Midnightstorytellers
Chloe Lees


FAQ

Chloë answers...
Please scroll down or click on a question to find the answers to

Storytellers work mainly with traditional tales - myths, legends, folktales, fairytales etc. In what's known as the Oral Tradition a storyteller hears a tale then later retells it in their own words. No learning scripts, no reading from books.

I think of performance storytelling as verbal jazz - like a musician, I know the shapes and themes of a piece, how it starts and ends; it's up to me to bring it alive in new ways.

It's different from acting. Storytellers don't pretend the audience isn't there. Quite the opposite! - We make eye contact, we want to interact with the audience and get responses. Nevertheless, theatre skills are needed: to be heard at the back; to study and understand the piece; to have presence and hold the audience's attention.

Many storytellers specialise in tales from their particular ethnic background or regional heritage. Stories help keep community identity alive, and to outsiders stories can give insights into history and culture.

Storytellers also work in therapy, in care for the elderly and for a wide range of disadvantaged groups. Some 'tellers work with refugees and survivors, supporting them in telling their stories.

A large number of storytellers work in Arts in Education, particularly linked to literacy work. Yes, storytelling is a verbal activity! But research shows that children who absorb narrative structure and vocabulary through hearing and telling stories move into reading and writing much more easily than those without story experience. Besides, teaching tales packed with moral messages have been used around the world for literally thousands of years...

Multi cultural dreaming

For me, storytelilng is naturally - joyously - multi cultural. You'll hear stories from around the world in my Schools repertoire and in my Story Cabaret sets and shows. For example Tales of Lust & Chocolate come from the Middle East, the Caribbean, the Welsh Marches, from France, Thailand and (of course!) Switzerland. And Legends of Britain and The Lion, The Leek & The Thistle include romantic Scottish folktales, English legends, scary yarns from Wales and East Anglia, and some tongue-in-cheek blarney from near the Bushmills Distillery!

Timing is everything

It's all highly creative yet it must run to allocated time - that's essential, whether I'm speaking after dinner at a conference or on live radio.                                                                                                               [back to top]

How long is a story; how long is one of your performances?

Typically clients require one of the following

* After dinner 45 - 60 minutes
* Schools: a day of 40 minute performances plus Q+A sessions; assembly 30 minutes
* Studio theatre performance 90 minutes + interval
* Multiple minispots 20 - 30 minutes repeated between other activities during a larger event; for example at heritage sites, museums etc

During a set, however, individual stories vary in length.  One story might be 3 minutes, a different tale could be 20 minutes. I know how long stories run and plan sets accordingly. Mind you, an audience laughing uncontrollably can add several minutes...!

I plan Story Cabaret sets to take listeners on an emotional journey.  Given that most of my audiences have never before experienced live storytelling, I start with something easy and brisk.  Then off we go into danger, heartbreak, dilemmas; into the deep dark places of being human... Finally the stories bring the audience back to a more comfortable emotional place.  I like to leave my audiences laughing - or at least mellow and dreaming.

Master storytellers can hold an audience spellbound with one epic piece for a whole evening. A superb example is Hugh Lupton working with Daniel Morden, in particular their Iliad.

The longest single story I present is 21st Century Scrooge which runs 55 minutes and is inspired by Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol; my re-creation features a bullying businesswoman with no idea about work-life balance.
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Storytelling is just for children, isn't it?

In the century of technology and screens storytelling became neglected. In England especially, since World War 2, storytelling has been relegated to kiddies' party entertainment and children's fodder in libraries and schools. It also found refuge in folk clubs and folk festivals.

In every other major culture around the world storytelling is a grown-up activity. From Australia to Africa, from India to the USA, the heritage of traditional story is rich and magnificent and alive.

The storytelling revival got under way in the UK some 25 years ago. It's been low key, despite some brilliant storytellers. There's a nationwide sprinkling of story circles and clubs, and a handful of festivals.

Oh yes, I nearly forgot - we even have National Storytelling Week.  In b---y February, when it's too grim to go anywhere and everyone's wallet is cleaned out after Christmas and the January taxman!

A 2006 survey suggested that barely 400 full time professional storytellers earn a living from storytelling in the UK. Many more people tell stories as part of their work (eg in therapeutic applications, as above) or for fun and to connect with an aspect of heritage/culture.

I think performance storytelling is currently where performance poetry was 10 - 15 years ago. Performance poetry is now cool, so I just hope we can do as well in breaking out of our self-contained comfort zone.

Truth is, good stories appeal to all ages.

Good storytellers have repertoire and speaking styles for business audiences as well as for school children. And when a storyteller faces listeners whose ages range from 7 to 70, then you find out how good they are! Mind you I've noticed that adults at children's story events have as much fun as - if not more than! - the youngsters. That's why my family shows such as A Child's World of Story are designed to entertain the grown-ups just as much as the juniors.
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How d'you remember it all?  Aren't you scared of forgetting and drying up? 

Me - run out of words? Ain't gonna happen! This is freestyle performance. No scripts. I can literally make it up as I go along. If I forget a bit, mostly it doesn't matter or I can put it back in later. So I'm completely relaxed.

Storytellers use simple techniques to memorise the main points of stories. I'm lucky in having an almost overwhelmingly vivid imagination. When I'm telling a story, I feel I'm standing right in that world - I see, hear, smell, know the texture of everything. My struggle is to select what's important to get the story across to the audience.

The massive irony here is that, at school, I was the kid who couldn't answer back. Hounded by playground bullies, I never could summon sharp repartee to see them off. By happy contrast, in March 2007 I bluffed my way through a TV gameshow with sheer verbal firepower. We live and learn...
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How did you get into storytelling? 

All my life I've loved words and performance. In 1991 I heard live storytelling for the first time: Duncan Williamson from the Scottish travelling community - revered as the 'grand old man' of storytelling - at Sidmouth Festival. He was riveting. He also had 'apprentices' with him, which made me think "I could do that".

At the time I was working as a freelance copywriter: brochures, newsletters, leaflets - published to thousands if not millions; all the paperasse you bin instantly... Also I was presenting training seminars throughout the UK and abroad; I already knew I could keep an audience awake all day.

In 1992 I helped steward a festival in East Anglia. Duncan was there. I was asked to drive him to Stansted Airport for his flight home. This was delayed and Duncan insisted I stopped to keep him company over a cup of coffee. He was nattering non stop, even after a whole weekend of talking! Finally I found the nerve to tell him I wanted to try storytelling.

To which Duncan responded, "Well then, tell me a story." PANIC! But in those days I was still trying to write fiction so I told the little story I'd finished the previous week. Surrounded by piles of luggage and yelling children. New details tumbled off my tongue as I spoke. Duncan looked me in the eye and said, "You should be doing storytelling."

But only in late 1993 did I stumble across a restaurant that just happened to want a storyteller for a few Saturday nights. I had no repertoire, no idea what I was doing. I read my own stories. Even so, people enjoyed the evenings and came back for more - which was terrible for me 'cos I couldn't write new stories fast enough. The wonderful part was that I got paid!

By 1997 I had writer's block. Desperately. My copywriting still limped along but my dreams of penning the next Lord of the Rings had bitten the dust. I was scared...

Somebody gave me a leaflet for a storytelling evening class. I went along knowing that I was already a competant public speaker. What made me go was the thought "If I'm telling a story out loud I can't dither around waiting for the perfect sentence - writer's block can't get in here - I've just got to spit it out, get on with it!"

That first evening was a revelation. The tutor was Alexander Mackenzie, a big shambling Irishman in colourful baggy clothes; probably the most gifted spontaneous storyteller I've ever encountered. It was like coming home. I realised I might be good at this storytelling thing...

Having experienced many styles of storytelling and several schools of thought since then, I now know how lucky I was to find Alexander. He taught us to improvise and to be completely comfortable with freeform storymaking before we ever tackled the discipline of traditional tales.

Those two years of classes inspired me to change my life.

Karen-Eve joined the course in 1998. Both of us were keen to use what we learned. In November 1999 I organised the first ever Midnight Storytellers show, at the wine bar in Northleach (Gloucestershire). Nearly 40 people came but only because they knew me. An audience of business people and socialites, accustomed to London theatre... Karen-Eve and I were terrified. Worse, our tutor was to attend.

We rehearsed for weeks to make sure we sounded completely spontaneous! And then magic happened: that whole roomful of sophisticated adults was moved to laughter, tears and every emotion in between. Afterwards, Alexander told us "You can go anywhere with this".
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How can I use storytelling at my event or venue? 

For guests/delegates/visitors who would appreciate intelligent entertainment. 

For events and celebrations where you'd like your theme to be expressed in unconventional, attention-catching ways.

In 2007 alone my bookings included

Other recent performances included

How can I try storytelling? 

I run 2 or 3 courses a year at the lovely Farncombe Estate Centre in the Cotswolds.  However I'd be delighted to lead a session for your organisation, perhaps at your team building or motivational event. Or for leisure learning with a group of your creative friends?
      Minimum group number 8
      Maximum 20

Click here for more information about my courses

I regularly send myself on refresher courses and have much appreciated the following:

Alexander Mackenzie

Untraditional storytelling for beginners and beyond; mainly at Hawkwood College, Stroud [Gloucestershire, England].  My experience is that everything he does is (seems) spontaneous, up to and including course content.  Just trust him to pull something amazing out of the bag!  Stroud is in Laurie Lee country, and is a centre of alternative lifestyles.  A lively counterbalance to superposh Cotswolds.  Hawkwood is a lovely big old house in pretty grounds on the edge of town.

www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk    Tel (44) (0)1453 759 034

Shonaleigh

Wonderful voice - speaking and singing - and powerful stage presence. Glorious sense of humour. Fascinating Dutch-Jewish background. A generous, accurate and supportive teacher. She's mainly busy on projects and shows but catch her rare courses if you can. Particularly strong on voice preservation.

www.shonaleigh.f9.co.uk  (t b c)

Annual Bleddfa Storytelling Festival (Wales)

Week long course in August with guest performances and tutorials, in a tranquil and inspiring corner of Welsh countryside near Knighton and the English border. Lead tutors are Hazel Bradley and Michael Harvey - vastly experienced, approachable, encouraging and creative.  Programme is richly varied, exploring aspects of story preparation and delivery: voice skills, verbal invention, non-verbal expression. Plus story sharing in the group and (optional) at evening performances open to the public. Individual tutorials are available - very useful - as is a HUGE collection of books of stories and related subjects. You can camp in the orchard (it's delightful! Toilets and good hot showers just a step away in the main building) or stay locally; self catering apart from lunch; evening meals available at local pub one minute's stagger away... Stimulating blend of playfulness and learning.

www.bleddfacentre.com   Tel (44) (0)1547 550377  

Hugh Lupton, Eric Maddern (Ty Newydd, North Wales) 

Two of the UK's foremost storytellers have collaborated annually for more than 10 years to lead extraordinary creative retreats at this Arvon-linked centre in Lloyd George's old home on the Lleyn Peninsula. Less a formal course, more a joint investigation. Playfulness blends with esoteric knowledge. We've taken mirrors into trees and visited a hermit's cell in the wilderness. Intensive story study and creation amid inspiring landscape: sea, woods, rushing rivers, mountains.

www.tynewydd.org    Tel (44) (0)1766 522 811

www.caemabon.co.uk 

School of Storytelling at Emerson College (Forest Row, East Sussex, England)

Weekend, summer and full time courses in various aspects of story from personal development to business communication/leadership. In the Rudolf Steiner ethos.

Lead tutor is Ashley Ramsden. Colleagues and visiting tutors include respected story practitioners such as Sue Hollingsworth, Angela Knowles and Duncan Mackintosh.  Alexander Mackenzie also guests here, as does Nancy Mellon from the USA whose work on storytelling in therapy is profoundly intriguing.

www.emerson.co.uk    Tel (44) (0)1342 822 238

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