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WSIU InFocus - Storytelling Festival
While WSIU Radio collected stories from those in attendance at the Cape Girardeau Storytelling Festival, producer David Kidd and the staff at WSIU Television spoke with the organizers and presenters. The segments below will give you an overview of the festival at Cape Girardeau as well as a glimpse into the life of a storyteller.
What Is A Storytelling Festival?
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Now in its second year, the Cape Girardeau Storytelling Festival has captivated audiences with tales, antics, and music performed by some of America's top regional and national storytellers.
In April of 2008, WSIU InFocus traveled to this historical city on the banks of the Mississippi River to capture the excitement of the event's first year. Chuck Martin, executive director of the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau, explains the festival's origins, which began with a visit to the National Storytelling Festival in Tennessee.
You'll hear from national storytellers Sheila K. Adams, Willie Claflin, Don Davis, and Dan Keding, who share trade secrets of the art of storytelling and divulge their personal styles.
Regional storytellers Priscilla Howe and Marilyn Kancellia provide further insight. This year's festival will be held in downtown Cape Girardeau from Friday, April 10 through Sunday, April 12.
Storytelling As A Profession
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Inside every person is a great story just waiting to be shared. The Cape Girardeau Storytelling Festival is a fun-filled event that inspires the natural storyteller in all of us.
At last year's inaugural festival, WSIU InFocus was on hand to capture the magic of storytelling and went behind-the-scenes with storyteller Dan Keding of Urbana, Illinois to learn more about this unique profession.
InFocus also caught up with Keding at his Urbana home to learn how his experiences, the books he's written, and the music he plays contribute to his storytelling style. Keding also shares how storytellers mentor each other and share tips of the trade. For example, Keding learned from fellow storyteller Willie Claflin that when using puppets in your act, it's important to look at your hands when speaking in the character's voice, not the audience, so the audience will focus on the character.
Claflin, Sheila K. Adams and Don Davis also talk with InFocus about their experiences and share personal insights.
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