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Terrifying Telling
Apr. 23rd, 2008 10:47 amI did something last night that I haven't done in a long time. I sweated, I trembled, and I made mistakes, but it still worked out in the end. It has also renewed my interest in my passion, which has been sorely lacking of late.
Claudette has been trying to reach me for a week to invite me to tell in an evening of French storytelling (Les Mardis Gras). Not sure why, but I kept forgetting to call her until the actual day of the performance. Sheepishly, I decided to simply show up and enjoy a fine evening of storytelling.
Claudette waggled a finger as I hung my head, admonishing me for not calling her back. But as I reconnected with the tellers, Claudette said she might give me some time at the end of the evening to tell a story. I learned long ago to always have a story tucked away just in case I'm asked to tell.
I had been translating one of my stories to French (Vices and Virtues), so I was feeling confident and ready to tell it in my second language. But lo and behold, the teller before me got up and told my story! Every once in a while when you get a bunch of tellers together, there is bound to be some overlap. If this had been an English event, it would have been no problem because I would have simply chosen another story to tell.
But my French repertoire is vastly inadequate, so I basically had 5 minutes to ransack my brain for a short story I could tell on the fly. I finally settled on The World's Greatest Theif, switched Jack for Ti-Jean, switched Ireland for Quebec, and I was already on stage.
Performance is always a rush, which is one of the reasons we perform, but translating a story on the fly that I have never told in French was a kneeknocker. Fortunately, the francophone audiences are always generous and forgiving. In the end, I managed to get through the story with only a few fumbles and two translation requests.
When I see Francophone tellers perform in English, it's always charming and wonderful to hear. Claudette is one of those tellers who is completely charming when telling in either language. I'm told that my Anglo accent is also charming and I have strong presence when I take the stage in a Francophone setting.
I've been a bit lazy in the last couple of years in pursuing my storyteller career. I really need to get back into this community and build my French repertoire of stories, as well as learn new stories overall. I love being a storyteller.
Claudette has been trying to reach me for a week to invite me to tell in an evening of French storytelling (Les Mardis Gras). Not sure why, but I kept forgetting to call her until the actual day of the performance. Sheepishly, I decided to simply show up and enjoy a fine evening of storytelling.
Claudette waggled a finger as I hung my head, admonishing me for not calling her back. But as I reconnected with the tellers, Claudette said she might give me some time at the end of the evening to tell a story. I learned long ago to always have a story tucked away just in case I'm asked to tell.
I had been translating one of my stories to French (Vices and Virtues), so I was feeling confident and ready to tell it in my second language. But lo and behold, the teller before me got up and told my story! Every once in a while when you get a bunch of tellers together, there is bound to be some overlap. If this had been an English event, it would have been no problem because I would have simply chosen another story to tell.
But my French repertoire is vastly inadequate, so I basically had 5 minutes to ransack my brain for a short story I could tell on the fly. I finally settled on The World's Greatest Theif, switched Jack for Ti-Jean, switched Ireland for Quebec, and I was already on stage.
Performance is always a rush, which is one of the reasons we perform, but translating a story on the fly that I have never told in French was a kneeknocker. Fortunately, the francophone audiences are always generous and forgiving. In the end, I managed to get through the story with only a few fumbles and two translation requests.
When I see Francophone tellers perform in English, it's always charming and wonderful to hear. Claudette is one of those tellers who is completely charming when telling in either language. I'm told that my Anglo accent is also charming and I have strong presence when I take the stage in a Francophone setting.
I've been a bit lazy in the last couple of years in pursuing my storyteller career. I really need to get back into this community and build my French repertoire of stories, as well as learn new stories overall. I love being a storyteller.
