Holiday greetings Ex Fabulites! We hope the December rain isn’t stopping you from enjoying this fair city of ours. As we prepare for the Spectacular, we decided to ask the Spectacular Storytellers for their thoughts on great storytelling.
Storytelling is powerful. While it binds us all together as one big human family, it also affects each of us in different ways. “As a kid, I always loved hearing people’s stories & getting to know who they are underneath the layers,” comments storyteller Kerri Grote. “We are able to learn things about ourselves and others that we’d normally miss out on.” Rissie Lundberg shared, “We tell our own stories & listen to the stories of others. We’re learning what makes up the essence of America, the world.”
Have you always wanted to share your tale but get nervous? Conn Hagen wants you to know that “Anyone who has second thoughts about telling a story (at Ex Fabula) should remember, you’re talking to your ‘friends’.” For Lee Rowley, storytelling is being able to relate to your audience, demographics aside, and get them to understand your particular point of view.
Holidays are a popular time of the year to gather and share stories with some of our favorite people: family and friends. Speaking of her mother, Rochelle Fritsch says, “Her stories gave me a glimpse into (the lives of) family members who had passed on and what life was like in Milwaukee during the 1920’s and 1930’s.” As a result of her family’s storytelling tradition, Dianne Pratt knows a lot about her family and where she came from; “I realized early that everybody has a story,” she reflects. However, some of our favorite storytellers are people we’ve never even met. Grant Hagen’s favorite storyteller, Alexander McCall Smith, is a writer who created the iconic characters Isabel Dalhousieie & Precious Ramotswe.
The desire to listen to & share (hopefully) true, personal stories is as old as time itself. We seek out the tales of others, hoping to learn more about them, the evolving world & ourselves. There is purpose and meaning behind every word, each movement of our respective narratives. Or as Kerri Grote says, “We all just want to be heard & validated; know that we matter.”
Tickets are still available for the Spectacular! They’re going fast so get yours today!! A huge thank you to our sponsors: Wisconsin Arts Board, Wisconsin Humanities Council, Milwaukee Business Journal, OnMilwaukee.com and season sponsor, Transfer Pizzeria + Cafe.
The gift of Ex Fabula is now available in more sizes than ever!! In addition to memberships, you can give the gift of tickets, workshops & Ex Fabula credit in any amount.
Finish (or start) your holiday shopping now!
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