work with Storytelling Arts Inc. (an organization dedicated to bringing the power of storytelling to underserved populations) has led me into three Youth Detention Centers. And, each time I speak to people about this work, they are dumbfounded. “Are you nuts??? Aren’t you scared?? Do they listen??” – are some of the questions I hear from concerned and confused friends and family. I smile, because, frankly, I have asked myself the exact same things. So, as much for myself, as for anyone who might be reading this, I’ll answer those very sensible queries.
1) Are you nuts?? - Of course, I am, but that doesn’t have anything to do with this!
2) Aren’t you scared?? – Yes, but not in the way one might think. I’m not scared because I think I will be in any danger. I don’t envision burly men charging across the table trying to “shiv” me. No, I’m scared – well, nervous, actually, that I will not have the goods to reach through to these young people – these kids. Because that is what they are – kids. They are children – even if they would never call themselves that – who have made a bad choice. And who amongst us, has not? They are human, and the one thing I know “for sure” – as Oprah likes to say - is that humans are more alike than different. We all feel emotions, we all, in one way or another seek connection. The art of storytelling is all about connecting with the audience. A tale simply isn’t a tale until it has been told, shared with other human beings. And that, is my worry, that I will not be committed enough, articulate enough, interesting enough to touch these youths. Because folktales have the goods to inspire, teach, and move EVERYONE. With their archetypical characters, intriguing plots, they leave behind them a wake of interesting points to mull over, and to learn from. And, when I see audiences – be they five year olds, or the inmates in the Detention Centers, respond to storytelling, I know it’s not me, it’s the story. All I did was put it out there in a way they could hear. So, that’s my fear, that I won’t find the “way in” with my telling. Because if I can…well, let’s move onto the next question, shall we?
3) Do they listen?? – YES, THEY DO!! I have seen a young man, that I was told was a double murder, follow my every word like his life depended on it. I have seen another young man, whom I thought was asleep; lift his head, and his voice, to defend a character in a story. And, this past month, I saw that young man fall in love with language right before my eyes. He, and his “pod” had been told a wonderful story, by a wonderful storyteller – Paula Davidoff, the day before, and he and two other fellows, stood, in front of their peers to retell it. (AND LET’S JUST STOP AND ACKNOWLEDGE HOW VERY AWESOME THAT ALONE WAS!!!!) While the other two young men were more confident, and outgoing, this fellow – I’ll call J, was shy, stiff, and self conscious. With his hands tightly clasped behind his back, and his eyes lowered, he only spoke when his two companions “threw” him the story. But, then, half way through the story or so – he began to describe a horse as “strong and bold”. As he said those words, he too, became strong and bold. His body came alive, his eyes afire, and anyone could see his relish in saying that combination of words “strong and bold”. The little group then told another tale – this one they invented, and this time J was animated right from the start, interjecting wonderfully fluid language and body gestures throughout the piece. It was like seeing a flower blossom – the entire energy of the room had shifted and changed. One could say it was a moment of victory, because that story, those words “strong and bold”, had reached into J, and touched on something that had lay dormant within him. He had forged a true connection with that tale. And, connection is not only what storytelling is about, but what life is about as well. For to quote a book I just finished reading, “When you practice mindful connection, your life feels meaningful, and so it is.”

My Life as a M.O.

2011-01-20T21:03:00.001-05:00

My life as a M.O.

The words “motivational speaker” jumped off the page at me. I have been called A LOT of things in my life – everything from creative to hyper to short – but never in my whole entire life had I ever been called a “motivational speaker”, and yet, that’s what I was being asked to be in a project I began this month for Storytelling Arts.
In my brain, a “motivational speaker” is someone like Tony Robbins – particularly in that Jack Black movie from a few years ago “Shallow Hal”. Kind of tall, in a dark business suit, sprouting phrases like “Think outside the box!” or “Follow your bliss!” while running power point presentations in large ballrooms. And, while I have trouble even finding the proverbial “box”, and, if becoming a storytelling dancer clown who teaches yoga isn’t following ones bliss, I don’t know what the heck is – I just couldn’t cozy up to the label “motivational speaker” (hereto referred to as M.O.) But, like we outside the box bliss followers sometimes have to do – I had to make it work. Lucky for me, folktales saved my un-Tony Robbins-like rear end!
I don’t know where real M.O.’s get material that will at once teach life lessons, while keeping a crowd interested and hanging on their every word. But, all I had to do was go to my friends and teachers - my folktale anthologies. Within the world of folktales are a great many stories that teach us things we all need to learn. Like the Jewish story “Feathers”, that tells of a woman who, after spreading rumors about everyone is sent before the judge. To teach her a lesson about the dangers of gossiping, he instructs her to take a feather pillow outdoors, shake out all the feathers, and then try to get them back in again. When she finds that the feathers blow away, and that she can’t get them back inside the pillow, the judge informs her that it is the same things for words. Once they leave our lips, we can never get them back again.
It was “Feathers” that I told a group of 5th and 6th graders in my role of M.O., and the “Ooooh, I get it!” that came at the end of the story made me smile. The discussion we had after that story, told me that there was no better entry into this topic than the wisdom of the ancients who had created this gem of a tale. Back then, they didn’t have power points – they had stories. Stories that spoke, and continue to speak in a language we all can understand. Stories that don’t hit us over the head with a point, but rather, offer themselves up so that everyone can discover the lessons wrapped in them on their own.
Whenever I’m asked what I do for a living, I always joke and say, “I’m a storyteller/dancer/clown/yoga instructor/chimney sweep – just kidding about the last one!” But, maybe I’ve got a better, and perhaps truer, punch line, maybe, thanks to my pals, the folktales, I can say I’m a storyteller/dancer/clown/yoga instructor/motivational speaker/chimney sweep – hey, the chimney sweep part is too funny to lose!!

NOTES FROM THE FIELD

2010-12-26T16:35:00.000-05:00

An Inside Job

You know how you get a song stuck in your head? No matter what you do, no matter how hard you try – there it is again, and again, and again, the same tune floating in your head, whistling between your teeth, seeping out under your breath. It would almost be meditative in it’s mantra like quality, if it also wasn’t driving you BATTY!! And, I guess it’s because I am a storyteller, that not only ditties llike “All the Single Ladies” by Beyonce, or the Hawaii Five-O theme song sometimes play in an endless loop in my head, but tales get lodged in my busy little brain as well.
Sometimes the folktales that take over my mind are ones I am working on, sometimes they’re ones I’ve heard another teller perform well, and sometimes, like the one that is presently presenting itself 24/7 in my life, they are ones containing a lesson so immediate, so relevant to my personal experience of the moment, they are my best chance of ever expressing my feelings adequately. And that is why, since returning from the impoverished, devastated, but remarkably joyous country of Haiti, the tale of “The Happy Man’s” shirt is almost always on my mind.
Basically, it goes like this. A king has a young son, who, no matter what his father, or anyone else does is sad. The king gathers together his top advisors, and they tell him that the only way to cure the prince of his depression is to dress him in the shirt of a happy man. The king, thinking this would be a simple cure, goes first to the home of a pious priest, whom radiates happiness and peace. But when the priest jumps at the king’s offer of money and comfort, the king realizes that the priest isn’t TRULY happy – for if he was, he wouldn’t be so quick to want to change his life.
The king journeys to a nearby land, and meets with a sultan, who is known for his joyfulness. “Oh yes, yes!!”, the sultan tells the king. “I am COMPLETLELY content!! I want for nothing, every day is a gift to me, and I would not change one single detail of my life!!” Hearing this, the king’s heart begins to soar – here is the happy man, whose shirt he can use to save his son!! But, just as he is about to ask the sultan for a shirt, the other man leans in and whispers, “There are times, though, where I worry, that all I have will be taken from me, and that fills me with fear.” The King stand to leave, for in this statement of fear, the sultan revealed that he was not totally happy.
For weeks, the king wandered the countryside searching endlessly for one completely happy man – but he found none. Exhausted from his travels, the king was making his way back to his kingdom, when he heard singing – joyous, jubilant singing. The king followed the sound to a grove of trees, where there he saw a man radiating happiness as he danced and sang. “My good man,” said the king. “You seem to be happy – the happiest man I’ve ever seen – are you, dear fellow, as happy as you seem?”
“Happy??? Happy??” the man replied, between fits of giggles. “Why yes sir, I am COMPLETELY content, I am full of joy. Every day is a marvel to me, I have no worries, and I would change places with no man.”
Hearing those words, the king began to dance almost as jubilantly as the man. The two men whirled, and laughed, and sang, until they were breathless. Finally, when the king found his composure, he turned to that happy man, and asked for his shirt.
Again, the man began to laugh uncontrollably. “My shirt?? My shirt??” he said, between gales of laughter.
“Yes, my friend,” said the king. “Your shirt!”
“Oh my,” said the man, smiling broadly. “I’m afraid I cannot do that!”
“But why??”
And it was then, that that happy man, that completely happy man, opened his jacket, and showed the king, that he had no shirt.

The lesson that joy is within us, and that material things cannot give us happiness, is one that is oft spoken, but is sooooooooooooo difficult to live, but whenever I need a reminder that money can’t buy love, peace, happiness or joy – in short, all the really important things in life, I think of the joyous people of Haiti, how they, like the happy man, have little – except that which is most important – joy. I remember their glowing faces, as they chanted, danced, and laughed with us amidst more destruction, poverty, and filth than I could ever possibly describe to you here. I remember how the parent’s lovingly encouraged their children to play, and most of all I remember how joyous I felt – being of service to my fellow human beings. It was a joy that came from deep within me, proving to me, once and for all what the happy man in that old folktale seemed to instinctively know, that joy is an inside job!!!

NOTES FROM THE FIELD

2010-11-24T21:53:00.001-05:00

The Incredible Changing Middle Schooler

I LOVE middle schoolers!!!! The way they really are “in the middle” – not the bouncey kids of the third grade, and not yet the often eye rolling teens. They still have a younger child’s sense of wonder, even while they internally chide themselves for having it. At that age, they can be any size, too. The girls can be either so tiny that their legs are twig like, or fully developed and wearing eye shadow and lip gloss. And the boys seem to range from those whose little arms hang out of their over sized tee shirts, to those who suffer from intense five o’clock shadow. Everything about them is in transition, sometimes with more rises and dips than a roller coaster ride. How do any of us survive that period of our lives???
I have just started a five visit residency with some of these rapidly evolving young people, and what makes them all the more extraordinary is that they are all recent immigrants to this country. Which means – on top of changing bodies, hormones, and sense of self - they also have to learn a different country’s language, culture, and stories. A big job, especially at the time of one’s life when things like pimples, and growth spurts come without warning. But, these kids seem totally up for the challenge.
On my first visit, I spoke of my grandmother to them before telling my folktales. I told of how she was an immigrant to this country, about how she missed her homeland, and how her stories of her upbringing in a foreign place held my siblings and I in a thrall. After I told them a story that I thought “Nanny” – as we called my grandmother might like, I asked if they had a tale from a grandparent, or other relative they could share. I had barely gotten the query out of my mouth when the tiniest of the young men in the room raised his hand – an Asian Harry Potter, with round glasses, and a studious look, Victor proceeded to tell me, in slow, broken, accented English a tale his Chinese mother had told him. Besides him was Katherine – a twelve year old with more sophistication in her pinky than I possess in my entire body. As Victor recounted his tale, I glanced around room, expecting to see the snickers I so often do in a classroom when one student is having a hard time speaking; but instead I saw looks of encouragement, understanding, and, from Katherine, a fierce protectiveness, and an interest in his story. Victor’s courage fueled other students to cast aside their shyness and self confidence, and allowed them to bring to their new country and classroom, a bit of the old one. It opened the door for a cross cultural sharing of stories, and each of these students, whose every fiber is changing millisecond by millisecond, was able to find footing in the one thing that has been around since the beginning of time – stories.

UPCOMING APPEARANCES

2010-11-11T10:04:00.000-05:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

November 2010:
11/23: Fort Lee Library, NJ 3:45PM

December 2010:
12/8: Barnes and Noble, Clifton 11AM
12/11: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ 10AM, 12PM
12/18: New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Kwanzaa Festival, Newark, NJ 1PM

January 2011:
1/17: Unitarian Society, Ridgewood, NJ 1PM

February 2011:
2/8: Hillside Library, NJ time: TBA
2/23: Westfield Library, NJ time:TBA

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2010-10-01T21:20:00.000-04:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

October 2010:
10/17: Madison Library, NJ 2:30PM
10/22: Devotion Yoga, Hoboken, NJ (tales plus yoga class) 7PM
10/23: Eastern Branch, Monmouth Library, Shrewsbury, NJ 11AM
10/23: Howell Branch, Monmouth Library, Howell, NJ 2PM

November 2010:
11/23: Fort Lee Library, NJ 3:45PM

December 2010:
12/11: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ 10AM, 12PM
12/18: New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Kwanzaa Festival, Newark, NJ 2PM

January 2011:
1/17: Unitarian Society, Ridgewood, NJ 1PM

February 2011:
2/8: Hillside Library, NJ time: TBA

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. Or, you could catch her stilt walking at any number of special events. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

NOTES FROM THE FIELD: "THE GIRLS"

2010-08-15T19:08:00.004-04:00

Although I sometimes make fun of myself because of my monkey length arms, the animal I more closely have resembled for most of my life is the "lone wolf". Solitude has never scared me, in fact I have always needed more of it than most people. Often when I tell others this, they are in shock - "YOU??? Why you're so outgoing! So friendly! I don't mean to be rude, Julie, but you're so talkative!" And while all those things are certainly true (good lord, sometimes I swear I can't shut myself up!!!), it has never taken away from the fact that I NEED, and I mean NEED to be alone.
I long ago made peace with this facet of my personality, and have quite happily bowed out of parties, outings, and social doings, to spend some quality time with me, myself, and I. One of the reasons I knew my husband was the man for me is because we could be together so many hours of the day on our first vacation together, and I never once felt the all too familiar "I GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE" suffocation I quite often get when around too many people, for too long a time. But as nourishing as these personal space breaks are, they have come at a price - I don't have a lot of friends. Now before you start saying, "Awwwwww, poor Julie" - I don't mean that to say I'm lonely, and no one emails, calls, or facebooks me (ironically, on facebook, I have more friends than I truely know what to do with). What I mean is that I never had a "pack of friends", I never did roadtrips with, or went out with that group know as "THE GIRLS". In fact that type of thing was as alien to me as people who don't like Diet Peach Snapple (unheard of in my world) or working out (I know these folks exist, but how can they possibly not like to get a good sweat on?????). Even folktales containing tight friendships never registered on own my story radar, and I scoffed at stories like the Haitian tale 'Tipingee" when I heard them told - all that female bonding, come on, I would believe that Rapunzel's hair was real, and not a weave before I would buy that one.
You see, in the tale of Tipingee, a mean stepmother (sorry stepmoms everywhere, I know you get a bum rap in storyland) makes a deal with an old man. If he carries her wood, she (the stepmom) will give him her stepdaughter, Tipingee for a wife. In order to recognize her, the old guy is told what color dress Tipingee will be wearing the next day. But when Tipingee overhears this, she rushes to her group of friends and begs them to all wear the same color dress she is so as to confuse her would be kidnapper. Not only do the girls all dress alike (and we all know how embarrassing it is to come to the party wearing what others are wearing!!!!!!), they also taunt the man, all claiming that they are Tipingee. Confused and overwhelmed, the man gives up and leaves. Typical person's response: OOOOOOH, how sweet!!! Mine: OOOOOOOH, I don't think so!!!!!
But then - and there's always a "but then" moment, isn't there - I went to yoga teacher training school, and met the most amazing, welcoming, fearless women I had ever met in my life. At first, I was like I always am in groups - friendly, but not deep. Flitting around from person to person, never staying very long in a conversation, never revealing too much about myself - bubbly, fun, but pretty surface. But yoga is a funny thing, it works on more levels than any of us can truely understand - sort of the way deep wisdom tales in storytelling do, so that somewhere along the way in that year of weekends with these women, I opened up to them, I let myself be seen, and I realy saw them. We laughed and talked and giggled, but we also shared in a way that I have done with very few people in my life. They became individuals I really wanted in my life, they became "THE GIRLS". So, whereas I turned down my nose at the story of Tipingee before, I am now welcoming it into my repetoire, and I feel as if I can perform it from a place of truth, and a place that knows what a group of friends actually feels like. And each time I perform it, I will dedicate it to those women, who taught me so much about what friendship is!

Upcoming Performances

2010-08-15T19:06:00.001-04:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

August 2010:
8/3: Fairfield Library, Fairfield, NJ 1PM
8/4: Franklin Lakes Library, Franklin Lakes, NJ 7PM
8/10: Franklin Lakes Library, Franklin Lakes, NJ 3PM
8/14: Hans Christian Anderson Statue, Central Park, NYC 11AM
8/21: Hans Christian Anderson Statue, Central Park, NYC 11AM
8/18: Brooklyn Public Library, Crown Heights Branch, NYC 3:30PM

September 2010:
9/10: Devotion Yoga, Hoboken, NJ (tales plus yoga class) 7PM
9/12: New Jersey Storytelling Festival, Hamilton, NJ time TBA
9/15: Maywood Library, Maywood, NJ 11AM
9/18: Afro-American Historical Society Museum, Jersey City, NJ 12PM

October 2010:
10/22: Devotion Yoga, Hoboken, NJ (tales plus yoga class) 7PM
10/23: Eastern Branch, Monmouth Library, Shrewsbury, NJ 11AM
10/23: Howell Branch, Monmouth Library, Howell, NJ 2PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?
She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2010-08-04T16:25:00.000-04:00

SCCI Test Booklet

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

August 2010:

8/3: Fairfield Library, Fairfield, NJ 1PM

8/4: Franklin Lakes Library, Franklin Lakes, NJ 7PM

8/10: Franklin Lakes Library, Franklin Lakes, NJ 3PM

8/14: Hans Christian Anderson Statue, Central Park, NYC 11AM

8/18: Brooklyn Public Library, Crown Heights Branch, NYC 3:30PM

September 2010:

9/12: New Jersey Storytelling Festival, Hamilton, NJ time TBA

9/15: Maywood Library, Maywood, NJ 11AM

9/18: Afro-American Historical Society Museum, Jersey City, NJ 12PM

October 2010:

10/23: Eastern Branch, Monmouth Library, Shrewsbury, NJ 11AM

10/23: Howell Branch, Monmouth Library, Howell, NJ 2PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?

She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday and Friday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2010-04-24T20:00:00.002-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

May 2010:
5/9: Mother’s Day Benefit for Haiti, Scandinavian House, NYC 2PM (I’m one of several tellers)
5/19:Brooklyn Public Library, Macon Branch 4PM

June 2010:
6/21: Westwood Library, NJ 2PM
6/29: Little Egg Harbor Branch, NJ 2PM

August 2010:
8/14: Hans Christian Anderson Statue, Central Park, NYC 11AM

So...where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?

She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. Or she just might be…dancing and doing physical comedy with Ron Hoffman, as “Two Left Feet A Dancing Duo”. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

Notes from the Field XXI

2010-04-24T19:52:00.002-04:00

THE STORY OF A NAME

I love my name – first and last. I like the way it sounds, I like the way it’s not so unusual I was beaten up as a kid, and yet not so common that every second person has it (although, someone already had the email juliepasqual@hotmail.com before I did. Hello, whoever you are!!), and I’m really enamored of the fact that my parents didn’t go with Penelope, which, as family lore had it, is what they were STRONGLY considering. And, because I am a storyteller, I suppose I adore it because both parts of my name, come with a story.

As child number six, I can only imagine how exhausted my parents were by all aspects of parenting a newborn – especially one determined to make her arrival during the Christmas season (what can I say, I just couldn’t miss out on that fir tree smell!!!). So, maybe, that is why they turned to my mother’s mother on advice on what to name me. Nanny, which is what we called her, was Eugenie Julia Menna Mcketney, and while many people have grandmothers that are plump, and bake cookies, I was not one of them. By the time I was born, my grandmother had been a widow for a LONG time, and seemed to enjoy every second of it. She travelled to exotic lands like DISNEY WORLD, had friends that on Christmas day, did not bring gingerbread cookies, but fortune cookies, and had, until late in her eighties, as an ex-boyfriend of mine put it “GREAT legs!!”

Nanny was from that mythical land called “The Islands”, and had the music of the Caribbean in her voice. Her tales of giant bugs , and “black magic” from the tropical land she came from, frankly, freaked me out, and I don’t suppose it’s any coincidence that I have never been to any island that is outside those found in the NYC Metropolitan area. In her sing-song voice, her first name, Eugenie, was pronounced U-Jen-E, a lyric word that sounded like the warm waters from my grandmother’s homeland. But, in regular old American, it was a much harsher sounding word: U-Jean-EE – the moniker of an ancient lady, who wore moth eaten sweaters, with cream corn dribbled on her shirt. So, luckily, wanting to spare me from being a senior citizen well before my time, they went with Nanny’s middle name – dropping the “A” because she hated it. And so, I became Julie.

Now, if this were a folktale, I’d say that at that moment my die was cast, my fate determined, my life’s path laid before me at my feet. For the name Julie means youthful, and considering I grew to be a woman much more in touch with her inner child, than her outer adult, it fits me like the proverbial glove (or mitten – one of those knit stripped ones, with the clasps that connect to your coat sleeve, so you won’t lose them – see, inner child rules even in this!!) You know sometimes you might say that somebody “looks” like their name – “She LOOKS like an Olivia, don’t you think??” Well, I don’t know what anyone sees when they look at me, but I can tell you straight up, that I FEEL like a Julie. Never in a million trillion years would I change my name. (Maybe for a million trillion dollars – because, come on, I’m not stupid!!) Especially in combination with the most fascinating thing about me – my last name!!!

PASQUAL, no E at the end, please – I’m not Italian. No C instead of the Q, I’m not French (or whatever language spells a name that way). You say it PASS – QUALL – second part like the word for a sudden storm, which is what you get from me if you dare to assume I changed my name when I got married. LOVE, ADORE, ADMIRE, and CHERISH my husband, though I sincerely do, I am NOT Mrs. James Whelan. Jimmy being, well, Jimmy, replied, when I said I wasn’t going to change my name, “I never expected you to.” (See why I LOVE, ADORE, and CHERISH!!!) Nope, Julie Pasqual is who I will always be, and here is why – it is COMPLETELY FICTIONAL!!!

Now, what I’m about to tell you is 100% true – though you may think I read it in one of the many folktale anthologies I own. My grandfather on my father’s side, was left, as a baby, on a doorstep in Venezuela!!! REALLY – it’s TRUE!!! He was raised by a Dutch family who’s last name was Hobart, and, as a young man joined the Merchant Marines. One fine day, he jumped ship in New York City, and took the name Vincent Pasqual. Why??? NO ONE KNOWS!!! He married, had my dad, and died well before I was born. The kicker is, my father – the history buff, NEVER asked: why Vincent Pasqual? Why a distinctly Italian name?? Was he walking by an Italian restaurant, and his love of garlic made him want to be from the country shaped like a cool high heel boot? (Which I would totally understand, by the way – a day without garlic, is a day without sunshine, as far as I’m concerned!)

And even more interesting for me – why did he jump ship??? Was he an outlaw on the run?? Was he like Emil De Beque, from the musical “South Pacific”, who fled his homeland for a secluded island after – in his words, “I killed a man. He was a bad man. A bully. Everyone was glad to see him go.” Or, was the lure of NYC too much for young Vincent – or whatever his first name was then (again – Grandfather, I couldn’t agree more – I HEART NYC!!!) Whatever it was that made him, virtually become another person, I’m glad he did. Nothing against Venezuela, or the name Hubert, but being a native New Yorker named Pasqual, suits me to a tee.

I have my father’s easy going nature, and my mother’s energy, but I also have the ever buoyant quality of youth, that I feel was bestowed upon me by the woman who’s tales from “the islands” I still try to live up to in my own storytelling. And from my grandfather, a man I never met, I have a story for the ages, in the form of my last name.

Notes from the Field XX

2010-01-21T20:20:00.001-05:00

Becoming a Grown Up

Pretty much anyone who has ever read a number of folk, and/or fairytales can tell you the same thing – two parent homes are in short supply in storyland. Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Snow White, and many far less known heroes and heroines were missing at least one parent. Scholars write that this loss of a mother or a father in stories represents the coming of age of a child, a new beginning and era for them. A time when the people who had guided them were now gone, leaving them as the leaders, the decision makers, in short, the grown-ups. Once again, the ancients who told, than wrote these timeless tales, had figured out, and expressed, something modern man thinks he (or she) is only now discovering. Namely, to quote I don’t remember who, but somebody who said, “No matter how old a person is, they are not a grown up, until they have lost a parent.”

I began thinking of my parent’s mortality about 12 years ago, when my father had the first of several strokes. Over night, or so it seemed to me, my dad went from hale and healthy, and permanently middle-aged, to sickly, frail, and a senior citizen. My mother, strong, and as full of life force as her mother (who lived into her 90’s) had been, took on an “elderly” look to me as well. But, in my life, since the time I was fourteen, there was another “parent” around, Mr. Gus Dick Andros – ballet teacher extraordinaire. Six weeks younger than my real dad, Mr. A (or Sir to his face, and the Old Man, behind his back)was “that” teacher to me. You know, the one who sees in you, what nobody else guessed was there, the one who believes in you, even before you believe in yourself, the one who’s approval comes to mean so very much to you, that you break your back to do them proud – Mr. A was that to me. In story-speak he was the wise man that the heroine meets at the side of the road while she is wandering lost. It’s he, who puts her on the right path, and gives her a gift that will take her far.

As my ballet teacher at the High School of Performing Arts I saw him five days a week, and hung on his every word and correction. His tricky combinations of steps fired up my brain, and taught me that I could pick up steps faster than most anyone else around me. I knew I wasn’t the best dancer in the room, not even close, but Mr. A rewarded my love of dance and performing, as well as my hard work, and discipline, and told stories of a dance world that was broader than just the classical ballet island I was obsessed by. He opened my eyes to what being a professional performer was really all about, and encouraged me to take the leap, and go for it.

All through my high school years, I studied with him during school hours, and weekends and evenings, too. And, after graduation, that pattern continued, if I wasn’t off performing, or in a rehearsal, I was in his class, day after day, week after week, year after year, literally growing up there. He would jokily refer to me as his daughter, and he even once told a HUGE lie to an old high school girlfriend, saying that I was his illegitimate child – a product of an affair he had with another dancer while he was doing a production of the musical “Showboat”!
But, unlike my birth parents, Mr. A, didn’t seem to grow old to me. My dad would shake his head in wonder as I would proudly tell him that Mr. A, at 60, 70, and 80 was still doing what he loved more than anything – teaching ballet. Sure, he used a cane, now, and he said during the weekends all he did was sleep, but, like a child – like his child, I didn’t see that the end of his story was looming. When his diagnosis of acute leukemia came in mid-October, I remember feeling like my stomach dropped into my feet, followed by a big old blanket of denial and disbelief. It was only in the last two weeks of his life last month that I really and truly felt that he was actually dying.

And so I find myself, like all those characters who tales I recount time and time again, starting off on a path without my guiding force at my side, without that sense of home, devoid of that someone who would ALWAYS welcome me, and love me when I walked in their door. I find myself, my own leader, my own wise woman, I find myself, at long last, a grown-up.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2010-01-21T20:17:00.001-05:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

January 2010:

1/28: Kearny Library, Kearny, NJ: 6:30PM

February 2010:

2/2:Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ: 10:15AM, 11:15AM

2/3: West Orange Library, West Orange, NJ: 7PM

2/15: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ TBA

2/17: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:15PM

2/19: Newark Public Library, NJ, Clinton Branch: 3:30PM

2/20: Newark Public Library, NJ, Springfield Branch: 12PM

2/23: Newark Public Library, NJ, Vailsburg Branch: 3:30PM

2/24: Bernardstownship Library, Basking Ridge, NJ 3PM

March 2010:

3/6: Afro-American Historical Society Museum, Jersey City, NJ 1:30PM

3/13: Brooklyn Public Library, Kings Bay Branch 2PM

3/14: County College of Morris Storytelling Festival: 1PM, 2PM

3/20: Brooklyn Public Library, Central Branch 2PM

3/25: Brooklyn Public Library, Brighton Branch, time TBA

April 2010:

4/7: Middletown Township Library, Middletown, NJ: 7:30PM

May 2010:

5/19:Brooklyn Public Library, Macon Branch 4PM

June 2010:

6/29: Little Egg Harbor Branch, 2PM

So,,, where is Julie when she’s not storytelling?

She might be….Performing as Dr. Ima Confused, her character for the Big Apple Circus Clown Care hospital program at Harlem Hospital for the pediatric patients and their families. She also might be…performing as any number of characters for the Big Apple Circus Vaudeville Caravan program at the Montrose and Castle Point Veterans Hospitals. Or she just might be…dancing and doing physical comedy with Ron Hoffman, as “Two Left Feet A Dancing Duo”. And, of course, you might find her…teaching yoga at Devotion Yoga Studio in Hoboken, NJ (mostly Monday nights, but some other times as well). And, never forget that sometimes she’s cleaning chimneys – okay, not for real – but I just looking for an ending!!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-12-28T15:43:00.000-05:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

January 2010:
1/28: Kearny Library, Kearny, NJ: 6:30PM

February 2010:
2/2:Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ: 10:15AM, 11:15AM
2/3: West Orange Library, West Orange, NJ: 7PM
2/15: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ TBA
2/17: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:15PM

March 2010:
3/13: Brooklyn Public Library, Kings Bay Branch 2PM
3/14: County College of Morris Storytelling Festival: 1PM, 2PM
3/20: Brooklyn Public Library, Central Branch 2PM

May 2010:
5/19:Brooklyn Public Library, Macon Branch 4PM

June 2010:
6/29: Little Egg Harbor Branch, 2PM

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-12-03T08:50:00.000-05:00

December 2009:
12/12: Community Diversity Council, Glen Gardner, NJ time: TBA
12/19: Glen Ridge Country Club, NJ 1PM
12/20: Glen Ridge Country Club, NJ 6:15PM

January 2009:
1/28: Kearny Library, Kearny, NJ: 6:30PM

February 2010:
2/2:Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ: 10:15AM, 11:15AM
2/3: West Orange Library, West Orange, NJ: 7PM
2/17: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:15PM

March 2010:
3/14: County College of Morris Storytelling Festival: 1PM, 2PM

Notes from the Field XIX

2009-10-26T10:31:00.001-04:00

A September (and early October) to Remember

While I normally reserve this section for my adventures as a storyteller, I have lately come to recognize that to restrict my musings here to just that part of my life, I’m really not telling the whole story. My life, like most people’s, I suppose, is made up of a web of many different strands. My work as a dancer, clown, storyteller, and yoga teacher weave in and around each other constantly. Each one colors, informs, and enriches the other individual pieces, and creates the whole tapestry that is my life. In just sticking to writing about storytelling here, I would, in effect, be presenting just one ball of yarn, instead of a fully woven piece, ready to be viewed.

So, from now on, my “Notes from the Field” will be notes from the whole nine yards of my field, because life, like all good stories, has many layers. And so on that note…

I am writing this while sitting at the Shanghai airport – yes, that’s right – CHINA!!!!! Crazy, right? And, while in a normal month, or even a regular old six months, this would have been BIG, HUGE news – this time, it is only one part of a truly amazing period in my life.

Around the third week of July, I received a phone call from the head of the volunteer department at Harlem Hospital. Because of my work for the Big Apple Circus, performing there, they have always considered me part of the family. Through the years I have volunteered my time to clown “off hours” at hospital events, walked as part of the Harlem Hospital Center team in various fundraising walks, and pretty much anything else these great folks have asked me to do. I thought they might need me for an upcoming back to school event when Ms. Harewood called. Instead, the conversation went something like this.

“Julie, this year during the 9/11 commemeration ceremony, all the city hospitals are being asked to select two volunteers to read the names of the victims alongside a victim’s family member. We’d like you to represent Harlem Hospital. Would you …”
“YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
“You’d have to…”
“YES!!!!!!!!!!”
“There would be..,”
“YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

How could I not? How could I not accept this tremendous honor, and pay homage to the people, who, unlike myself, weren’t lucky enough to have already exited the World Trade Center that day fifteen minutes before the first plane hit as I had. Those folks like Stewart Meltzer, whose sister-in-law, Rachel, was my partner for the ceremony, and had only worked for Cantor Fitzgerald for three months, had two small children, and enough internal calm to call his wife as the building was being consumed by fire, to tell her that he loved her.

Like all New Yorkers, and many others, 9/11 always had a “face” on it for me. It was never an abstract disaster, a far off catastrophe that had happened to “somebody else”. I saw with my own eyes that billow of smoke dust and ash that ballooned into the beautiful September sky. But this year, as I sat in a cold, wind and rain soaked tent, besides Rachel, and she told me the story of her family’s deepest sorrow – the massive loss of the day became emblazoned in my soul. As I looked around the waiting room before Rachel, and I took the stage, it was sobering to know that every second person in there had lost a brother, sister, husband, wife, mother, father, or other part of their family.

I have never been so honored, moved, and nervous in all my life. I had studied the CD they provided with the correct pronunciation of all the names – loading it into my i-pod, so I could study as I worked out, and I prayed to any and every God I had ever heard of not to blow it. I knew there were people standing in the rain, waiting to hear the name of their loved one that had been ripped from them.

Rachel was a source of inspiration to me in two ways – she, and her husband’s devotion to helping raising Stew’s two children is a lesson in compassion and selflessness, and her dignity and grace as she sought to put words to her family’s feelings for Stew, blew me away. It was a day that made me remember, once again, the preciousness, and fragility of life. It was a day that I connected to Rachel, her family, and anyone who lost a loved one eight years ago. It was a day I was proud to be of service in any way I could, it was a day I’ll never forget.

And then, less than three weeks later, I was on a plane to China, to perform comic dances, and clown at a festival – SUREAL – but that’s my life!!

Here’s the scoop on that.
I, along with about 30 other performers were going to perform for a ten days during China’s National “Golden Week” – a country wide vacation time. Now, while I have travelled all over North American and Europe, China was a big departure from that! Not only wouldn’t I be able to speak the language, I wouldn’t even be able to make out any letters on the signs! And, more importantly – could I make these people laugh. I know I may not be what people think of when they say “All-American Girl”, but I am as American as apple pie (albeit one on the browner side). Would what’s funny in Harlem, NY go over in Hangzhou, China?

Short answer – yes! There is a universality in play, silliness, and fun – people like funny, people like to, want to, need to, laugh. And kids – they are the same EVERYWHERE. Of course, there are cultural differences – various histories and social set-ups – but, kids, as they say, are kids. And everyday – I got to look down into the ADORABLE faces of children who, most likely, had never seen a brown skinned American woman before, and have the privilege of bringing a smile to their faces.

And, I hope I’m not going to come off as sounding pretentious, or ridiculous, or both, but I think that with every laugh we performers got, with every little connection we made with a child, and their family – we spread a little peace. We all know how easy it is to make a villain of a faceless person or persons, but when “THOSE PEOPLE” become “that person with the great smile”, it’s a lot harder to demonize them. It’s a lot easier to hear their individual story, and even if it’s way different from yours – still respect, and honor it.

I’m airborne now – the screen on the seat in front of me says I’m somewhere over the Bering Sea – I don’t know that I have a tidy little paragraph to sum up this essay. An ending that will sum up my experiences of September 2009 in an articulate and thought provoking way. I have a feeling that what I have seen, heard, smelt, touched, and felt these last few weeks, will take me a long time to process, and will resonate in my life for many years to come – weaving its way through my storytelling, clowning, dancing, yoga, writing, and life – at least, that’s what I hope.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-10-21T19:04:00.001-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

October 2009:
10/18: New Jersey Storytelling Festival 2PM

November 2009:
11/21: Afro-American Historical Society Museum, Jersey City, NJ 12PM

December 2009:
12/12: Community Diversity Council, Glen Gardner, NJ time: TBA
12/19: Glen Ridge Country Club, NJ 1PM
12/20: Glen Ridge Country Club, NJ 6:15PM

February 2010:
2/2:Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ: 10:15AM, 11:15AM
2/3: West Orange Library, West Orange, NJ: 7PM
2/17: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:15PM

March 2010:
3/14: County College of Morris Storytelling Festival: 1PM, 2PM

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-09-05T19:13:00.002-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

December 2009:
12/20: Glen Ridge Country Club, NJ 6:15PM

February 2010:
2/17: Hoboken Library, NJ 3:15PM

Notes from the Field (XVIII)

2009-09-05T19:08:00.003-04:00

THE TRUE STORY

QUESTION: “So, how is it you got into storytelling?”

ANSWER: “After many years of dancing in musical theater tours, I was seeking a performance outlet that I could control. One where, I would be my own boss, create my own work that would encompass my dance, acting, clown, and maybe even my American Sign Language and stilt walking. Something where I wouldn’t have to spend soooo much time on the road, away from the guy I loved. And, one day, I went to something called a storytelling festival. I watched a woman named Carmen Deedy hold an audience spellbound for an hour, and just like that, I knew I had found what I was looking for.”

While the information above is absolutely, positively, 100% true – it is not, as so often is the case, the whole story. It is more like the little paragraph on the back of a book jacket, the quick, polite response given to a stranger at a party; an outline I might use before I flesh out a folktale, turning it from a five second anecdote to a ten minute story. All those elements were there, all the facts correct, but there was one other thing that powered my transformation from musical theater gypsy to storyteller. It is the little bump on my right vocal cord.

Looking back, the first indicator that my vocal cords weren’t the strongest part of my anatomy was when, just before my grammar school choir’s Christmas concert, half the seventh grade got sick. Where upon most of my classmates were still able to sing – I lost my voice completely, and stood standing amongst them, in my white turtle neck, and black pants, just mouthing the words.

Fast forward five years, when during my first professional summer stock job, I discovered that I would have to sing, as well as dance. While I knew I could carry a tune, I didn’t know anything about vocal technique, or how to hold onto my harmony line, while being surrounded by others singing different parts – and dancing. After a few days of rigorous rehearsals, I realized my voice felt, well – tired. It was to be the first of many times I would feel that way.

“Get some training, and you’ll be fine,” all the older and wiser performers told me. And so I did. I found a voice teacher, and did as I was told. Being a dancer, I was disciplined and used to hard work, so I learned to breathe with my belly, instead of just my chest. I stayed away from dairy, dust, smoke, and caffeine. No matter how little singing I had to do, I did my full warm-up. And my vocal abilities grew – I was able to sing, even getting solos from time to time. But the “tiredness” always came, sooner or later. There would always come a day, when my voice wouldn’t do what I asked of it. From time to time, my speaking voice would grow a little raspy, but it never deserted me the way my singing voice would. It would simply disappear. Normally, staying quiet would bring it back, but one winter, no amount of rest seemed to help.

As usual, my speaking voice was fine the day I walked into the throat doctor’s office that very first time, so he seemed puzzled to see me. It was only after he stuck a long strobe down my throat, while holding my tongue with a piece of gauze, that I saw IT, and heard him say, “Aha!”

I don’t know how many people have ever seen their vocal cords, but they are sort of alien looking, and if you have any mucous going on that particular day, it is just plain freaky! But, even in that realm of the odd, I was able to see something different about one of my vocal cords. On the right one, there was a ridge of sorts, right in the middle – right where the two cords meet. It was that day that I heard the words polyp, nodule, and node.

Apparently, if the vocal cords, or folds, as they are actually called, come together with too much force, they swell. If over time, the swelling isn’t brought down, a polyp is formed, and if that hardens, and calluses, it’s a nodule, or what singers refer to in frightened hushed tones – NODES!!! My swelling had progressed to the polyp state, so I was ordered to a week of silence, and given tiny white pills called prednisone – a steroid, whose anti-inflammatory skills are REALLY potent. That week was one of the longest of my life! This was before emailing, and texting, so I had to turn my back on everyone, and be deemed rude of not saying, “Sorry,” if I bumped into someone on the subway. There was a peace to it that I liked, though, and, being an avid reader and writer, I chewed through several books, and filled many a journal page.

Some people might have been scared hearing this diagnosis, but for me, it felt like the beginning of the end. I had seen what was wrong with me, I had MEDICINE, and when this week – just one measly week was over, I would be okay.

And I was – for a while, anyway. For though the swelling did go all the way down that time, it would resurface time and time again. I did speech therapy, warming up even to talk – even though my every day speech almost always sounded fine. When I was on the road with shows, I NEVER went out afterwards, always retreating to my room, and SILENCE. I watched with envy while others smoked, drank, yelled, but then had high, crystal clear voices at 8AM.

And I got by. The cord would swell, then go down, swell, and go down. It was a bit like Jekyll and Hyde. One day I had a pretty singing voice, on the next it was a growl – nothing I did seemed to be able to stop it. I cursed that tiny sack on my vocal cord, I cried, I prayed, I visualized, and I was silent – A LOT. But what I didn’t realize at the time, and only grudgingly admit to now, is that that little swelling was one of my greatest teachers.

Always creatively inquisitive, I used my “silent times” to explore other modes of expression. It was because my singing voice was gone, but I spoke just fine, that instead of going to a musical theater audition one day, I went to one for a production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, and got the role of Puck. When I heard of a way to dance and use movement that did not require me to sing, I found my way into the world of mask, mime, comedia, giant puppets, stilt walking, and clown. American Sign Language became a way for me to talk to people, without breaking my times in the “cone of silence”. That little bump on my vocal cord taught me when it was time for me to stop doing, and to just BE. Being blessed with abundant energy, I could power through aches, pains, colds, and heartaches physically – but when my cord was swollen, NOTHING, and I do mean NOTHING I could do, could make it move. It was only being quiet that could heal it. The bodily awareness I developed around what was happening in my throat, I have never been able to top – even now, as a yoga teacher!!

And it was this acute awareness that told me something was VERY, VERY wrong with my voice ten years ago. For one thing, I went hoarse in an instant, always before I could feel it tiring, and for a while compensate, to get through a show or an audition. But this time, I went from have to have not. Even my speaking voice, which was rarely affected, sounded as if it were “covered”, as if there were a giant piece of phlegm I couldn’t swallow, or cough away. Knowing I was in deep dodo I found my way to the office of THE BEST throat doctor in New York City. What I saw when he pulled my tongue out with gauze, and put that strobe down my throat, made me burst into tears. The swelling that I was prepared to see was there – bigger, and badder than ever, but this time it looked like a red tear drop hanging off the side of my right cord. I had hemorrhaged. Even now, that word makes my stomach ache. With even my speaking voice so impaired I thought it was the end of any sort of performing career for me. But then, Dr. Scott Kessler, the hero of this part of the story, pulled out a photograph of two vocal cords that were as red and chewed up as raw ground beef. “I fixed that,” he said, with a kind calmness I’ll never forget. “And I can fix you.” And he did.

It was during the time of silence that followed the surgery that Dr. Kessler performed on me, that I went to the New Victory Theatre, and watched Carmen Deedy stroll on the stage. It was then, when I was without a voice, that I found one, that I knew that I had found what I was looking for. Something that was creative, that would encompass all the skills: dance, clown, acting, even American Sign Language, into performances I could do for all ages. It was then, that I became a storyteller.

So, that is the FULL story of how I came to tell tales for a living. And like a lot of other stories – it goes on. That little bump is still there, much more manageable, but still there, still teaching me to listen to myself, to take care of myself, and that sometimes silence is REALLY, TRULY is golden.

Here's What Students Are Saying About Julie: Baker School

2009-09-05T19:04:00.003-04:00

Please click on any of the pictures to see them in more detail!

Here's What Students Are Saying About Julie: HCCC

2009-09-05T18:04:00.004-04:00

Please click on any of the images to read the text of the letters!

Notes from the Field (XVIII)

2009-05-05T17:37:00.004-04:00

Connections

There’s a look the audience gets when they are really “into” a story. They could be sitting or standing, leaning in – back ramrod straight; or slumped, as if enveloped in an easy chair. The body positioning doesn’t matter – it’s in the eyes. Even if they are half closed, when a person is wholly, fully absorbed in the tale I am telling, their eyes are trained on me, practically beaming energy and light. As I watch them watching me, I can actually tell that they are seeing the story as I perform it. This look is more than amusement, or enjoyment – it is one of resonance, and human connection, and we all know how elusive and rare that can be. This month, not only was I privileged enough to see this look on more than one face, but I saw it in a place not usually associated with storytelling, or human connection of any kind, for that matter – a Youth Detention Center.

I can‘t say I was scared when I walked through the well guarded doors of the Mercer County Youth Detention Center – I had learned long ago that people were not the sum total of their actions, but I was definitely nervous! I know how the average sullen teenager reacts when they are being FORCED to watch something – eye rolling, teeth sucking, overly loud laughter, the occasional rude comment – but how would this group of young men, who were locked up for doing some very bad stuff – including murder, react?? I did what I always do, no matter the age or environment – I went straight for the funny bone. A well known mime teacher, Tony Montanaro, once said, “Don’t be afraid to make a fool of yourself for the right reason.” I think of that quote so often, I should have it tattooed to my face!! Because, like Tony, I know that nothing, NOTHING, and I do mean NOTHING works like humor. There are many feelings a person may not want to experience – fear, anger, even love – if one’s sick of having their heart broken, but the joyous bubble of emotion that laughing elicits – who doesn’t like that?

And laugh these guys did, first out of shock, I think, as I had my character walk in a loose limbed, wobbly stroll. But then, as they saw me acknowledge just how ridiculous I found myself, they truly laughed – and the first sliver of connection began. The real deal, the true resonance occurred during my second tale. It was a Jewish folktale about being judged by ones appearance, about assumptions – often erroneous, that people make about one another in a blink of an eye, about how nothing one can say or do can sway those impressions, that can be so very damaging and hurtful. It was during this story that I saw their eyes, some half closed, some trying to look away, but failing, take on that intense focus that told me, they were with me. Really, really, with me; reliving a cruel reality of life that everyone in that room had fallen victim to. And in that blessed moment, in a place of lock downs, pat downs, and guards, we connected.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-05-05T17:32:00.003-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

May 2009
5/9: Battery Park Conservancy, NYC 11AM

June 2009
6/4: 125th Street Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM
6/6: Westwood Library, NJ 11AM

July 2009
7/7: Allerton Branch, NYPL 4PM
7/8: Jersey City Library, Main Branch 11AM
7/8: Jersey City Library, Heights Branch1PM
7/8: Eastchester Branch, NYPL 3PM
7/9: Glen Rock Library, NJ 6:30PM, 7:30PM
7/10: Jersey City Library, Cunningham Branch 9:30AM
7/10: Jersey City Library, Greenville Branch 11:30AM
7/10: Jersey City Library, Miller Branch 1:30PM
7/10: Jersey City Library, Five Corners Branch 3:30PM

August 2009
8/11: Parkchester Branch, NYPL 3PM
8/12: Grand Concourse, NYPL 3PM
8/14: Bronx Library Center, NYPL 2PM
8/21: Mosholu Branch, NYPL 2PM

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-04-06T13:52:00.001-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

May 2009
5/9: Battery Park Conservancy, NYC 11AM

June 2009
6/4: 125th Street Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM

July 2009
7/7: Allerton Branch, NYPL 4PM
7/8: Eastchester Branch, NYPL 3PM
7/9: Glen Rock Library, NJ 6:30PM, 7:30PM

August 2009
8/11: Parkchester Branch, NYPL 3PM
8/12: Grand Concourse, NYPL 3PM
8/14: Bronx Library Center, NYPL 2PM
8/21: Mosholu Branch, NYPL 2PM

Notes from the Field (XVII)

2009-02-23T10:25:00.002-05:00

The Story of a Lifetime

After a decade of describing what my storytelling performances consist of, I have come up with this concise, chipper, and truthful one-liner. “I tell folktales, fairytales, and some original tales I’ve created myself”, I’ll say, the words rolling off my tongue, without my mind giving it a second thought. If pressed, I’ll elaborate, saying there might be a legend, or poem in there, now and again. And if it seems like I’m talking to someone who knows, and/or cares about stuff like this, I’ll include, “I use a wide range of story types – Porquoi Tales, Trickster Tales, and others.”

But nowhere, in any of my verbiage, would you hear the words Personal Story. It’s not because I don’t like them, it’s not because I don’t think others like them. No, I don’t perform Personal Stories – those tales based on ones real life experiences, because, frankly, I always thought they were too hard.

I mean, think about it. First of all, you have to have had something exciting, funny, or profound to have happened to you for material. My life, though not boring, has not been filled with even a drop of the drama I find in folktales. By the time Cinderella was my age, she had been orphaned, virtually enslaved, learned how to walk in glass heels, and married a prince! Thankfully, my parents are alive, and Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. As for the rest, Payless Shoe Source makes fabulously faux, comfortable heels of all kinds, and the prince I married, grew up in New Jersey, not a castle. It’s a wonderful life, as they say, but a dull story.

And even if I had an exciting tale to tell, there’s the issue of how to structure it. It’s one thing to tell the little anecdote about how as a kid I ran away from sleep away camp (and my parent’s subsequent ire about it), to a bunch of friends at Starbucks, it’s a whole other thing to stand up in front of a paying audience, and talk about it – for an hour!! Personal Tales, when done well, have a through line – the good old, beginning, middle, and end. There’s detail, but not too much, characters, but not too many, and a satisfying conclusion. And most of all, at least to me, they are NOT someone ranting for an hour about not getting a certain toy for Christmas when they were five. They are A LOT OF WORK, and at the end of it, you can’t be sure that anyone’s going to find it interesting but you.

Yes, I was CERTAIN a Personal Story would never come out of my mouth – but you know what they say about God laughing when we mortals make plans…Not only have I created a tale from something that I have experienced, I have been moved to tell it again, and again – everywhere from libraries to Detention Centers, to six year olds, to senior citizens. One very long, cold, wondrous day has, I think, become a story of a life time for me.

This story began somewhere this past spring, when I went from thinking, “Barak Obama, huh? Well, he’s smart, I like what he’s saying – but is American ready to elect an African-American president – I don’t think so!” to “YES WE CAN!!!!!!” As I watched every news story, and read every article about the upcoming election, I told all those who would listen, and quite a few who didn’t, that if Barak Obama won, I would be amongst the expected millions lining the Washington Mall to witness the inauguration.

My willingness to squeeze my body in amongst the possibly millions of other Obama maniacs, was met with A LOT of skepticism.
“How will you get there?”
“Where will you stay?”
“What about the crowd?”

I, with the fervor of someone newly saved at a revival meeting swept away the questions with an eye roll, and a sigh, saying, “Jimmy (my husband) and I will drive. We’ll stay with my sister. I take the New York City subway everyday – believe me, I know from crowded!!”

But, in amongst my armor of Obama righteousness, I did have one concern – the cold. It would be January, and I might have to be outside for hours, and hours, and hours. For a person with even the normal level of body heat this would be tough, but for me Ms. “Our Lady of Perpetual Coldness”, this could be VERY BAD. I have been known to wear a heavy wool hat inside – in August!! Let’s just say that cold and I, are not on good terms. Yet, even cold could not deter me. Literally layer by layer, I amassed gear made of flannel, fleece, and wool. I gathered hand warmers, ski pants, and a marvelous thing called a “turtle fur” hood (note: no actual turtles were hurt in the making of this garment. I swear on my vegetarian soul). When I had enough warm clothes to fill two EXTREMELY large bags, I realized I still had a weakness – my toes. The digits that I had misshapen through years of dance, now threatened to unhinge my inauguration dreams.

As ALWAYS, it was Jimmy who came to my rescue, discovering a hunting and fishing supply store that we could stop at on our way to D.C. We figured if anyone knew about standing around for hours in the pre-dawn chill, it was those outdoorsy types. Strolling past a parking lot full of pick-up trucks driven by folks in camouflage, we entered the store, and went our separate ways. Jimmy went looking for boots, and I for SOCKS!!!!!!!!!!! While I already had six pairs of socks with me – what I craved was the ultimate sock, the sock that would protect my toes from frost bite as I witnessed history. I searched through mounds of silk, micro-fiber, and polar fleece, and then suddenly – THERE THEY WERE. Battery heated socks!!! Never in my life had three words seemed so wondrous and unbelievable at the same time. (okay, so the first time Jimmy said,”I love you.” was pretty AMAZING, too)

Here’s how they worked: STEP ONE: insert battery. STEP TWO: snap top closed. STEP THREE: wait for the battery to heat the wire connected to the heat panel under the toes. STEP FOUR: be very, very happy!!

So enamored was I by the notion of these foot coverings, that I, a woman who balks at paying over $20 for any article of clothing, joyously slapped down $23.95 for a pair, without a thought. I would have bought a pair for every day of the week, but Jimmy wrestled them from my trembling hands.

Socks in tow, we arrived at my sister’s home, or should I say, her “situation room”. If there is anything we Pasquals are, it is thorough, and my sister, being the eldest, seems to have inherited the strongest of my parent’s DNA, for she had cut out EVERY article concerning how to get to the inauguration, and had them plastered around her living room. Marching like a field general, she walked us through our three options with brisk efficiency – none were pretty, none were fool proof, but Jimmy and I chose the method that seemed closest to the one we use every day to navigate NYC – we chose the DC Metro System.

Normally, the Metro does not run trains at 4AM, but on inauguration morning, they were going to. We rose at 4AM, and after quick showers, Jimmy and I began to layer on all the clothes we had brought with us. Silks, thermals, shirts, tights, and last were our new BATTERY HEATED SOCKS!!! We decided not to put the batteries in right away, so they wouldn’t burn out, so we put our brand new D batteries in our pockets, and waddled to my sister’s car. We toppled over into the back seat, like 2 year olds in their first ski suits, unable to lower our arms, or really bend our knees. The sky was pitch black, and we saw our breath as my sister dropped us off at the train saying, “Have a great time. I’ll be watching at home – where there’s coffee, and HEAT!! My heart began to pound, as we made our way up to the train platform – images of thousands of layered Obama fans, waiting to cram into the train ran through my head. I couldn’t really move my fingers, under my two pairs of gloves, but I did an imitation of squeezing Jimmy’s hand as we moved closer to where the ‘Yellow Line” train would stop. I took a breath, and saw – NOBODY!!!!!!! Well, not nobody – about 6 or so people, but not the throng of humanity that I expected. The train came, and still, NO ONE. I felt, rather than saw Jimmy’s gaze, and I knew just what he was thinking, “I GOT OUT OF BED AT 4AM FOR NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” I made little comments about what a clear sky it was, and how we would get to see stars that day, when the door opened at L’Enfant Plaza, where we were to get off. Now, I am a native New Yorker, and I take the subway just about everyday. I have been on trains so crowded, I thought I had grown a conjoined twin. But never, NEVER, NEVER, in my life, had I seen sooooooooo many people on one train platform. Seconds after exiting the train, and squeezing onto the platform, Jimmy and I became separated by at least, 15 people. “Wait for me at the top of the stairs”, I heard him say, as we moved as one giant blob of homo sapiens towards a set of stairs, that didn’t really look like it had it in it to hold us all up.

Smushed though we all were, I heard not one complaint, not one, “Do you mind???????” Everyone just sort of shuffled along, in their layers of clothing, smiling. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought we were all one big cult, drunk on some kind of cold repelling Kool-Aid. I reached the top first, and after 20 or so people passed by, Jimmy got spat out of the crowd. We did our waddle run up the steps, and stepped out onto the street. Some of the MANY Obama merchandise salesmen were already set up, ready to offer us their version of Obama-wear. But since, I already had, two Obama shirts, one Obama scarf, and several Obama light up pins, I was good to go. We bypassed the food as well, keeping to our pledge not to eat or drink, least we land up trying to find, and use a port-a-potty on the Washington Mall.

The ameba of men and women moved towards the Mall, all heading to one narrow entrance. I couldn’t see much, being 5’2” and all, but Jimmy spied above the crowd, what seemed to be an alley way of some kind. Trying to walk as nonchalantly as one can wearing 7 layers of clothing, we moved towards, and through the alley way, and found – MIRACLE OF MIRACLES, that it led right onto the Washington Mall!!!!!!!!! I wanted to do a victory dance, but since I couldn’t really move my appendages, I just let out a hoarse, “YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” We moved quickly to an area that was both by a jumbo tron, and also had a view of the Capital (it was far away, but we could see it), got a piece of cardboard, and settled in to wait for the big doings to start. It was 5:30AM!!

Unbelievably, the first couple of hours passed quickly, we met lots of people from everywhere, boy scouts gave out flags, and the whole time more and more people began to arrive. By 8AM or so, it was so crowded, not only were we standing, we were practically standing on each other. It was right about then, that my toes began to feel just a little cold, so smiling, rather smugly, I must say, Jimmy and I reached into our pockets, and snapped our D batteries into place. We knew it would be a few minutes before the heat would come, but it would be worth it – I knew by the time Barak Obama was being sworn in, my toes would be ensconced in a warmth only possible by my magical socks. The jumbotron showed the concert that had been a few days before, and as the crowd began to move as one large organism, I took stock of what I was feeling: heart pounding with excitement – check, eyes beginning to tear with emotion – check, toes toasty – NOT SO MUCH.

In a panic, I looked at Jimmy. “My socks aren’t working!!!”, I yelled, over the noise of the crowd that had just seen Beyonce on the big screen.
“Mine either !!!”

@*##&%#@@%#!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Visions of me happily handing over $22 for a pair of socks, merged with images of my toes being amputated, and I began to slam my feet into the ground to try and regain any sensation at all. The mammoth television screens began to show politicians arriving, and I was able to distract my mind from the idea that I might loss a toe in the frenzy of historical excitement, when Jimmy, sheepishly, looked down at me and said, in a voice at once insistent, and forlorn, “I’ve got to go to the bathroom.”

There wasn’t room for me to throw myself in his path, so I just yelled, “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! There are a least five thousand people between us and the port-a-potties!!! You’ll never get there and back in time, you’ll never find me. You’ll be in a plastic bathroom when history is being made!!!”

But, my husband is a man of action and confidence, so looking at me like a war hero headed into battle, he grabbed my hands (at least, I think he did, I couldn’t really feel my fingers that well at that point either), and said, “I’ll find you!!” And he was gone. I went between looking at the screen, trying to move my toes, and looking out for Jimmy. But even the cold, and my momentary hatred of my husband’s bladder, could not temper the all out euphoria I felt, as I watched the Carters, and then the Clintons arrive. The swarm of humanity around me, all seemed to hold their breath in anticipation as the seconds ticked by. I was so overwhelmed by the events about to unfold, the numbness of my toes, and the GREAT DESIRE to have my husband by my side for all of it, I wanted to fall down on the ground like a woman at a revival meeting. And just as I was about to try to memorize everything I could, so I could tell Jimmy about it - if we ever found each other again, there, coming out of the crowd, like an action hero in a summer blockbuster, was Jimmy. He reached me, just as he said he would. And with his arms around me, I witnessed Barak Obama walk onto the Capital Steps.

I wish I could describe with as much eloquence as our new president has ,about what I felt, and experienced as I watched him take his oath, and give his speech – but I cannot. What I can tell you is that a sense of pride burned through me, like nothing I had ever felt before. “THIS,” I thought to myself. “THIS is who we – Americans are. We are a people who judge, as Martin Luther King Jr once dreamed, by content of character, not by skin color. We are committed to action with ethics. We do believe that dreams come true, and we do not shy away from difficult times. And most of all, we are a people of givers, who reach out to those in need, and help lift them up. THIS, is who we, Americans, are.”

As the crowd thinned, my eyes stayed glued to the gigantic screen, never wanting the images I had seen there to fade away. A feeling of blissful inspiration coursed through me, as Jimmy and I began to make our way off the Mall.

“Well, kiddo,” my partner in all things, even things as crazy as this, said, looking down at me. “Was it all worth it?”
“Yep!!”
“Wouldn’t change a thing, would you?”
“Oh, no –there’s definitely something I would change!”
Jimmy’s eyes were full of shock. “What?”
“I would not have bought a pair of socks for $22, THAT DO NOT WORK!!!!!!!!!!!!”

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-02-10T20:47:00.002-05:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

February 2009
2/3: Hillside Library, Hillside, NJ 4PM
2/7: Brick Library, NJ 11AM
2/13: NYPL Morrisania 3:30PM
2/18: NYPL South Beach 2PM
2/21: North Plainfield Library 11AM
2/24: Toms River Library, NJ 6:30PM
2/26: Irvington Library, NJ 5PM
2/27: Bridgewater Library, NJ 4:30PM

March 2009
3/7: Montclair Library, NJ 2PM
3/8: NYU Kimmel Center (Shoren Auditorium) 3PM

July 2009
7/9: Glen Rock Library, NJ 6:30PM, 7:30PM

Notes from the Field (XVI)

2009-01-07T11:13:00.002-05:00

A Magic Moment

Haven’t we all had those “magic moments” in life? Seconds, minutes, hours, days, even, when everything has just come together totally, and completely. Where one is happy and peaceful, and magic is not only possible, it’s happening right then and there. I feel amazingly blessed, and humbled that I’ve had a hell of a lot of these amazing nuggets of time. Sometimes, they’ve been BIG LIFE EVENTS, like my wedding, or the first time I flew to Europe all by myself. But, just as often, they’ve been occurrences on a much smaller scale, things that, from the outside, don’t look especially noteworthy, but on the inside, filled me with that elusive thing known as JOY!!! One such time happened this month in the most unlikely of performance venues.

If you looked at my date book for December 20th, 2008, you’ll see I was scheduled to perform two shows, at two different Kwanzaa events. One was at a festival – a good one at that, filled with activities, and lectures for all ages. I’d performed there several times before, and knew that, logistically, it would be a big old piece of cake. The performance space would be a nice sized “black box” theatre – with floor seating for the kids, and comfy seats for the adults. I knew there would be a performer liaison to herd in the audience, deal with the whole NO pictures/cell phones/electronic devices during the show stuff, and basically trouble shoot, so that all I had to do was perform.

The other situation – well, let’s just say, I wasn’t so sure about. First of all, it was at a private home, always dicey – I mean, not to sound like the overly suspicious native New Yorker I am, but really – WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE????? Could they be luring me, the trusting storyteller into a trap, hold me for ransom, determined to get my thousands?? Rampant paranoia aside, I had realistic concerns: would there be space for me to move, without wrecking some family heirloom? The woman booking me mentioned they would be having a “feast” – and as I ALWAYS say (and wrote about a few essays back) NO ONE, NO ONE, and I do mean NO ONE, is good enough to compete with food, so would I find myself vying for attention against a pan full of macaroni and cheese?

And finally, there was the issue of who was going to be there. “All ages” is what the hostess of this Kwanzaa fest had said. “Babies, toddlers, school age children, and adults!!” OKAY! So, that means I’d have to perform material that won’t bore the older folk, while keeping the kids from flinging sweet potatoes at me. Things could get ugly really, really quickly!!

The day dawned clear and COLD. I knew, since I was quite early on in the Kwanzaa Festival, that my audience might be small. Turns out, I was wrong – it was MINISCULE. The beautiful space, and helpful liaison was there – but that was about all. Finally, a grandmother DRAGGED her tween-aged grandson in, a mother with an under two year old entered, and the liaison’s son sat down, and I began.

I won’t say it was a disaster – but, no one was really there to see me. They had all either come in to get warm, or were biding time until they could have their faces painted. The tween never looked up from his play station, the liaison’s son kept trying to crawl on his mom, and the 18 month old was, well, being an 18 month old!

As I walked head on into the OH MY GOD IS IT EVER CCCCOLD wind back to the PATH train, I repeated the mantra “Could’ve been worse. It was only an hour. Quit your whining, at least you have a job!!” I got home, put on the tea kettle, turned on some Christmas music, and started to feel a little less like a grumpy icicle when I remembered I wasn’t done for the day. In four hours, I would be walking into a complete and utter unknown.

My stomach was doing that little shimmy thing it always does when I’m nervous, and I had a hard time holding up my end of the conversation with my husband as we drove. (Yes, I asked him to come with me – let’s remember I’m a paranoid NYer!) When we turned onto the designated street, we both searched for the address – and just when we thought it actually didn’t exist, and was truly a hoax – I heard it.

Yes, I heard the house, before I saw it. Drumming – loud, fast, energetic, playful, jubilant drumming!! I kissed my husband, jumped out of the car, and as I watched him head for a Starbucks to wait for me, I felt my spirits rise.

The front door was festooned with balloons, and cracked open, letting Nordic air spill in – and I quickly saw why. Just beyond the pile of shoes in a hallway was a living room filled not just with drummers WAILING on their instruments – but people dancing, and I mean DANCING – getting down, up and sideways!! Arms flung open, feet stomping, hips wiggling. Kids, women and men – a few of which held smiling infants aloft in the air. The smell of food and sweat mingled in a delicious perfume that practically yelled out, “CELEBRATE!!!”

As I squooze my way over to the hostess to introduce myself, I realized that THIS, and not any kind of theatre, library, museum, or festival, no matter how nice, or well run, was not only a great place for storytelling – it was the PERFECT place for storytelling.

Long ago, before there were so many different kinds of entertainment, each more glitzy and splashy then the next, there were the arts that were communal, and spoke to all ages: music, dance, and storytelling. Roving storytellers, or people from right there in the community, would gather everyone, from toddler to elder to share a tale. I say share, because the truest experience of storytelling is when the audience is just as much in the story as the teller is. When the watchers and listeners chime in with a “Oh, oh!” or “Don’t do that”, or sing the song the performer is singing, or dance the tellers same dance.

And that night, I felt the collective love, and energy of everyone in that room, as they gazed first at me, then at each other, laughing or acknowledging a word, or sentence, or movement I had done. The children giggled, the adults did, too, and even a baby a few months old, was wide eyed, and involved.

At one point, half way through my performance, I closed my eyes for a second longer than I normally would have, because I wanted to really breathe it in. I needed to soak myself in that gathering of joy, and relish that incredibly magic moment!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2009-01-07T11:09:00.001-05:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

January 2009
1/7: New York Public Library (NYPL) St. George Branch 4PM
1/23: NYPL Jerome Park Branch 3:30PM
1/27: NYPL Dongan Hills 4PM

February 2009
2/3: Hillside Library, Hillside, NJ 4PM
2/7: Brick Library, NJ 11AM
2/13: NYPL Morrisania 3:30PM
2/18: NYPL South Beach 2PM
2/21: North Plainfield Library 11AM
2/24: Toms River Library, NJ 6:30PM

March 2009
3/8: NYU Kimmel Center (Shoren Auditorium) 3PM

Notes from the Field (XV)

2008-11-26T21:38:00.003-05:00

Travel without Travel

I was born in an area of Queens that lies close to both JFK, and La Guardia airports, so perhaps that is why travel has always fascinated me. Planes, trains, buses, vans, station wagons, and SUVs have carried me all across this country and beyond – mostly on someone else’s dime.

For most of my 20’s and 30’s, I was on some tour or the other, dancing in musicals in towns whose names I don’t remember. And my work as a clown has allowed me to see Europe with a red nose in my back pack. But the journeys my storytelling has taken me on, are truly unique.

While I have gone as far away as Middle America to tell my tales, the travel that I speak of is much more local – namely, New York City, and the state of New Jersey. Spending time in the different neighborhoods of these two locations is like a tour of the world.

In one week, I have visited a section of the Bronx where everything from the people, to the freshly made bread in the corner bakery, was authentically Italian, and then been in a tiny library in New Jersey close enough to the ocean that the streets are dusted with sand. I travel to communities where Cinco De Mayo is a huge fiesta, and to areas where every house celebrates Passover. To get to the school, library, museum, or event where I am to perform, I walk by penthouses, and the projects; Bloomingdales, and One Dollar stores. Just as I bring the world to my audiences through the tales I tell – the world is brought to me by the myriad of cultures, religions, economic groups, and races I am honored to perform for.

The fact that every culture has the same type of tales – the trickster tale, and the porquoi story, among others – constantly reminds me that certain thoughts, feelings, and experiences are universal. The same holds true for my “travels” around the NYC/NJ area. It doesn’t matter if the kids are fans of Hannah Montana, or Chris Brown; if they drive a tractor, or ride a bike. The smiles are the same, the laughter is identical, and the connection is just as real in Seaside Heights, as it is in Harlem.

Many more learned people than I have written about the importance of travel, and I agree whole heartedly. Of course, travel exposes us to worlds and peoples that may differ from ourselves greatly. But, more than that, it shows us how very much alike we are. How there really is a brotherhood, and sisterhood of mankind!

Experiencing this a time zone, or three, away is wonderful, but I am grateful, and happy, that I don’t always have to go that far to see the world. Thanks to the crazy quilt of humanity that exists within a few hours of my apartment, I can travel the world, without ever really leaving home!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-11-26T21:33:00.001-05:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

December 2008
12/6: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ 10AM, 12PM
12/20: New Jersey Performing Arts Center (Lucent Center) 1PM
12/27: New York Public Library (NYPL) Children’s Center 3PM

January 2009
1/7: New York Public Library (NYPL) St. George Branch 4PM
1/23: NYPL Jerome Park Branch 3:30PM
1/27: NYPL Dongan Hills 4PM

February 2009
2/3: Hillside Library, Hillside, NJ 4PM
2/7: Brick Library, NJ 11AM
2/13: NYPL Morrisania 3:30PM
2/18: NYPL South Beach 2PM
2/24: Toms River Library, NJ 6:30PM

March 2009
3/8: NYU Kimmel Center (Shoren Auditorium) 3PM

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-11-13T18:21:00.001-05:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

November 2008
11/4: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Grange Branch 4PM
11/5: Melrose Branch (NYPL) 4PM
11/18: Pacific Branch, Brooklyn, NY: 4PM
11/19: Muhlenburg Branch(NYPL) 2PM
11/22: Belmont Branch (NYPL) 2PM
11/25: Tremont Branch (NYPL) 4PM

December 2008
12/6: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ 10AM, 12PM
12/20: New Jersey Performing Arts Center (Lucent Center) 1PM
12/27: New York Public Library (NYPL) Children’s Center 3PM

January 2009
1/7: New York Public Library (NYPL) St. George Branch 4PM
1/23: NYPL Jerome Park Branch 3:30PM
1/27: NYPL Dongan Hills 4PM

February 2009
2/3: Hillside Library, Hillside, NJ 4PM
2/13: NYPL Morrisania 3:30PM
2/18: NYPL South Beach 2PM

March 2009
3/8: NYU Kimmel Center (Shoren Auditorium) 3PM

Notes from the Field (XIV)

2008-11-13T18:15:00.003-05:00

Deceiving Appearances

There is a Jewish wisdom tale that goes like this:

One day, a prophet, a magical seer of the future, came upon a wedding feast. Outside this party stood the father of the bride. Inviting all within earshot, the man continually cried out, “All are welcome!”

Seeking to test the man, the prophet went home, and put on the robes of a beggar. “May I come in?” He asked the father of the bride, as he approached.

“A beggar such as you is not welcome here,” was the response.

A short time later, the prophet returned to the wedding again – this time dressed in the robes of a king. No one recognized him from his first visit, and he was immediately escorted in, and sat in a place of honor. But when he was offered some of the wedding dinner to eat, the prophet put the food on his glorious robes, and poured the wine down his shirt.

“Why do you do this?” Demanded the father of the bride.

“It is simple,” replied the prophet. “I am feeding the one whom you invited to your feast.”

“Nonsense! I invited you, and you wasted my fine meal!”

“You are wrong, sir,” the prophet said, with a smile. “You see, earlier today, I came here dressed as a beggar, and you turned me away. But when I came back wearing the robes of royalty – you treated me with distinction. And since I am the same man, it would seem that who you invited here today, wasn’t me, at all, it was my clothes. For you said that all were welcome – but you did not truly mean it.”

Normally, I avoid telling tales I’ve hear someone else tell. For some reason, the moment I hear a story come from a fellow tellers lips – it becomes their sole property, in my mind, and I cannot bring myself to utter it. But this story was my different.

The theme of being judged by ones appearances is one that has run throughout my life. As a person of color, and as a woman, assumptions have been made about me by other people long before they actually made my acquaintance. Also, for some reason, I don’t often look like what some people think of as a storyteller either – on more than several occasions people have looked at me quizzically saying, “YOU’RE the storyteller????????” And sadly, one of the few truisms of life, is that EVERYONE, at some time or another, has been judged solely on what they look like. This story then, is universal, and I have seen it work for seniors, the homeless, and one particular group, I think is often misjudged – teenagers.

Who hasn’t seen a group of high schoolers enter a store, and then watched the owners take one look at them, and brace themselves for “trouble”. On the subway, I routinely see people shift away from teen agers if their voices rise above the normal polite train murmur. Time and time again, when I share this tale with a class of 14 – 17 year olds, their hands shoot up when I ask the question, “Have you ever been judged by what you look like?”

They recount instances of being judged by strangers, their peers, and their families, and though they often shrug it off in a show of youthful bravado – it’s clear to me, that they have been hurt by it.
But even though I have often been “the judged”, I am not, as I was recently reminded, above being “the judge”. This past month, I was given the task of “modeling” my performance style for a high school public speaking class that was doing a unit on folktales. I was also to coach them in preparation of their upcoming storytelling performances.

As I walked up the steps of this sprawling, inner city school, I felt my stomach tightened. The scene is one I have taken in far more than once – metal detectors at the entrance, and security guards scanning for any whiff of trouble. “Here was go,” I thought, mentally preparing myself for a group of surly, rude teens, that didn’t give a D*** about storytelling or me, and would probably let me know it BIG TIME. “Use a lot of humor, “ my brain whispered. “Get them to laugh at you. And if that fails – it’s only three visits – how bad could it be.”

My first clue that I was wrong, came when one of the football players in the class – well over 6’3” and 200 lbs, walked by me and said, “You’re the storyteller, huh? That’s cool.”

From the very first word out of my mouth, these students were attentive, and respectful. The questions they asked made it clear that they were eager to learn anything I was willing to share with them. The faces I had thought would look at me with scowls, gazed at me with genuine interest. And that was before they began to tell stories themselves.

As each student rose, and made their way to the front of the classroom, I was blown away time and time again by the level of concentration, commitment, and talent these young men and women brought to their storytelling.

Just as I had been judged by others as not looking like a storyteller, I had done the same thing to these gifted students. With their oversized hoodies and baggy jeans, they might not look like the storytellers one sees at libraries, schools, and festivals – but it doesn’t mean that they aren’t ones. They are a reminder that stories, and their tellers, come in all different packages. For just like the father of the bride in that Jewish folktale, stories say, “ALL are welcome.” The difference is, tales really mean it.

Notes from the Field (XIII)

2008-10-10T19:21:00.002-04:00

NO ONE IS GOOD ENOUGH TO COMPETE WITH FOOD
(and other really true things about birthday parties)

While I am generally not one to “toot my own horn, I have been known to quite easily tell anyone that I think I am brave. I’m unafraid of the new, the unfamiliar beckons me, and “feel the fear, but do it anyway” is a favorite mantra of mine. But, just like Superman collapses in the presence of kryptonite, there is a question that makes me shiver – “Do you do birthday parties?”
AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!

It’s sort of ironic that I, who make a HUGE deal every December 23rd (the proximity of my birthday to a certain holiday probably tells you why I do – one too many “this is your combination Christmas/Birthday present” packages sent me over the edge LONG ago!!), would be cowed by this type of celebration. But, I am, and I’ll tell you why.

At schools, libraries, museums, and festivals, there is an expectation, a code, if you will, about how a performance should proceed, and how an audience should (for lack of a better word) behave. When I stand in front of a group of children in a school – I’m a treat! I’m the “we’re missing math class cherry on the top of a sundae”. The students are on their best behaviors, because, if they’re not, one of the twenty or so teachers in the assembly hall, will yank them out of their seats, and back to fractions and multiplication (THANK YOU, TEACHERS!!!!). Also, I am loud enough, and rowdy enough, and involve them enough, to be a bit of anarchy in a structured school day. I still have to have my A-game to keep their attention, but at least the odds are stacked in my favor!!
The same is true in libraries – everybody knows they are entering the land of “SSSSH!!!!!!!!!!!!” – so the fact that for one hour, they can laugh, stomp, and clap loudly, feels quite decadent, and is worth focusing solely on. And storytelling festivals?? PLEASE – that’s an all expenses paid vacation in the locale of your choice!! The entire infrastructure is designed to highlight the main event – the telling of tales. Birthday parties, however, are a whole different beast (and I don’t choose that word for nothing).

Let’s just examine some of the sights, sounds, and events at an average party, shall we?
SUGAR!!!!!! And lots of it – cakes, cookies, cupcakes, and candy!!! What more do I need to say.
Those tootie noise maker things that uncoil like brightly colored snakes, and sound like an angry goose.

Decorations – piñatas, pointy birthday hats (that nobody really wears), and assorted table doo-dads, that can also serve as projectiles.
Music – I love you, Hannah Montana, and High School Musical – really, I do! But not while I’m working!!!

PRESENTS!!!! Webkinz, American Girl Dolls, computer games, and anything else that comes in a big shiney box!! Try being more interesting than that!!!

SEE WHY I’M SCARED???????????????????????????????????? But, because I believe in the motto that has sold a gazillion sneakers – JUST DO IT (and, frankly, because a freelance storyteller is really not in a position to be picky about work, and still be able to feed her Diet Peach Snapple habit), I preserve. I do the OCCASIONAL birthday party – with the following strictly enforced rules.

RULE #1: NO ONE IS GOOD ENOUGH TO COMPETE WITH FOOD. The storyteller must be given an area free of any assorted birthday distractions. This includes, but is not limited to: balloons, those crepe paper table decoration things, pin the tail on the donkey, and, most especially FOOD. Because NO ONE, no one, and I do mean, no one, is good enough to compete with food. Let me break it down for you this way: Me: an average swimmer. A Chocolate Cupcake: Michael Phelps at the Olympics. Guess who’s gonna win???

RULE #: SIZE DOES MATTER. The number of children at said party must not exceed 15. Now, a lot of storytellers don’t like to do school assemblies – meaning big groups of children – sometimes up to 200 or so. I do. Coming from a musical theatre background, that size audience seems very natural to me. A school auditorium packed full of students, and TEACHERS is a controlled environment (remember the whole “I’m saving them from math class thing?) I have, literally, seen teachers fly down the aisle, and scoop up a kid from their seat so fast, they left behind a trail of dust. At a party, though, a large group can quickly become a mob. Gone are the teachers, and the convention of having to be “good”. And may I say, I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND!!! Parties are for play, and a certain amount of wildness!! But, I am all of 5’2”, and oh, so easy to pick up, and toss. I might be able to outrun 15 kids, if things get ugly – but 20 or 30??? No way!!!

RULE #3: THOSE UNDER 5 YEARS OLD, WILL BE CARDED. The week after my next door neighbor gave birth, she came to me, precious bundle in her arms, saying, “You’ll have to tell stories for his christening party – he’ll like that!” HUH?? I looked at her for a good long while, and then, trying not to sound as amazed as I was, said, “But he doesn’t know any words.” Now, I hope I don’t sound mean about this, but – infants are miracles, toddlers remind me of what discovery and play are all about. I LOVE both age groups – but they are TOO YOUNG for storytelling!! There are all sorts of “storytelling like “ things for that age group – storytimes at libraries, with those fun cardboard books (which are also excellent for teething!), circle time Mommy and Me fun – in everything from yoga to music – but actual real storytelling, I think, really can’t be done until a child is in the Pre-K age range. Particularly in a group. It is this humble storytellers opinion, that only then, does a child know enough words, and most importantly, have the attention span to last for even 20 minutes of storytelling. Now, I am extremely animated and playful, and I can certainly keep a two year old entertained, but would it be storytelling?? No!

RULE #4: LEAVE THEM WANTING MORE. At other venues, most of my performances are somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour. Not at a party. As I said before, parties are for PLAY and FUN!!! And while I hope to add to that, I don’t want to be, and shouldn’t be all there is to the celebration. A half hour is long enough to entertain my audience, and still leave time for that awesome birthday cake (which, of course, was hidden during my performance, because of rule #1!!)

And so, with these four rules, I’ve been able to leave birthday parties unscarred physically and emotionally, and with my head held high. Why just last week, I performed at one where the parents eagerly complied to my rules. In fact, they had two teenagers, who lived up the street, and sometimes babysat for the kids, helping out. They were a great audience, except one little girl, who was soooooooooooo taken with the teenager, she paid very little attention to me. HMMM…maybe it’s time for RULE #5?????

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-10-10T19:17:00.002-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

October 2008
10/3: Kearny Library, Kearny, NJ 4PM
10/15: New York Public Library (NYPL) Francis Martin Branch 4PM
10/18: Eastern Parkway Branch, Brooklyn, NY: 11AM
10/25: Ewing Library, NJ 2PM
10/26: Jersey City Museum 3PM

November 2008
11/4: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Grange Branch 4PM
11/5: Melrose Branch (NYPL) 4PM
11/15: Afro-American Historical Society Museum, NJ 12-2PM (performance and workshop)
11/18: Pacific Branch, Brooklyn, NY: 4PM
11/19: Belmont Branch (NYPL) 2PM
11/25: Tremont Branch (NYPL) 4PM

December 2008
12/6: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ 10AM, 12PM
12/27: New York Public Library (NYPL) Children’s Center 3PM

January 2009
1/7: New York Public Library (NYPL) St. George Branch 4PM
1/23: NYPL Jerome Park Branch 3:30PM
1/27: NYPL Dongan Hills 4PM

February 2009
2/3: Hillside Library, Hillside, NJ 4PM
2/13: NYPL Morrisania 3:30PM
2/18: NYPL South Beach 2PM

Notes from the Field (XII)

2008-09-07T21:52:00.003-04:00

A MOMENT TO REMEMBER

Just a few weeks ago, I had the honor, the privilege, the “everything else that makes one feel warm, fuzzy, and thrilled” to perform at the National Storytelling Network’s Conference, in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Making it all the more exciting was that I had been nominated by my fellow New Jersey Storytellers, and then selected over numerous other performers, from various other states, to represent the entire Mid-Atlantic Region.

WOW!!!!!!

This was the first national conference I had ever attended, much less performed at, so the experience was a tremendously rich one for me. So much so, that even though I knew I would write about it, I didn’t know which part of that weekend to talk about.

My actual performance was a highlight, of course. I got to stand on a stage in front of A LOT of people – many of whom are well known storytellers – and tell a tale that moves me in a way few others do (if you want to know more about that story, go to the “notes from the field” called “A Story About a Story”) I also got to meet people whose work I’ve known for years, through their books, CDs, and appearances at large national festivals throughout the country. I heard fellow professional tellers talk about their work – the real everyday joys, and pains in the booties, that come with this wacky profession called storytelling. And, in another case of science discovering what the wise folk of old always knew, I learned how stories actually transmit information to the brain far better than any power point presentation ever would. I saw tellers of all different ages, shapes, colors, and styles. I renewed friendships, and made some new ones. And the towns of Gatlinburg, and it’s neighbor, Pigeon Forge are worthy of several essays each (one word about Pigeon Forge – DOLLYWOOD!!!!!!).

So what to write about? Unfortunately, I got my answer through the one thing that none of us will ever be able to avoid – death.

The night after the Regional Concert, which I performed in, was the National Conference – or as I thought of it: “The Big Guns on Parade”. The line up for this was a “Who’s Who” of storytelling – people who had toured the festival circuit for years, who had loyal followings, and could pack theatres. Among them was a name I had heard of, but had never seen tell – Doc McConnell.

Doc started off that evening with what, I was soon to learn, was a crowd favorite, about aspects of running, or more specially, non-running. As one who spends a great deal of her time happily sprinting to nowhere on a treadmill, I laughed as I recognized myself in the people Doc parodied. But as wonderful as the tale was – and it was superb – what left the deepest impression on me was the reception Doc received as he stepped on, then off the stage. Making his was to the stool, and microphone that awaited him, the audience stood on its feel, and let off a cheer that was both warm embrace, and groupie howl, all at the same time. As he shared his thoughts about his “Non-Run Run”, I could see torsos eagerly pitched forward, faces illuminated with smiles, and lips moving as they recited some of their favorite lines, right along with Doc. The audience adored him, and he adored them right back. Now, I’ve had the AMAZING opportunity to see two of my personal idols, Tina Turner and Bette Midler, perform live, and let me tell you here and now, Doc McConnell worked that audience every bit as well as those divas vamped a concert hall. The love the crowd felt for that man was palpable, and that, above everything else that weekend, was what I will always remember.

We live in a society that tends to honor some pretty weird stuff. The fact that I am well acquainted with the status of Britney Spear’s child custody arrangements, simply by glancing at a magazine rack while paying for my Diet Peach Snapple, tells you A LOT, about who gets glorified in this country. So, sitting there watching this group of people – storytellers, and story listeners pay homage to Doc, and to the oral tradition, moved me. It made me proud to sit amongst these folks who saw the specialness of storytelling and storytellers. Was it Groucho Marx who famously said that he’d never want to be part of a group what would have him as a member? Well, Groucho, in this case I disagree with you 1000000000000000000%. In that moment – watching what would be Doc’s final appearance on the National Storytelling Conference stage, I was floored to be part of this group of people that cold take in, and appreciate the ART that is storytelling, and the ARTISIT that great storytellers like Doc are. An art that can look so very simple, that a lot of folks say, “What’s the big deal? Where’s the sets? The costumes? The car crashes?” to be amongst people who truly honor their own – even when the rest of the world would probably pay no heed to an elderly man on a stool, talking into a mike – made me proud.

I didn’t get to meet Doc after the show, as I left I saw he was swarmed by admirers. Thoughts of his performance, and the audience reaction drifted through my head every now and again during the almost 12 hour drive home the next day – but then it all shifted to the “been there, done that” file in my mind. But then, a few weeks later, I go the news that Doc had died. Like warm shower water pouring over me, the memory of the Conference came back, as did the pride I felt that night.

So here’s to Doc McConnell, and all the souls who appreciate him, and love tales, and their tellers: You are a special, beautiful people, and I am honored to be one of you!!!!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-09-07T21:51:00.004-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

September 2008
9/28: New Jersey Storytelling Festival, Hamilton, NJ 3PM

October 2008
10/3: Kearny Library, Kearny, NJ 4PM
10/15: New York Public Library (NYPL) Francis Martin Branch 4PM
10/18: Eastern Parkway Branch, Brooklyn, NY: 11AM
10/25: Ewing Library, NJ 2PM

November 2008
11/4: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Grange Branch 4PM
11/5: Melrose Branch (NYPL) 4PM
11/15: Afro-American Historical Society Museum, NJ 12-2PM (performance and workshop)
11/18: Pacific Branch, Brooklyn, NY: 4PM
11/19: Belmont Branch (NYPL) 2PM
11/25: Tremont Branch (NYPL) 4PM

December 2008
12/6: State Theatre, New Brunswick, NJ 10AM, 12PM

Notes from the Field (XI)

2008-07-21T12:27:00.002-04:00

Stop and Smell the Strawberries

I love fruit! Just adore it! Sometimes I think instead of calling myself a vegetarian, I should be labeled a fruitatrian. Green apples – tart and crisp - are what I can be seen eating most of the year. But summertime brings my very favorite of nature’s sweet treats – peaches, plums, blueberries, and strawberries.

There is something about eating these juicy yummies that scream, “Slow down! Enjoy! Feel the juice run down your face, and between your fingers!” And just the other day, as I was savoring a bowl of mammoth sized strawberries (I always wonder if I should worry when they’re that big), I was reminded of two folktales where these succulent red berries taught huge life lessons.

The first tale is one that is probably familiar to anyone who has studied Buddhist, or certain yogic meditation techniques. A woman finds herself in the jungle running from tigers. She goes as fast as her feet will carry her, until finally she finds herself at a cliff that has a long vine hanging from it. Hoping to climb down to the valley below, she begins to descend, only to see that there are tigers below her as well. As both sets of tigers roar, she notices that there is a tiny, but persistent mouse gnawing on the vine. But then her eyes spy a small patch of bright, plump strawberries. She picks one, pops it in her mouth, and thoroughly enjoys it’s deliciousness.

I love this story, for if ever there was an example of “being here now” and “enjoying the present moment”, this is it. Faced with almost certain death, no matter where she turns, this woman is able to see the beauty that is in front of her, and instead of bemoaning what her fate may be, she relishes in the sweetness of that instant, by eating a strawberry.

How I wish I could say that I lived like that – not worried about the “tigers” I left behind, or the ones that may await me. To often the chewing that I do is not on a piece of fruit, but on a conversation – real or imaged - or a moment, probably long forgotten by everyone but me.

The second story is a Native American tale about a married couple who have a fight. The wife storms out of their home, enraged. After a few minutes, the husband realized he must apologize to his wife, and takes off after her, only to find that she is so far ahead of him, he can’t catch her. The Sun, whom the husband asks for help, shines down on the earth where the woman is walking, and a patch of blueberries appear. The wife ignores them, and continues her angry march. Next, the sun conjures up blackberries. But, still the wife walks on. It is only after the Sun creates a brand new fruit – strawberries, that the wife stops. As she eats the berries, her anger fades, and the couple reunites. Once again, strawberries save the day.

Now, I know as well as anyone, life isn’t always like the folktales I tell. Sometimes – most times – it’s hard not to let the “tigers’ consume you with worry, and it can be all too easy to walk away from someone who loves you, because you’re pissed off. But maybe, during this season where strawberries are abundant, and fresh, we can use them to remind us that life is so very, very sweet – and all we have to do is slow down long enough to see it.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-07-21T12:26:00.002-04:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

July 2008

7/11: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Fish Branch 3PM

7/15: Brooklyn Public Library Kings Bay Branch 3PM

7/15: Summit Library, NJ 7PM

7/17: Toms River Library, Toms River, NJ 7PM

7/18: Tottenville Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/19: Fort Washington Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/20: Monmouth County Library (in Shrewsbury) 1:30PM

7/21: Fanwood Library, NJ 7PM

7/30: Madison Library, NJ 10:30AM

August 2008

8/4: Glen Rock Library, NJ 7PM

8/5: Warren Township Library. NJ 10AM

8/8: National Storytelling Network Conference, Gatlinsburg, TN 8PM

8/18: New York Public Library (NYPL) Epiphany Branch 3PM

8/25: Keansburg Library 3:30PM

October 2008

10/15: New York Public Library (NYPL) Francis Martin Branch 4PM

10/18: Eastern Parkway Branch, Brooklyn, NY: 11AM

10/25: Ewing Library, NJ 2PM

November 2008

11/4: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Grange Branch 4PM

11/5: Melrose Branch (NYPL) 4PM

11/15: Afro-American Historical Society Museum, NJ 12-2PM (performance and workshop)

11/18: Pacific Branch, Brooklyn, NY: 4PM

11/19: Belmont Branch (NYPL) 2PM

11/25: Tremont Branch (NYPL) 4PM

Notes from the Field (X)

2008-06-16T12:05:00.002-04:00

A Story About A Story

I will freely and willingly admit that when it comes to stories, I like ‘em short, fast, and funny - the type of tale that keeps a smile on one’s face, and a giggle on one’s tongue. Big, bright, musical comedy type affairs – that, as they say, is how I roll. So it makes prefect comic sense that a story containing none of the things I am normally drawn to, has given me more deep, rich, meaningful gifts than any of my “Ha-Ha” tales combined.

The tale of “The Spirit of the Tree” first came into my life when I was asked to tell stories at a wedding. A teacher who used storytelling in her classroom, and appreciated the transformative nature of folktales, contacted me through a friend of a friend. My first response was, “Wow! Cool idea! Of course I’ll perform for you on THE MOST IMPORTANT DAY OF YOUR LIFE!” My second thought was, “AAAAAH!!!!!!!!!! Me?? What will I tell?? What will I wear??”

I knew short, fast, and funny was NOT going to cut it – especially after meeting Jennifer and Richard. You know all those catch phrases like “made for each other” and “two peas in a pod”? That was them. She had those kinds of looks that screamed, “I’m a good doer - as beautiful on the inside, as I am on the outside!” And he had that “the guy who would always have your back” face. No wonder they fell in love with each other – I was smitten with them both.

I listened intently as they told me about their lives, their likes, and their families. I took more notes than someone studying for the Bar Exam. The part that really got to me, was the fact that both of them had just lost grandparents, who were very dear to them. “Their spirits,” they told me, “are still with us.”

To find the prefect tale for them, I unleashed my research loving side, and hit the books – HARD. Using my personal folktale collection (which is WAY larger than someone who lives in a one bedroom apartment, with a very tolerant husband, should be allowed to have), and the resources of the New York City, and Jersey City Library systems, I searched for the prefect story for Jennifer and Richard.

I found lots of love stories, lots of deceased parent/grandparent stories, lots of love stories about people who had deceased parents/grandparents. Most were beautiful, a lot were moving, a couple were almost short, fast and funny, but none, to quote good old Goldilocks, was “just right”. But we all know how those tales go, “They looked, and looked, and just when they were about to give up – THERE IT WAS!!” And don’t you know, that’s exactly what happened.

In a book I had owned for several years, but hadn’t looked at for a long time, I found “The Spirit of the Tree”. I don’t know why I didn’t discount it immediately, because at face value, it looked like a dozen other stories I had already rejected. It is one of the hundreds of Cinderella variants – young girl, dead mother, step mom’s a meanie- but what grabbed me is how the spirit of the girl’s mother, and not a handsome prince, is really who guides her to a “happily ever after”. Yes, she falls in love (with a hunter, not royalty), but only as a result of her mother’s guidance, and promise that, “I will always be there for you, I will always care for you.” Tears came to my eyes when I read it, and I realized it was the prefect tale not just for Jennifer and Richard, but for me, as well.

The mother’s promise, and love in that story, reminded me of the powerful blessing my late mother-in-law had bestowed on all of her children. I will gladly tell anyone who listens, that I married an amazing man – compassionate, intelligent, and loving beyond belief. His innate goodness, and that of his brother, and sisters, is a living testament to their mother, whose face always shone with pleasure and delight at the site of one of her children. Her death was, unfortunately, a long, drawn out affair, but because my husband and his siblings each got a very real chance to say good-bye, I feel like they were all encased forever in their mother’s love. This story, then, was a chance to honor the woman who had given birth to my greatest gift.

There were a lot of tears when I told “The Spirit of the Tree” at Jennifer and Richard’s wedding – but I had never felt so joyous. While I LOVE, and I mean LOVE my work with children, this was an opportunity to help seal a bond of love between two people who had already weathered loss together. That I was able to contribute, in even a small way, to their path of marriage was an honor I will always cherish, along with the loving memory of my mother-in-law.

Wanting this tale to remain a tribute to that happy couple, and to my husband’s mom, I sort of put it to bed. I didn’t often have the occasion to tell such an “adult” story anyway, so it was easy to let it slip to the bottom of my “play list”. I pulled it out occasionally, and once recorded it, along with two other tales, for the Cotsen Children’s Library at Princeton University.

Fast forward a few years. I was EXTREMELY flattered, honored, and floored to be nominated, this spring, by my fellow New Jersey storytellers, to perform at a Regional Concert as part of the upcoming National Storytelling Network’s Conference. If selected, I would be representing not just New Jersey, but the entire Mid-Atlantic region! The judging committee would need a tape or CD of my work, and even though I didn’t think I had a shot of making the cut, I popped the CD I had from the Cotsen Library in the mail.

“CONGRATULATIONS!!!” the email, that arrived some time later declared. “You’ve been selected to tell your story, “Tangiers Cinderella” at the NSN Conference on August 9^th, 2008!!” Yeah! Yeah!! HUH?? “Tangiers Cinderella”? I’d never even heard of that story, much less told it. Chalking it up to a “miss-dial”, I sent a reply saying, “Sorry, wrong storyteller.” But another email quickly came back saying, “Maybe we got the name of the tale wrong, but not the name of the teller. We want YOU, and the third story on your CD.”

Third story? To my recollection, on the Costen Library CD was “Mommie Mouse”, a story for toddlers, “The Clever Turtle”, for the grade schoolers, and finally, “The Knee High Man” for all ages. I was sure of it. Positive of it. Certain – or was I? It had been soooooo long since I’d recorded that CD, and I had never listened to it. Could I actually have forgotten what I had told? I rose from my computer desk, and grabbed the CD. I listened as my own voice announced, “Mommie Mouse” – just as I knew it would. Jumping to the next track, the words “The Clever Turtle” sang out, again, in my voice, and, again, just as I had expected. But just as I was beginning to feel a little irritated at this “judging committee” – I mean, how could they raise my hopes up, and then mistake me for someone else – the words “The Spirit of the Tree” cut through my indignant silence. OOPS!!!!

I’d love to say, “and in a flood of memories, it all came back to me, and I laughed at the ironies of fate”. But actually, I felt pretty stupid, and wanted to kick myself for almost blowing a BIG opportunity.

So, on August 9^th, at the National Storytelling Network’s Annual Conference, I will tell a story that is unlike any other in my repertoire - a tale that came to me through a loving couple I didn’t really know, and one that binds me, forever, to my husband’s family. I will happily, proudly, and probably tearfully perform “The Spirit of the Tree”.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-06-16T12:02:00.002-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

June 2008

6/1: New Jersey Storytelling Guild (workshop on using American Sign Language in stories), Montclair, NJ 7PM

July 2008

7/11: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Fish Branch 3PM

7/15: Brooklyn Public Library Kings Bay Branch 3PM

7/15: Summit Library, NJ 7PM

7/17: Toms River Library, Toms River, NJ 7PM

7/18: Tottenville Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/19: Fort Washington Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/20: Monmouth County Library (in Shrewsbury) 1:30PM

7/21: Fanwood Library, NJ 7PM

7/30: Madison Library, NJ 10:30AM

August 2008

8/4: Glen Rock Library, NJ 7PM

8/5: Warren Township Library. NJ 10AM

8/8: National Storytelling Network Conference, Gatlinsburg, TN 8PM

8/18: New York Public Library (NYPL) Epiphany Branch 3PM

8/25: Keansburg Library 3:30PM

October 2008

10/25: Ewing Library, NJ 2PM

Notes from the Field (IX)

2008-05-05T14:35:00.002-04:00

A CHAIN OF STORYTELLERS

“Run and run, as fast as you can, you can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!!” Those words, and the story that they come from, are familiar to a great many people. But what isn’t as well known, is that “The Gingerbread Man” is a type of story called a chain tale. In these simplest of stories, there is a brief opening sequence that, once set, keeps repeating – adding on additional characters like links on a chain.

The Gingerbread Man runs away from the Old Woman who created him, then escapes from a series of animals who each ask the exact same question (can I eat you?), and each receive the exact same reply (you can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man). The “chain” finally ends with the fox, who makes a meal out of the sprinting cookie.

I love telling this kind of story! The repetition of the situations makes for a delicious rhythm that small children adore; and, as the “chain” grows longer, there is a natural escalation that brings the excitement level to a fever pitch. Kids love that they can begin to predict what the various characters will do or say, and quite often, these stories give me a chance to do something I love – to me unabashedly physically silly!!

But as much as I cherish these stories for these qualities, this month I found yet another reason to love them. I realized that as a storyteller, I was dab smack in the middle of a real life chain tale. I discovered that I am a link in a very long and hopefully growing chain.

About twelve years ago, following my relentless creativity seeking nose, I attended a storytelling performance at the newly opened New Victory Theatre on 42^nd Street. This wonderful theatre’s mission is to provide quality, affordable theatrical events for family audiences (and they do – brilliantly. If you’ve never gone there – go immediately, and check out their website). I had never really seen a storyteller, and knew nothing about the oral tradition, but I said, as I always say, “Hey, it it’s an art form, I’ve got to check it out!”

Well, all I’ve got to say about what I experienced is – Wow! No, that’s wrong, I mean WOW!!!! Onto that stage walked Carmen Deedy, a Cuban American storyteller from Atlanta. She told an hour’s length story called, “The Peanut Man”, and as I sat there awestruck, I remembered the words of Bette Midler, one of my personal heroes. I read once, that the Divine Miss M said that when she saw Janis Joplin onstage she was blown away by her talent, of course, but also, that something inside her said, “I can do that.”

And that is what I heard, after I stopped clapping and cheering for Carmen, that is. I knew I had found IT. The way I could use my dancing, acting, clowning, energy, love of imaginative “out of the box” theatre. I had stumbled onto a wealth of tales that could take me around the world without me ever packing a single bag. I wanted to do to an audience, what Carmen Deedy had done to me – move them, and without fancy sets, lights, or costumes. And in that instant, I reached up and grabbed on to the storytelling “chain”. Carmen Deedy is my link to the enormous line of storytellers who have held audiences captive with their tales for years.

Now, I hadn’t really thought of things that way until this month, when, for the first time in twelve years or so, I saw Carmen perform again. Prior to her show, I told EVERYONE I knew about her affect on me, and that she was the reason I became a storyteller.

I was both nervous, and excited to see her perform. Suppose she wasn’t as amazing as I remembered? What if, when I went up to speak with her, she was a DIVA? Well, she was (as great as I remembered) and she wasn’t (a DIVA). I felt a bit like a groupie finally getting to go backstage with THE BAND!!! I told her of how she had inspired me, and how I was grateful to have a chance to tell her what seeing her had led me to – in short, I thanked her for being the link that had “hooked” me. And as I stood there, grinning like the proverbial kid in the candy shop, a teacher/storyteller I know, Ken Karnas came up to both Carmen and I.

“I wasn’t originally planning on coming today,” Ken said. “But from the way Julie talked about you, I just knew I had to see you.”

Now, at this point, I’d have to say that I was at a pretty high level of happy – what with actually meeting Carmen (who had grown rather mythical in my mind), and having other people I know get turned on to her, but then Ken said something that I may never forget. “Julie’s the first person I ever saw really tell a story – I mean REALLY tell it!!”

I looked at him, and I thought of the wonderful stories I had heard him tell at the New Jersey Storytelling Festival last summer, when we shared a time slot. I felt a sense of pride that teachers must be oh, so familiar with, and I realized that I was the “chain” that Ken had “hooked” onto. Standing between Carmen and Ken, is when I realized that I was living a chain tale that I was part of something that was at once ancient, and ongoing. I am, like every storyteller before me, and hopefully all the storytellers that are to come - a link in a very long, long chain.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-05-05T14:28:00.002-04:00

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

May 2008

5/17: Afro-American Historical Society Museum Jersey City, NJ 12PM

5/7: Kips Bay Branch New York Public Library (NYPL) 3:30PM

5/9: West Farms Branch (NYPL) 4PM

5/10: Rector Park in Battery Park City, NYC 11AM

5/13: Wakefield Branch (NYPL) 4PM

June 2008

6/1: New Jersey Storytelling Guild (workshop on using American Sign Language in stories), Montclair, NJ 7PM

July 2008

7/11: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Fish Branch 3PM

7/15: Brooklyn Public Library Kings Bay Branch 3PM

7/15: Summit Library, NJ 7PM

7/17: Toms River Library, Toms River, NJ 7PM

7/18: Tottenville Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/19: Fort Washington Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/20: Monmouth County Library (in Shrewsbury) 1PM

7/30: Madison Library, NJ 10:30AM

August 2008

8/4: Glen Rock Library, NJ 7PM

8/5: Warren Township Library. NJ 10AM

8/8: National Storytelling Network Conference, Gatlinsburg, TN 8PM

8/18: New York Public Library (NYPL) Epiphany Branch 3PM

8/25: Keansburg Library 3:30PM

Notes from the Field (VIII)

2008-03-31T11:13:00.002-04:00

An Unexpected Gift

Up until the last year or so, there was a tabloid called, “Weekly World News”. It was the type of paper that made the “The National Enquirer” look like a Tolstoy novel. Front cover news was frequently the exploits of Bat Boy – who was, of course, half man, half bat. Giant babies, tap dancing aliens, and a host of other unbelievable events graced it’s black and white pages. Waiting in the check out line at the Pathmark, I would flip through this “fine” publication, giggling and thinking, “How do they come up with this stuff?”

Oh, how I wish “Weekly World News” still existed – because, boy, do I ever have a story for them! A scoop more stupefyingly unbelievable than the capture and imprisonment of Bat Boy: Julie Pasqual and her sister, Valerie, go to a storytelling performance – TOGETHER! AMAZING!!!!

Now, you may think a visit from our brothers and sisters from the red planet to be an event unlikely to happen – but let me assure you, that next to what happened this month with my sister and I, having an alien over for lunch, is down right ordinary.

My family is large, especially for NYC standards. Six kids: three boys, three girls, with yours truly bringing up the rear. My mother pumped us out at fairly regular intervals, but even still, there is a considerable age gap between both my sisters (kids #1 and #2) and me. One of my few baby pictures show my two sisters, Pat (#1) and Valerie (#2) at ages twelve and ten, holding me with more than just a suggestion of disgust on their faces. One can almost see their thoughts floating above their heads in a cartoon bubble, “Oh God!!! Another one we have to look after!”

Because of the years between us, my sister, Pat, was off to grad school in Michigan before I was even in high school, and we haven’t lived in the same city since I was eleven or so. Valerie, though, was around more, and was, to her younger sister, “THE GLAMOROUS ONE”. Thin, pretty, and with an interest in shopping, makeup, and Cosmo, she made my friends gawk and say, “Oooh!” She had lots of boyfriends - frequently at the same time - and my youngest brother and I would often creep to the top of the stairs to hear her try to talk my mother out of going ballistic when she came in late.

But something seemed to happen as I entered my teen years, and she her twenties. She buckled down in college, and became a teacher. I fell in love with the thing that would define the rest of my life- dance, theatre, and performing. I won’t go into the MANY and EPIC battles I had with my parents over my choosing an arts high school over a Catholic School, or my electing to begin touring in musical theatre shows instead of going to college, or my moving out of my parent’s house, when they wanted me to stay at home. Let’s just say, a suomo wrestler in a tutu would have been prettier, and easier to watch.

Keeping my distance from my parents, though, came with an unforeseen side effect – loosing contact with my siblings as well. They were already older, so soon they were fully engrossed in their adult lives, as I was in mine. During this time, Valerie became a respected teacher, a wife, a mother, an author, and someone I didn’t know at all. Christmases, and the occasional Easter or Thanksgiving, was the extent of our communication.

That’s mostly likely how things would have remained, had my sister and her family not experienced a crisis. Maybe there is something to that “blood is thicker than water” stuff, because during this sad time, we began to talk. At first it was just about the situation at hand, and then it began to be about our parents, our family, and our lives. For the first time since I was about thirteen years old, I was actually telling someone in my family about myself. I was letting my sister in.

And this is where storytelling comes in. As I mentioned, my sister is a teacher, first grade to be exact. You’d think that with the amount of time I spend performing in schools, I would have visited Valerie’s class for a tale or two. Nope. I was too curled up in my self protective bunker to even entertain the idea. But one Christmas, two years ago, it came to me. Why not give my sister the thing that I had held back from every member of my family for decades - why not give her Me – well, for a forty five minute show, that is.

My performance, and our subsequent conversations about storytelling, gave my sister and I some common ground. I must admit, it was nice to know that someone who shared my DNA actually understood what the heck I did for a living. I came to learn that my sister had seen, and adored, the storyteller, Heather Forest, who’s books I owned, but had never seen perform. Imagine talking “shop” to a relative – MIND BLOWING!!!!!

When I saw that Heather Forest would be performing at the Provincetown Playhouse Storytelling Series (a great place to see some top shelf tellers, by the way) I marked it on my calendar, and I called my sister. Only my husband knows how huge a step that was for me. To freely, and willingly invite a family member into a part of my life that I hold extremely dear, namely storytelling, was previously a risk I wouldn’t have dared to take. But now, with the connection that storytelling had helped to forge, it felt like the only thing to do.

Heather Forest was wonderful, of course, and the audience, which was a mix of all ages of story lovers, was great to see. But the real gift that day, was sitting besides my sister. Not because I had to, but because I wanted to.

I have often said that I began my storytelling career as a way to combine all my artistic skills, work for myself, and have more control over my schedule, as well as my creative fate. I have gotten all that, and much, much more from the smiles, laughter of my audiences, and the deep lessons in some of the tales I tell. But, just this month, I do believe I got the best gift storytelling has yet to give me – a relationship with my sister.

Upcoming Performances

2008-03-31T11:11:00.000-04:00

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

The following list includes my public performances only. No school or private performances are listed here. Things change from time to time, so do be sure to check the schedule.

April 2008

4/13: The Morristown and Morris Township Library, NJ 2PM

4/15: Ocean Township Library, NJ 4:30PM

4/16: Eatontown Library, NJ 4PM

4/23: Fort Lee Library, NJ 3:45 PM

May 2008

5/17: Afro-American Historical Society Museum Jersey City, NJ 12PM

5/7: New York Public Library (location pending) 3:30PM

5/9: New York Public Library (location pending) 4PM

5/10: Rector Park in Battery Park City, NYC 11AM

June 2008

6/1: New Jersey Storytelling Guild (workshop on using American Sign Language in stories), Montclair, NJ 7PM

July 2008

7/11: New York Public Library (NYPL) Hamilton Fish Branch 3PM

7/15: Summit Library, NJ 7PM

7/17: Toms River Library, Toms River, NJ 7PM

7/18: Tottenville Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/19: Fort Washington Branch, NYPL 3PM

7/20: Monmouth County Library (in Shrewsbury) 1PM

7/30: Madison Library, NJ 10:30AM

August 2008

8/18: New York Public Library (NYPL) Epiphany Branch 3PM

8/25: Keansburg Library 3:30PM

Upcoming Performances

2008-03-09T15:09:00.001-04:00

March 2008

3/8: Cotsen Library, Princeton, NJ: 9AM-12PM (workshop)

3/11: Eastchester Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM

3/12: Melrose Branch, NYPL 4PM

3/19: Stapleton Branch, NYPL 4PM

3/25: Kingsbridge Branch, NYPL 4PM

April 2008

4/13: The Morristown and Morris Township Library, NJ 2PM

4/15: Ocean Township Library, NJ 4:30PM

4/16: Eatontown Library, NJ 4PM

4/22: New Utrecht Branch, Brooklyn Library 2PM

4/23: Fort Lee Library, NJ 3:45 PM

May 2008

5/17: Afro-American Historical Society Museum Jersey City, NJ 12PM

5/7: New York Public Library (location pending) 3:30PM

5/9: New York Public Library (location pending) 4PM

5/10: Rector Park in Battery Park City, NYC 11AM

July 2008

7/15: Summit Library, NJ 7PM

7/23: Madison Library, NJ 10:30AM

Notes from the Field (VII)

2008-03-09T15:03:00.000-04:00

Everyday Magic

It’s pretty clear to any and all that meet me, that I am a city girl – cement, not grass is my walking surface. Subways and the PATH train, are my preferred ride. But, urban animal that I am, I do spend a lot of time somewhere else – the land of make believe and fantasy.

I love entering the world of the folktales and fairytales I tell – places where animals talk, fairies fly, and virtually anything can happen. And while I freely admit to coveting the closet space that no doubt comes with the fabulous palaces in certain folktales, the thing that I most envy about the inhabitants of stories, is the magic!!

The way that – POOF – out of nowhere, there appears the very thing they need - not only the solution to their problem, but usually something that brings good fortune as well. The folktale type known as the “Hero’s Journey” contains my favorite type of magic – the magical object. In these tales a young lad, or maiden, sets out on a quest, with nothing more than the clothes on their back. Along the way they find, or are given, something that at face value seems ordinary, if not down right useless: an old whistle, a napkin, or a rusty key. But in the end, it is these objects that, somehow, magically help our hero or heroine succeed.

When I first began working with folktales, I would sigh with longing over how combs, cooking pans, or even twigs brought success to their handlers. But one day, on my way to a performance that was several hours from my home, I realized I needn’t be jealous of folktale characters. I had my own magical objects! Sure they were different from the ones in the stories I tell, but that didn’t make them any less magical to me.

Take, for instance, my laptop computer. Snow White’s stepmother may have been able to ask the mirror if she was the fairest one of all – but that’s only one question. I can ask my computer anything – and it replies – big time!! From finding tales to tell, to navigating my way to schools, libraries, and towns I never even heard of – this object, no bigger than my favorite folktale anthology, supplies me with information a lot more useful than who’s the fairest of them all!

Another little trinket I couldn’t get through the day without is my cell phone. All those cobblers, shop keepers, and even farmers in folktales are lucky, in that they have a stationary place of business. Not me. As a storyteller, I am always on the move, and that little, ringing, vibrating device helps me conduct business from my car, school auditoriums between assemblies, and in library bathrooms (seriously – I’ve booked plenty of shows returning phone calls from the loo). Yes, I freely admit to loving my cell phone, it has helped AAA find me when I had a flat returning home from a show, and just recently it helped calm the nerves of a principal (and my own) when the most TERRIBLE TRAFFIC EVER turned my 45 minute trip, into a 90 minute one. Cinderella’s fairy godmother can keep her magic wand – I prefer packing my Verizon network.

And then there’s the thing I really couldn’t do without. The reason I can live a life so marvelously unpredictable, so thoroughly fueled by my passions – my husband!!!! He is magical object, handsome prince, and fairy godfather all rolled into one.

More times than I can record, it is he who has figured out directions for me to get from school A to library B. “Help!” I have been known to scream into my cell phone, when I have pulled the car over on a highway shoulder, helplessly lost. With the calm of a Buddha, Jim, my MUCH better half, has guided me back on track, all the while not missing a beat at his own job.

Navigating that cell phone, computer, and now, thanks to him, of course, my GPS system, would have been impossible for me, without his guidance, and mind boggling patience. There must be a trench in our apartment floor running from the couch to the computer, marking the many times he has put down the NY Times, and strolled over to save his hyper ventilating wife from throwing up on the keyboard.

But all technical assistance aside, it is his magical “never stops listening” ears, that are my biggest ally. I mean, how many times could one man possibly really want to hear how a library show went? And yet, there he is, always asking, “How’d it go?” And honestly listening to my response. Always ready to have my back – no matter what. Laughing with me when things went great, gripping with me when things kind of sucked. He is my co-pilot, my safety net, my support system, my biggest fan.

When I think of him, I realize that a person doesn’t need a magic wand, or a fairy to live “happily ever after”. All this girl needs is her laptop, cell phone, GPS system, and the love from one REALLY, REALLY GREAT GUY!!!!!

Notes from the Field (VII)

2008-01-24T14:25:00.001-05:00

A Storyteller Trying NOT to Tell Stories

Even though I’ve been a professional storyteller for only the last ten years or so, I have always loved stories. As a kid, I would check out the BIGGEST books I could find in the library, just so I was certain the story would last a good long time. I remember my dad once commenting on my love of writing tales by saying, “If there’s even the tiniest scrap of paper – she’ll write on it!” Even as a dancer, plot lines are important to me. I LOVE that a flick of the wrist, or an arched back, can paint a vivid scene.

But all the stories I read, write, dance, and now tell for others, pale in comparison to what I call “the movies in my mind”. Oh, what a show!! For as long as I can remember, the “Cinema of Julie’s Brain” has been open 24/7, 365 days a year.

Now, I know other people daydream, and visualize moments of their lives, but for me, it’s more than an occasional “flight of fancy”, it is a full contact Olympic sport. From the moment my eyes open in the morning, until they blink shut for the last time at night, my brain is cranking out stories both large and small.

Sometimes, they are rewrites of situations that happened that day. The “What I Should Have Said or Done” scenario is one of my favorites, as is the “Reliving the Best Moment of the Day” show (which plays in a loop – the event growing more and more fabulous and grandiose at each viewing).

There’s the “Path to Success” tale that begins with a chance phone call or email about a gig that will eventually lead me to great happiness, financial security, and amazing creative endeavors.

And then there’s the “VENGENCE IS MINE” rant! Now, this is one I know everybody has had at least once – even if they don’t want to admit it. This is where (in your brain, of course) you encounter an ex-boyfriend or girlfriend, while looking sexy and confident, with the prefect verbal retort rolling effortlessly off your tongue, putting them in their rightful, lowly place. Or, it’s you striding back into the office of a boss who terminally overlooked you, to inform them that you had just bought the company, and that, by the way – they’ve been “let go”.

Because I take all my genres of storytelling seriously, these daydreams are always Academy Award worthy. There is not a detail I do not attend to. Sets – check, costumes – check, lights and music – double check. The voices, facial ticks, and mannerisms of every character are completely realized, and it all becomes so amazingly absorbing, that I have missed subway stops, burnt dinners, and tumbled off treadmills. This, to me, is HEAVEN!!!

Or at least it was, before I got into yoga. At first, yoga was absolutely no threat to my “movies”. Becoming an Eagle, Cobra, Happy Baby, or any of the other yoga poses seemed to have little to do with my brain games. But then, out of the blue, it happened. Just as I had fallen in love with storytelling, dance, clowning, Diet Peach Snapple, and, of course, my amazing husband – yoga began to woo me, too. At first it was just the physical aspects of it. I began to attempt the more difficult postures, attend multiple classes each week, and practice at home. But as all this was going on, I became aware of the fact that the yoga asanas (the physical poses) were only one aspect of what yoga actually is. I came to learn that moving the body was simply a way to get the human mind to be quiet. Cool – a quiet mind! Wait a second – A QUIET MIND?? Did that mean what I thought it did?

You betcha. In fact, the more I read, the more I saw the words “let your stories go”. Not my stories!!! Please not my stories!!!

Apparently, spending valuable brain activity spinning revenge fantasies keeps a person in a place where they are frenzied, grasping, and basically not at peace. DARN! I tried not to believe what I was reading, and more often, feeling. I fought to deny that one of the reasons I loved my yoga practice so much, was that while I was moving and breathing, that’s all I was doing – moving and breathing, and being there, right in that moment. And that instance of time was a beautiful place to be. I wasn’t mired in regret about what I hadn’t said, done, or accomplished. I wasn’t clawing desperately at a future I didn’t know would come. I was just there. And not in a “zombie, spaced out way”. I was actually more awake than before – really seeing the subway platform I was on, smelling the dinner I was cooking, feeling the pounding of my feet on the treadmill, instead of falling off of it.

Maybe, I began to think, my stories were best left to performances. The place for all my dramatics, and creativity was the stage, or even the page, but definitely not my mind.

So, that’s what I’m up to. Strangely I’m a storyteller trying not to tell tales; at least in the privacy of my own brain. In public – well, that as they say is a whole other story!

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-01-24T14:19:00.000-05:00

January 2008

1/8: Parkchester Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM
1/25: Huguenot Branch, NYPL 4PM
1/26: Soundview Branch, NYPL 2PM
1/30: South Beach Branch, NYPL 4PM

February 2008

2/2: Jackson Library, NJ 2PM
2/5: Hillside Public Library, NJ 4PM
2/9: Bradley Beach Library, NJ 11 AM
2/9: Toms River Library NJ, 2PM
2/12: George Bruce Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM
2/13: Columbus Branch, NYPL 4PM
2/22: Van Ness Branch, NYPL 3:30PM
2/23: Donnell Branch, NYPL 3:30PM
2/27: Grand Concourse Branch, NYPL 4PM

March 2008

3/8: Cotsen Library, Princeton, NJ: 9AM-2PM (workshop)
3/11: Eastchester Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM
3/12: Melrose Branch, NYPL 4PM
3/19: Stapleton Branch, NYPL 4PM
3/25: Kingsbridge Branch, NYPL 4PM

April 2008

4/13: The Morristown and Morris Township Library, NJ 2PM
4/15: Ocean Township Library, NJ 4:30PM
4/16: Eatontown Library, NJ 4PM
4/22: New Utrecht Branch, Brooklyn Library 2PM
4/23: Fort Lee Library, NJ 3:45 PM

May 2008

5/17: Afro-American Historical Society Museum Jersey City, NJ 12PM

July 2008

7/15: Summit Library, NJ 7PM

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES

2008-01-02T09:05:00.000-05:00

January 2008

1/8: Parkchester Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM

1/25: Huguenot Branch, NYPL 4PM

1/26: Soundview Branch, NYPL 2PM

1/30: South Beach Branch, NYPL 4PM

February 2008

2/2: Jackson Library, NJ 2PM

2/5: Hillside Public Library 4PM

2/9: Toms River Library, 2PM

2/12: George Bruce Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM

2/13: Columbus Branch, NYPL 4PM

2/22: Van Ness Branch, NYPL 3:30PM

2/23: Donnell Branch, NYPL 3:30PM

2/27: Grand Concourse Branch, NYPL 4PM

March 2008

3/8: Cotsen Library: 9AM-!2PM (workshop)

3/11: Eastchester Branch, New York Public Library (NYPL) 4PM

3/12: Melrose Branch, NYPL 4PM

3/19: Stapleton Branch, NYPL 4PM

3/25: Kingsbridge Branch, NYPL 4PM

April 2008

4/13: The Morristown and Morris Township Library 2PM

4/15: Ocean Township Library 4:30PM

4/16: Eatontown Library 4PM

4/22: New Utrecht Branch, Brooklyn Library 2PM

May 2008

5/17: Afro-American Historical Society Museum 12PM

Notes from the Field (VI)

2008-01-02T08:59:00.000-05:00

"THE SHOW FROM WHERE I STAND"

“I’m soooooo sorry,” the mother of a six year old in my audience says. Her eyes begging for forgiveness, her head bowed in shame. “He just always gets like this!”

I shake the offered hand, and tell her, “Your son didn’t do anything I haven’t seen before.”

“Really?” she utters incredulously.

“Really,” I reply. And I mean it.

One of the joys/challenges of being a live performer is that I see the audience every bit as much as they see me. The dad in the back row on the cell phone – hi there, sir! The seven year old who keeps forgetting to cover her mouth, when she lets loose a juicy, mucousy cough – where’s my Purell? And the baby on the lap of a mom in the back, who’s either laughing or pooping – coochie-coo!! I kind of hate to admit it, but sometimes, the show I see from my angle, is a heck of a lot funnier, and more interesting than what the public is getting from me! And while every audience and every child is different – there are definitely patterns.

In folktales, there are specific character types know as archetypes: the Hero, the Villain, the Sage, and others. Though the details differ from story to story, the roles these people (or animals) play in the tales are remarkably similar. The Hero in one folktale might have to overcome an ogre, while in another he is charged with finding magical fruit. Different circumstances to be sure, but he always has an obstacle to overcome, and usually a young maiden to find/save/wed. And just as often, as I describe an archetypical trickster or silly for my audience, my viewing public is enacting, in very real time, some classic archetypes of their own. Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce the “Mimic”, the “Know it All”, the “I’m Over It”, the “Performer”, the “Talker”, and last, but certainly not least, the “Nose Picker”.

The “Mimic”: I have to admit that the first time I witnessed this behavior, it freaked me out! There I was, going about my business, telling some story or the other in typical “Julie physical style” when all of a sudden, I saw at least a dozen little bodies mimicking my every move. Eyes wide, and absolutely silent, they were so absorbed by the story, I don’t even think they realized they were moving! Their focus was absolute, and they looked, I thought, a bit like marionettes. I raised my arms, they raised their arms. I scratched my head, they scratched their heads. They weren’t trying to pull focus, or get attention, they were just completely inside the story! After getting over the shock, I felt a little power crazy!! What if I could control other people this way? If I told a story to a bank teller, and mimed handing out money – would they copy my actions, and give me a fist full of dollars? Alas, the people at my bank know me by name, and just shook their heads, and laughed, saying, “Oh, that Julie!”

The “Know-It-All”: This is the child who, even before the story has begun, loudly announces to everyone, “Oh, I know this one!!” During every open-ended question, their hand is raised, and their face set in the smug smile of righteousness. If someone else answers the question first, the “Know-It-All” isn’t fazed. “I was going to say that” or “That was my second guess” are their quick come backs. Some people dislike the “Know-It-All” – not me! I adore (and wish I had more of) their self confidence and love of knowledge.

And the “Know-It-All” is often that sub-species known as the “Shusher”. Because the “Know-It-All” wants to hear the story BADLY – if only to prove they do in fact know it all, they give me their full attention – and they demand everyone does as well. I’ve seen “Know-It-Alls” stare down a noisy audience member with the expertise of a teacher, librarian, and preacher all rolled into one.

The “I’m Over It”: Okay, maybe like a mother, I’m not supposed to have favorites. But I do, and this group is it. I LOVE the “I’m Over Its”!! Their surly faces, slumped postures, constantly rolling eyes. “Bring it, lady,” their expressions tell me. And I love to oblige. See, I’m like that old song that says, “I’m a rebel, and I’m just no good.” If you tell me I can’t do something, I will work with every ounce of my 5’2” frame to prove you wrong. Choose to dare, double dare, or triple dare me, and watch out!

Every time I stand before a group of “I’m Over Its”, I feel my inner obstinate three year old stomp her feet, and dig her heels in. I become like the character, Effie, in “Dreamgirls”, who sings, “I’m staying! I’m staying! And you’re gonna love me!!!!!” These “I’m Over Its” make me dig deep, and bring out my A+++++ game (forgive all the sports analogies, but sometimes that’s the only way things can be said!) They make me keep working on my repertoire so that I have material that is intense, juicy, and special enough to dazzle them. I’m always pretty focused on my audience, but with the “I’m Over Its”, I am forced to really crawl under their skin, to find what moves, provokes, or tickles them. They humble me, because they always seem to appear after I’ve had several crowds of “Mimics”, just adoring my every move. And there is no greater payoff then when an “I’m Over It” sits up a little straighter, smiles a shy smile or, raises a hand to ask a question. “I’m Over Its” are tough, no doubt about it, but they are TOTALLY worth it.

The “Performer”: This is a group I COMPLETELY understand because, well, I’m one of them. You see, I love the arts. I adore them!! For my birthday this year, I saw a dance concert, and a musical show on the same day. Seeing creativity of any kind fuels mine – and that’s the problem. Because as I sit there watching dancers, singers, clowns, storytellers, mimes, sword swallowers, even there’s always about 80% of me (sometimes more) that wants to hop up on that stage, and join whoever it is that is currently performing. Now, I have learned to control my impulse to shove the ballerina out of the way, and take her place in “Swan Lake”, but a six year old “Performer” hasn’t mastered that quite yet. And so, unlike the “Mimic” who will silently sit in their seat, and copy my moves, the “Performer” uses every opportunity to insert himself into my performance. If I make a sound effect, the “Performer” will do it louder – over, and over again. If I do a character walk or pratfall, the “Performer” will concoct something that looks like a move from Cirque De Soleil, and perform that maneuver as many times as they can, sometimes crying out, “Watch me! Watch me!” – as if we all weren’t already!

While I will admit a “Performer” (or on a rare occasion – multiple “Performers” that feed off one another) can make my job a smidge difficult, they have also taught me one of life’s great lessons – how to let go! The nature of storytelling is all about the NOW. Telling this particular tale, to this particular group, and taking in the atmosphere and circumstances of this particular venue. When a “Performer” is in the house, I must let go of my plans, and see how it all plays out. Sometimes, the “Performer” quiets down to a slightly more vocal “Mimic”, and sometimes I land up with a partner for the day. Oh well, it’s always good to share. And maybe I’m mentoring a future storyteller!

The “Talker”: “Hi! My name is Rosalie. I’m seven years old, and for my birthday I got a Wii, and had a party. Do you like my dress? I have another one just like it in orange…” Well hello there, “Talker”!

While the “Performer” and the “Know it All” may interrupt the performance any chance they get, they are, for the most part, thoroughly engaged in the tale. The “Talker” on the other hand – not so much! The “Talker” does not mean any disrespect, and in fact, it is only because they like you (and your tales) that they feel the NEED to tell you EVERY detail of their lives. But given any opportunity the “Talker” will ignore the story, the other people in the audience, and very often their own parents, to inform you about their puppy, or turtle, or favorite flavor of ice cream.

Me: (During the telling of one of my favorite stories, “How Frog Lost His Tail”) Frog stopped laughing, looked up and saw…(I pause for dramatic effect, and to allow the kids to chime in, if they want to)

Little Boy: The watering bowl is gone?

Little Girl: The Sky God?

The “Talker”: The Monkey – I saw a monkey once at the zoo, and it was picking something off the other monkeys head, and then eating it, and I said, “EEW!” I wouldn’t want somebody picking something off of my head, and I wouldn’t pick…

And on and on and on!! It’s hard to get upset with a “Talker”, because they are always so darn cute, and the looks on their faces are the very definition of “earnestness”. I try to keep their absolute NEED to speak in mind, while I’m performing for inspiration. And, I hope, as long as I NEED to tell stories, I will. And when I don’t – I won’t!

The “Nose Picker”: What can you say about the children who are so oblivious to what we adults call “socially appreciate behavior”, that when their little noses itch, they plunge those fingers in there, and scratch away? I suppose you could say, ‘STOP! That’s not what polite ladies and gentlemen do!” But while, I totally agree that nose picking is something that’s best done in the privacy of one’s own home – you won’t ever see me telling my listening public not to do it during my performances.

Because, somehow, when I look out at that little “Nose Picker”, and all the other “types” of children I’ve written about here, I am reminded of a time in my life when I didn’t have so many rules! When, if I felt deeply moved or touched by a performance, it would spur me into action, like a “Mimic” or a “Performer”. Or if I wasn’t sure about something, I’d acknowledge it like the “I’m Over It”, instead of just slapping on my “Everything’s Okay” face. A time when I wasn’t too guarded, too afraid that my opinion would meet with opposition to express it, like a “Know It All” or a “Talker”. A magical time in life, when I was so absorbed in every moment, that I wouldn’t notice if I was picking my nose in public. That special time in life known as childhood. That’s the show I see from where I stand. And, oh, what a show it is!!