Adventures in Storytelling

The adventures of The Patchwork Players, Patti Christensen and James Nelson-Lucas, as they travel the dimensions of time and space, telling their tales

Wednesday, September 05, 2007

Summer fun, Super Fall

Whew boy did we have another busy summer! We went to twenty different libraries with our “You Be The Detective” program all over Southern California. The librarians were pleased to see us engage the audiences; entertaining them and calling them to engage in some critical thinking too. The Patchwork Players also made their sixth return engagement at the San Diego Renaissance Faire. We always have a blast there. We also ran through six weeks of the Prime Time Family Reading p rogram. This is a remarkable program where we tell a story from a book that will be provided to the families. We then lead the kids and parents in a discussion on their thoughts and feelings about the story, with a special focus on Humanities “values-laden”
questions and opinions..

The Patchwork Players were also seen at the Yarning and Yakking, Tales and Snacking evening program hosted by the South Coast Storytellers Guild.. Storytellers and musicians from around the

southland came to perform for a multi-generational audience. James again expanded his speaking experience by emceeing the event. Some of our best teller friends; Dave Chittenden, Jim Lewis, Laura Beasly, Doris Hand, Linda King Pruitt and Adrianne McMillan were there. Tellers, musicians and MC were all well received.


There was also the time we told True and Not so True Tales of California program we told for an Elementary school. And James told Wild West tales to a Girl Scout day camp. Plus the Patchwork Players brought tale from the seven seas to a summer day camp and also told ocean stories to a group of kinder care kids. Later, James traveled to Reno Nevada to tell tales at a very special six year old's birthday party.


In the middle of all that Patti took two weeks in Mexico for an immersion Spanish language course. Can bilingual telling be far behind? (Patti says, it's still a long ways away, but she is improving!)

For those looking to future Patchwork Player events, here we go. Next week James and Patti will be telling Love and Marriage stories for a wedding reception. Again James will handle the emcee duties. We will be telling Pirate tales at a library in Torrance. . In October we will again be back at LEGOLAND for several weekends celebrating Brick or Treat for Halloween. Also, for the season; we will be telling scary and Not too Scary Stories and Scary Urban Legends programs throughout the area. In November The Patchwork Players will be at the San Diego Jewish Book Fair and a Hanukkah celebration at Barnes and Nobel as part of a fund raiser for a local temple. We will be bringing Ocean Tales to the La Habra Children's Museum. Add to all that the International Tellabration event And tNovember brings the L.A. Storytelling Festival. And in the pipeline for December: The fun, fantastic and family friendly New Years Eve event; First Night Escondido.