Press Coverage of a Storytelling Festival: Troy, Alabama

Storytelling festivals often complain about how difficult it is to get press coverage. For one thing, they are competing with other events, from music to theatre to art to sports. I've also heard complaints from organizers that the press that do cover the event don't know the art form. (Note to organizers: hard to build recognition of your art form if you only hold an event (and invite the press) once a year)

This year, the Pike Piddlers Storytelling Festival (January 30-31, held in Bundridge and Troy, Alabama, (pop. 2,341 and 13,935, respectively) and sponsored annually by the Brundidge Historical Society with support from Troy University, the Alabama State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts) can't complain.

The festival had not one, but five stories in the local news. And that doesn't include the December 29 article essentially publishing the Festival's press release.

Four featured tellers. Four feature articles the week leading up to the Festival, plus a local angle feature:

Last Saturday: Windham returns to storytelling festival

Monday: ‘The Donald’ is back by popular demand
Check out the lede for this article:

Donald Davis.

Enough said.

Think reporter Jaine Treadwell is a storytelling fan?

Tuesday: Lepp brings tall tales to stage

Wednesday: Deedy: Ball of storytelling energy

Thursday: Unfamiliar storyteller to become familiar after weekend
Although the lede for this article focuses on the regional teller appearing at the festival, the article manages to really emphasize the role of the 18 local musicians who will be playing at the event. Not unexpected for a small town paper to recognize its citizens in such a way.

Oh, and in a column for the paper (published last Saturday), Ms. Treadwell admits it: she's hooked on storytelling.

Small town. Southern state (with a strong history of oral culture). Reporter who's an aficionado.

You could say there's a perfect storm of contributing factors to make this festival appear to be the prime cultural event in the local news.

What can you take away from the Pike Piddlers' example for your storytelling event?

Shout Out: Indy Theatre Habit

Hope Baugh describes her blog, Indy Theatre Habit, as “reviews and reflections related to all aspects of live theatre in the Indianapolis, Indiana (USA) area.”

She reviews at least one theatre production a week-- sometimes during the summer, and especially during the Indianapolis Fringe Festival-- a dozen or more!

That she is passionate about live theatre is clear. She'd be an asset to have in any audience.

But the reason I'm calling her out here is that she is consistently reviewing storytelling performances for adult audiences with the same passion. And lest ye cast aspersions on a theatre critic for sneaking into the storytelling room (The subject of the storytelling community's aversion to live theatre and theatre critics will be left for another post), Hope has storytelling street cred: she's a full time librarian and a part time storyteller.

When she does review a storyteller, I note it in the linkroll in the left hand column of this site.

Kudos to Storytelling Arts of Indiana to programming storytelling programs for adults in the first place... giving Hope performances to write about. Hope also covers the storytelling of the Indianapolis Theatre Fringe Festival and the Going Deep retreat.

Indy Theatre Habit: http://www.indytheatrehabit.com

If you're just interested in the storytelling reviews (and want to skip the local theatre scene in Indianapolis), that's available: http://www.indytheatrehabit.com/category/reviews-storytelling/

As far I as I can tell, Hope Baugh is the only person in North America blogging about live storytelling performance from the perspective of the discerning audience member, and by doing so, educating her readers (many of whom are interested in live performance (theatre) and may not be familiar with storytelling) about the art form.

Hope, you rock!

Creative Loafing Atlanta: Spotlight on Storytelling

Journalist Curt Holman has the arts section cover story this week in Atlanta's alternative weekly, Creative Loafing, where he profiles local storytellers Carmen Deedy, Andy Offutt Irwin, Rob Cleveland, and Audrey Galex. The article juxtaposes the ancient art form against the latest technology... and leads with a story about Deedy at the TED conference. The brief article also manages to highlight other issues, such as the generation gap:

Professional storytellers are a diverse bunch, from Irish-style balladeers to African griots to tall-tale swappers. But one demographic consistently underrepresented is young people.

"I'm 52 years old," Cleveland quips, "or, as they call me in storytelling circles, 'The Kid.'"

Andy Offutt Irwin, a perpetually boyish singer/storyteller from Covington, notes that, "the good thing about storytelling is that it doesn't matter how old you are. The longer you live, the more you know.

"But there needs to be more young storytellers," he says. "My cousin who's 28 came to see me in Oklahoma City and afterward said, 'Andy, you're a rock star!' And I said, 'Yeah, but everyone's 55.'"

Not Your Mama's Bedtime Story

A school in my neighborhood is hosting their first ever storytelling festival in October. One of the parents there who is helping to organize it, is a local journalist, and thought this an appropriate time to do a survey of the local storytelling scene. She interviewed me via email, and later came to see a performance.

For someone writing about storytelling from the outside, I thought Autumn Stephens does a very good job... and kudos to the The East Bay Monthly for letting her go in-depth (the article weighs in at over four thousand words). (Link)

I'm hoping the photo here, by Lori Eames, helps get across the serious themes that stories can deal with, rather than encourage audiences to say "Hey, dude, when are you going to bring out the skull?"