Volume 30, No. 4
September 11, 1998
Scott A. Miller
Contact: Scott A. Miller 662-4844
NEWS
Story fest provides international smorgasbord Sept. 17-20
The recipe for great stories -- a deft mix of familiar and new -- is also the recipe for a great storytelling festival. Those hungry for a lot of entertainment and a little culture should check out the Northern Appalachian Storytelling Festival at MU Sept. 17-20.
Two NASF veterans and four all-new performers make the 18th edition of the Tioga County, PA, festival one of the tastiest.
David Holt's newest recording is the Grammy award winning "Stellaluna," a collection of bat stories and amazing bat facts. Well known for his television appearances on The Nashville Network and PBS, as well as on American Public Radio, Holt is a frequent guest on Nashville Now and The Grand Ole Opry. He developed a loyal following as host of the shows Fire On The Mountain, Celebration Express and American Music Shop. He last appeared at NASF in 1995.
Holt's performances are a lively combination of old time music and storytelling. He has produced four award-winning music and storytelling records and is a three-time winner of Frets magazine readers poll for "best old time banjoist."
Dan Keding, an Irish/Croatian from Chicago and another NASF veteran, tells stories of heroes and heroines, dragons and giants, ghosts and goblins from around the world and from his boyhood on Chicago's South Side. Also a respected ballad singer, Keding accompanies himself on six and 12 string guitar, banjo and spoons. He has a master's degree in the history and performance of traditional folk tale and ballads. Keding has six albums of stories, folk songs and ballads and has won numerous state and national awards for his work in the field.
Keding and Holt will teach master classes on Saturday, Sept. 19. The fee is $35 each or $60 for both sessions.
New to NASF are Michael Parent, Laura Simms and the Irish team of Billy Teare and Liz Weir, who will perform individually and in tandem.
Teare has captivated audiences throughout Ireland, Scotland, England, the U.S. and Canada. He offers a feast of folk and fairy tales, humorous verse, story songs, myths and legends from around the world. He specializes in the wonder tales of Ireland and Scotland.
Weir is a professional storyteller who works with all age groups promoting the traditional art that Ireland made famous. She began as a children's librarian and today travels the world telling stories, speaking, and conducting workshops on storytelling. She is the founder of the Yarnspinners community storytelling groups. She has toured Israel, Germany, Canada, Australia and the U.S. where she was also a featured storytelling at the National Storytelling Festival.
Michael Parent of Virginia has performed traditional and original stories throughout the United States and Europe since 1977. He is the author of several stories and has several tapes and videos. One of his specialties is Franco-American tales he often heard as a child growing up in the Northeast United States. "Michael was almost a festival in himself," wrote a Berkeley Daily Californian reviewer. "A magnificent voice, an inexhaustible fund of stories, wit, charm, a gift of mimicry."
Laura Simms has been performing and writing for nearly 25 years and has been called "The Queen of American Storytelling." Theatre critics have called the New York artist's performances "stunning" and "incandescent." Storyteller, writer, theatre and festival director, teacher, and recording artist, Simms has performed throughout the U.S., Europe, southeast and central Asia. Among the rave reviews , the Chicago Tribune said, "Laura has a spellbinding way of leading listeners into the heart of a story that makes it impossible not to follow." This is her first appearance at NASF.
Simms will also conduct a two-day workshop for adult storytellers Thursday and Friday, Sept. 17-18. Tuition is $135.
Tickets for the Friday and Saturday shows are $7 general, $6 for students and seniors. Tickets for the Friday night ghost story show is $3 for everyone. Saturday afternoon shows are $5 for everyone. The Sunday morning Sacred Storytelling session is free. Order tickets by calling 4781.
Have an Updater announcement? Send it to Scott A. Miller
Larry Nesbit, information resource services, will speak at a statewide conference on developing library partnerships sponsored by the State Librarian in North Carolina. At the meeting, Oct. 7-8 in Greensboro, NC, Nesbit will highlight MU's experiences with the Interlibrary Delivery Service, Access PA, Keystone Library Network, and grant efforts with libraries.
Kenneth Sarch, music, has assumed the presidency of the Pennsylvania-Delaware String Teachers with School Orchestra Association. The combined organization promotes string and orchestra programs and events in both states, publishes a newsletter, sponsors competitions and awards, offers grants, and coordinates college student chapters. Sarch also had his string orchestra suite "Colonial Williamsburg Odyssey" published by the KJOS Music Co. of California. He wrote the work at Colonial Williamsburg aided by a grant from the State System of Higher Education.
Stephen Brown, psychology, had his article "Nature vs. Nurture: Aren't the Final Answers in Yet?" published in the May 1998 edition of "The Pennsylvania Psychologist."
Monty McAdoo, library, and Joan Tease, library, recently had a second article published regarding MU's circulation of laptop computers to students in the library. This article appears in the July/August edition of "College & Research Libraries News" and offers tips and pointers to facilitate the laptops' circulation and maintenance. Their articles have generated discussion on laptop lending issues with institutions from around the country, including Johns Hopkins, Penn State, Cornell, and, most recently, UCLA.
Those who saw President John Halstead don his undergraduate beanie at convocation might have noticed some freshmen from an area college doing their President Halstead impersonation in a recent Star-Gazette photo. Just remember: you saw it here first.
The cross-country team had an impressive first meet of the season at the SUNY Brockport Kick-Off Classic. In terms of individual performance, sophomore Todd Stewart crushed the competition by placing first in the 8,000-yard run. Defeating 47 other competitors, Stewart ran the course in a time of 26:50.80, almost 20 seconds ahead of the second place finisher. The only other Mountie runner to finish in the top 20 was freshman Gary Keim, who placed 15th with a time of 29:15.70. For the women, Mansfield won the Kick-Off Classic with a total of 43 points. Three Mountie runners finished in the top ten. Freshman sensation Nichole Beckel placed fourth with a time of 19:43.90, just two seconds shy of third place. Sophomore Brianne Liddick finished fifth with a time of 20:38.60. Coming in sixth was junior Collen Rider with a time of 20:43.80.
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