Covey Center for the Arts: Could I really get it?

After the Covey Center for the Arts virtual tour, I fell in love with it.

It matched the dreams I have had for the premiere since the ideas formed in my head in 2005. The ambiance was perfect.

The big question: could I really get it?

From there I wondered--

• Will it be available on February 9, 2009?
• Could I afford it?
• Would my husband support the potential cost of it?

The Covey Center for the Arts is owned by Provo City and many organizations and performing artists reserve the spaces usually a year in advance. With about three months before my "Family Famine: Hunger for Love" premiere, it is a wonder if any dates would be available let alone the February 9th that I desire.

When I asked Jenni McCall, Scheduling and Events Manager, about February 9th, she said that though there was not a performance on that Monday night, the stage was reserved until 7:00pm by the BYU International Folk Dance Ensemble.

I sighed. I had already called the SCERA Shell, another venue I considered, and February 9th was taken. Now with the Covey Center for the Arts out of the picture, I could not think of any other place that had the seat capacity or the ambiance that I wanted.

But wait!

I asked Jenni if it was possible to still have the Covey Center for the Arts as long as my premiere did not start until 8:00pm. Could I still be allowed to come early and set up displays in the lobby and hallways? Would the BYU International Folk Dance Ensemble be open to my presence? How would the General Manager of the Covey Center for the Arts feel?

When I explained that the timing of this premiere was based around the time of the Timpanogos Storytelling Conference and that my professor Elizabeth Ellis would be in the state, I sensed positive vibes on the other side of the telephone from Jenni.

"I will check for you," she said.

That was what I wanted to hear. I have grown up with the mentality that it does not hurt to ask.

Due to needing to talk with the General Manager as well as the person over the BYU International Folk Dance Ensemble, Jenni predicted that she should know the answer by Wednesday, November 12th. If I had not heard from her by that time, then I was to call her the next day.

November 12th seemed forever away, yet it gave time for me to call friends and ask for prayers. Perhaps this seems like a strange thing to pray for when there is so much to pray for in the world. Though, if the Lord saw it fit to amuse and to tickle me pink, then maybe this was not such a terrible request.

Until we tell again,

Rachel Hedman

Professional Storyteller

Former Co-Chair of Youth, Educators, and Storytellers Alliance (2005-2008)

Tel: (801) 870-5799
Email: info@rachelhedman.com

URL: http://www.rachelhedman.com

How-To Blog: http://storytellingadventures.blogspot.com

Performance Blog: http://familyfamine.blogspot.com
Other places to find me: Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, Professional Storyteller

Latin Tales with the Right Aroma: Pantheon Books

I can never seem to leave a bookstore empty-handed. The trip to Barnes & Noble was no different.

The book that caught my eye was "Latin American Folktales: stories from Hispanic and Indian traditions" edited by John Bierhorst. When I saw it was published by Pantheon Books, I knew I had struck gold. Books from this publisher have fantastic notes in the back on each of the stories and even lists the Aarne-Thompson (At) Motif-Index.

I became more fully aware of this fact due to my Storytelling Masters program at East Tennessee State University. More specifically, Dr. Joseph D. Sobol urged two publishers when considering collections of folktales: Pantheon Books and the University of Chicago Press.

With guides to the AT, then I could be guided to other version or variants of any stories that I would want to add to the "Family Famine: Hunger for Love" narrative production.

As I scanned the Table of Contents, I searched for titles of stories that may suggest family relationships as the center focus. Not all can be gained from titles, but it is a start. If it had family connections as well as references to food or famine, then it intrigued me more.

These are some that caught my attention first:

• "Mother and Daughter" from Columbia, yet only half a page so it would be hard to develop
  
• "The Witch Wife" from Columbia, which reveals the strange eating habits of the man's wife and the consequences for the husband when he discovered why
• "The Three Sisters" from Columbia, where three sisters said who they would marry and the kinds of foods they would expect from each husband

I need to read the whole book, though sometimes research and story development means I cannot read from cover to cover as I would prefer.

Until we tell again,

Rachel Hedman

Professional Storyteller

Former Co-Chair of Youth, Educators, and Storytellers Alliance (2005-2008)

Tel: (801) 870-5799
Email: info@rachelhedman.com

URL: http://www.rachelhedman.com

How-To Blog: http://storytellingadventures.blogspot.com

Performance Blog: http://familyfamine.blogspot.com
Other places to find me: Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, Professional Storyteller

Trek (7 of 7): Which Title Inspires You?

If ever you want to expand your mind, then there is someone you must talk with: Dr. Marsha D. Broadway.

This is seven of seven posts relating to my info-gathering trek to BYU on October 21, 2008.

When I wrote my Honors Thesis "Transformation of the Storyteller's Identity and Role Through the American Storytelling Movement", Marsha was my thesis adviser. As one of the founders of the Utah Storytelling Guild, she had inside knowledge of the storytelling community as well as intense English and grammar skills. To this day, she is the Head Juvenile Literature Librarian in the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University (see above picture).

I could not have had a better adviser.

While on the BYU campus, I was anxious to hear any questions she would ask about the project. Any question would be her way to open my mind rather than purely out of curiosity.

Marsha read my title and description and wondered, "Why did you call it 'Family Famine: Hunger for Love' rather than 'Family Feast: A Hunger for Love'"?

Her point was that the "famine" choice had a more negative or pessimistic view.

I could not answer for a while. I always thought of myself as an optimist. When I had asked friends and family to vote for a title in 2005, "Family Feast" was not even an option. Yet, the word "feast" was a word used within the description.

When I met with Elizabeth Ellis, one of my East Tennessee State University professors, to discuss "My Finest Hour" project, I shared the title "Family Famine: Hunger for Love". Her immediate reaction was "oooooooooo." If ever I had questions or doubts regarding the title, they vanished after that response.

Yet, here I was with Marsha and questions poured into me.

She did not mean to ask the question with the attitude of "Why would you ever. . .". She sincerely asked "Why?"

Finally, I created lists of the "why" for "Family Famine" and for "Family Feast".

Reasons to use "Family Famine: Hunger for Love":

• Program would eventually delve into the dark side of family life such as abuse and abandonment (though would begin and end with the light side)
• Goal to have 12-year-olds+ in attendance and "too happy" of a title could confuse others to think it was a family show for all ages
• Center story "Forsaken Brother" has a moment when famine/hunger is experienced
• Blog and Facebook support group are entitled "Family Famine: Hunger for Love"
  

Reasons to use "Family Feast: A Hunger for Love":

• Program does begin and end with the light side of family relationships
• College students may feel more inclined when there sounds like the possibility of food at an event (and they are one of the main target audiences)
• Light refreshment will be served afterward to reflect the theme
• Focus on end result from performance versus "famine" mood in center of program
• Survey with friends so far has this title in the lead for "which program would you be more likely to attend?"
  

If nothing else, the "Family Famine: Hunger for Love" could be perfect for a book title. For something deeper and darker, a person could always set the book down and come back to it when ready. Thus, a more "negative" title tends to work better for books. However, a live performance does not necessarily give that option.

Most of my programs tend to have the first word be the most important word. In this case, it is "family".

There is also the possibility that both "Family Famine" and "Family Feast" could be used interchangeably and advertising could reflect opposite images to the words. For example, the flies and posters for "Family Famine" would show plenty of food while the "Family Feast" would reflect the lack of food.

Please share which one of these titles you would be more inclined to attend?--

• "Family Famine: Hunger for Love"
• "Family Feast: A Hunger for Love"
• "Feast or Famine: Hunger for Love"
• "Family Feast or Famine: A Hunger for Love"

Until we tell again,

Rachel Hedman

Professional Storyteller

Former Co-Chair of Youth, Educators, and Storytellers Alliance (2005-2008)

Tel: (801) 870-5799
Email: info@rachelhedman.com

URL: http://www.rachelhedman.com

How-To Blog: http://storytellingadventures.blogspot.com

Performance Blog: http://familyfamine.blogspot.com
Other places to find me: Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, Professional Storyteller