Program List*

*Mary will gladly develop programs around requested themes and special occasions.

Performances:
(unless otherwise noted, performances can be adapted for grades K-12, as well as adult audiences)

The Initiate and the Hero

Coming-of-Age and Culture Hero stories - tales in which the heroines or heroes undergo transformations which enable them to take their place in the community as powerful and compassionate leaders. Grades 6-12.

Fair Streams of Silver

Celtic stories and songs, including works by William Butler Yeats. Teen-agers through adults.

Magical Women : Invoking the Power of the Feminine

Tales of women of power and magic (human and otherwise) who bring rebirth and regeneration.

Eerie Tales: Shapeshifters, Ghosts, and Other-Worldly Creatures

Spine-tingling tales of ghosts, unusual beings, and supernatural events.

Dreamspun

International tales of dreamers and/or weavers who embody the power and potency of the creative process.

Workshops:

Professional Development for Educators

1 - 2 day workshop, custom designed. Common topics: value of storytelling in whole language curriculums and multicultural environments; story selection, development and performance; creative dramatics and story as springboard for creative writing; guidelines on teaching students to be storytellers.

The Power and Magic of Storytelling

One day workshop for adults interested in developing storytelling skills for performance or personal enrichment. Deals with story selection, development, and performance.

Bring the Inner Vision to Life - The Storyteller's Tools

1 - 2 hour workshop for elementary and middle school children. Children learn how to make their unique inner visual imagination tangible to an audience through voice, language, movement & gesture.

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Residencies:

The Initiate and the Hero

2-day to 1-week program in which, in addition to hearing stories described in “the Initiate and the Hero” performance, the participants write and tell of their own experiences and take part in improvisational enactment of traditional tales. Grades 6-12.

Glimmering Innocence: Storytelling for the Young Child

3-day - 1-week program. Young children learn elements of storytelling through group process, including creative dramatics, story listening and retelling, story creation, voice and movement. Grades K-2.

Student as Storyteller

4-day to 6-week program which teaches children different aspects of storytelling, from story selection to performance. Using improvisational theater techniques, creative writing, and voice and movement work, students learn to create unique imaginative tellings without memorizing text. Ends with in-school storytelling festival. Grades 4-12.

Ordinary Heroes

Inspired by the events of 9/11, this residency helps students find the heroes in their lives and heroic qualities within themselves through listening to classic folk tales, introspective writing exercises, improvisational theater, story-making and creative dramatics. Grades 3-8.

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Corporate Programs:

Custom designed programs are available, including: inspirational presentations; storytelling workshops for marketing and training personnel, using storytelling as a bridge of communication between culturally diverse groups, training in deep listening and spontaneity. 

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Museum Programs:

Custom designed programs to enhance museum exhibits, including staff development programs for teachers and museum educators, performances in galleries, educational and family outreach programs

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