Home from Going Deep, part I

Whew! That's all I seem to be able to say about the last week. Whew! I arrived at the Storyteller's Riverhouse in Bethlehem, IN on Wednesday afternoon. Nobody else was there yet, so I spent a few hours working on my story and napping. Very pleasant.

There were seven of us there early, so we got to work on Thursday morning, setting up the schoolhouse for the performances and attending to last minute details. In the afternoon we had a lovely wildflower tour--Mary Hamilton showed us Dutchman's britches, May apples, bloodroot and many more treasures near the road between Bethlehem and New Washington. Then three of us went on to the grocery store in Charlestown.

I'm trying not to dwell on the fact that my car got run into in the grocery store lot in Charlestown. Kitrina was napping in it, but wasn't hurt, thank goodness. It was hugely disappointing to have my new-to-me car hit. Today I got an estimate on the body work (insurance will take care of it) and they pounded a little bit of it out so I can now open the driver's side door all the way.

Anyway, that mishap didn't mar my enjoyment of Olga Loya's performance of The Aztec Creation Myth that evening. The story was even better than two years ago--and it was masterful then. Here's a picture of Olga next to the altar she set up:
We reveled in the sounds of the gods' and goddesses' names, we chanted, we joined a parade, we laughed and wondered and strongly felt the emotions of the story. Aaaah.

Going Deep was as intense as two years ago, so I can only write about it in bits. More soon.

Going Deep is a GO!

Yippee! We've just decided that Going Deep: The Long Traditional Story Festival is definitely going to happen!

Don't know about this? It's an incredible festival/retreat held in Bethlehem, IN on April 10-13, 2008. Picture this:

• Three utterly entrancing long traditional stories,
• Told by three storytellers (one at a time),
• Three intense workshops about the story from the night before,
• Afternoons free for massages, palm reading, walks, naps, music, art, relaxation,
• Delicious family-style meals,
• Set in a tiny town where there is no cell phone coverage and no Internet access,
• In a lovely bed and breakfast where the lawn slopes down to the Ohio River.

What stories? Thursday night we'll revel in Olga Loya's tremendous Aztec Creation Myth. Friday will be my Medieval French story, Queen Berta and King Pippin. Saturday is Megan Wells' compelling version of Helen's Troy. Old World, New World, Medieval. What a feast!

We still have a few more spaces--this is a small-group festival, maximum 20 participants.

Need more information or want to register? E-mail Cynthia Changaris at cchangaris@aol.com or contact me directly.


This festival was founded by Olga Loya, Liz Warren and me. We're pleased to present it thanks to Scheherezade's Legacy, the storytelling partnership of Cynthia Changaris and Mary Hamilton. Check out Liz Warren's article on the festival in the March/April 2008 issue of Storytelling Magazine.