Workshops

Wow! Did You Hear That?!* Basics of Learning and Absorbing Stories
This workshop will concentrate on how to learn stories through listening, imagining and memory techniques. Recollecting and relating what you already know to make the story more familiar.

Never Go Out With the Naked Truth!* Unless you are a story- How to take a story you know (fictional or ‘true’) and dress it up in your own expression.
This workshop will concentrate on gathering information through observation to animate and inanimate objects and sounds. With this, you apply what you know or feel about the characters, events, the world and time around them.

What is Your Storytelling Voice?* Finding your voice without changing your style.
This workshop will give attendees exercises (that make you laugh) to make speech patterns more effective, to protect your voices, tips on how to use vocal dynamics and a few suggestions on body movement.

Using Music To Tell The Story*
This workshop will give tips on how to effectively mix music with story without taking away from the content. You will talk about the flavor of the story, if there is existing music that works, or how you can add original material.

*All of these workshop are planned for 1-1 ½ hours. Each can be combined with others and expanded to include more valuable interactive practice to cover more time.

For More Information Contact:

Guerry McConnell
423 McKinney Ave., Rogersville, TN, 37857
Tel: 423-272-8549
Internet: guerrymcconnell@bellsouth.net

Figure Caption Above: Doc, Guerry & fellow storyteller and workshop leader, Shelley Gotterer at the Teachers' Arts Academy, June 2005. All are Roster artists with and attended the academy on scholarship from the Tennessee Arts Academy

Figure Caption Below: Doc, Jimmy Neil Smith, Executive Director of the International Storytelling Center, Jonesborough, TN, Storyteller Tim Tingle and Bruce Roberts, Assistant Director of Academic Programs with the University of Oklahoma Outreach, gather during a storytelling institute organized by UO and held at the ISC. Jimmy Neil and Doc talked about the history of the storytelling revival which started in Jonesborough and Doc gave the audience a sample of Appalachian storytelling and tall tales.