What is a Storyteller?
A Storyteller is someone who tells a story.
They don`t read from a book or recite a script they`ve learned.
A great storyteller can tell each story they know in several different ways and thus be able to pitch it at almost any audience. With each telling they can emphasise particular aspects, draw out particular themes, highlight topicalities, and as they do so they draw in every member of their audience as if the show was just for them. It`s a rare skill, and until you witness it for yourself you simply don`t know what you`re missing.
A storytelling performance is one of the most immediate and vital live performances you`ll ever witness.
Why do we need storytellers?
We need Storytellers now more than ever. Especially for children.
In an age where children are bombarded with visual imagery right from birth we are losing the ability to actually listen. Research has shown that when children watch a video, for example, they are watching but not listening: information contained in the soundtrack but not reinforced visually is not picked up. Children are increasingly only able to learn from what they see.
Leaving aside the problems this causes for educators with children who have next to no listening skills, this has disastrous implications for the human race and we need to do something about it quickly!
Getting children to listen to stories is the best way to start.
Listening to stories improves children's listening skills, their concentration and their own imagination. It's also great fun!