Karen-Eve Bayne
Biography
* Grew up on her parents' farm in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina; learned to bake, sew quilts and stay awake during Sunday sermons; absorbed stories from grandmother (with Irish + Scottish ancestry) and from the Native American children among her friends
* 1975-78 Park Ranger, National Park Service, North Carolina, included developing and leading story walks
Climbing the corporate ladder...
* 1978-79 Research Assistant, Urban Research Institute, Asheville North Carolina
* 1980 BA (Honours) Sociology, University of North Carolina at Asheville/USA with specialisation in Organisational Behaviour
* 1980-82 Manager, Employment & Training, Regional Council of Government, NC
* 1983 Congressional Aid, (to US Congressman) US Congress, Washington DC
* 1984 Advanced Business Negotiation Certificates, Washington DC
* 1983-85 Manager/Branch Facilities Specialist, TDX Systems
* 1986-87 Manager, Customer Services & Operations, CWI Inc
* 1987 Leadership and Management Certificates, Vienna, Virginia
* 1987-88 Director, Personnel and Administration, C& W Management Services
* 1988-92 Director Corporate Real Estate and Contracts Division, CWI Inc
Big changes, new script, new characters...
* 1992 Executive International Development Certificate, INSEAD, France
* 1992 Moved to London, UK
* 1992-94 Group Manager, Management Information, Cable & Wireless plc, London
* 1994-2002 In demand as Seminar Presenter and After Dinner Speaker
* 1995-96 General Manager, The London Philharmonic Orchestra; 'I loved the music and I stopped them playing gigs that made no profit!"
* 1997-98 Chair, Highbury Music & Arts Festival, London
* 1996-98 International Human Resources Director, Cable & Wireless plc, London
* 1997 “Leaders of Tomorrow” Management Programme, London
* 1997 Institute of Directors certificate “Finance for Non Financial Directors” and “Non Executive Directors’ Responsibilities", London
* 1997-2001 Non-Executive Director, ITSA, Executive Agency of Department of Social Security (UK government)
Changes...
* 1998 Moved to near Bristol, Gloucestershire UK; attended year of Storytelling Foundation Course led by Alexander Mackenzie; met Chloë '..An obvious kindred spirit in creativity'
* 1998-2002 Professional Storytelling training courses in England and Wales (UK) including Emerson College 'Storytelling The Next Step' + 'Storytelling in Organisations'
* 1999 Co-founded Midnight Storytellers with Chloë; first paying public performance was in an upmarket wine bar in the small rural Cotswold town of Northleach: to an audience of wine connoisseurs, opera buffs, London West End theatre-goers and slightly bemused locals, the show was a sell-out success!
* 2001 Theological Studies Trinity College, Bristol, UK
* 2000-2006 Storytelling performances + workshops for schools throughout England; annual performances with Chloë at Westonbirt Arboretum; workshops and performances for churches & groups; Bristol Education Centre story clubs
Home and new horizons...
* 2006 Moved to near Hendersonville NC, USA; built a house; connected with local/regional arts community...
Karen-Eve collaborates with Robert Morgan in adapting his collections of short stories for free-form storytelling.
As a performance artist she draws on her family and Appalachian heritage of story, and taps into her love of music and song to transcend the boundaries of traditional storytelling.