Tonight's experience with the
Jonesborough Storytelling Guild was different than last week. In my
post about that experience, my takeaway was: I feel better about my
telling because of the various abilities of these tellers. I was also
more than a little depressed at how old the audience was. That was
then, this is now.
Tonight I had something to root for that was more personified than just the general oeuvre of storytelling. My new friend Joy
made her audition. As I understand the process, members of the guild
who are in attendance are given a ballot to “vote” Joy into our
out of their club. I hope she makes it. I don't know how stringent
the judges can be, but she did a great job.
This does raise the issue, though. I
have noticed the idea of competition alive at well in storytelling
circles. I will admit that I am newer than some to storytelling, and
perhaps with that newness comes naivete, but it begs the question:
Are we not better than this? Maybe I am naive, but with all the
competition out there in the world – jockeying for position,
climbing the corporate ladder, winners and losers in sports, in love,
in life – might storytelling be a place where we can set these
pressures aside and live into non-competitive models of sharing?
-Bob
I wanted to thank all of my storytelling friends from ETSU for being there for me. As the day went on---I became more and more nervous. It wasn't until I came home (and was calmer) that I recognized where the fear was coming from. This is not a new story for me---but it has changed soooo much in the last week (because of concepts introduced in our class)----and I did not have the chance to try those changes before this audition. In a way---this was a story in process--and I knew it!
ReplyDeleteThere weren't always auditions with the Jonesborough Guild---and the quality of performance ranged---a lot. Saundra Kelley, past president and graduate of the ETSU storytelling masters program, introduced auditions as a way to ensure quality and commitment to grow---and as a result, we are able to perform weekly at the storytelling center (previously they had no home). I am not committed to competition, but rather to quality, and the progress of stories.
Hello Bob, I appreciate what you say about a non-competitive world, but I wonder if there isn't an innate competitiveness within the storytelling world as each performer vies for what they see as coveted and limited paid opportunities.
ReplyDeleteBob, I agree. The openness and positive energy of communal storytelling has been a draw for me. When I heard that Moth scored tellers, my reaction is that this is awful. However, from afar there seems to be a vibrant energy in Moth that is wonderful. I suspect this would exist even without the competitive component. Chris
ReplyDeleteI believe that competitiveness is built into the American culture. And I also believe that it is tied in with monetary rewards.....unfortunately, that means it is focused on what the consumer wants (which is not always what creativity is about).
ReplyDeleteJoy