December 12-14
Stories are gifts wrapped in words. They touch people by expressing the whole range of human experience and emotion, allowing us to see the world through a different lens. Weaving the thread of the tale through each listener, a storyteller binds an audience together. Each listener creates different images in the mind yet shares in the collective experience. This power of story has prompted people for centuries to use it as a gateway of learning about our culture, history, the natural world our behavior, and, of course, to entertain.
On the surface, this workshop will introduce ideas and techniques for learning and refining a story for telling. But on a deeper level, it will tap your imagining mind, help you discover your voice, and encourage you to move your body in new ways. Using movement, drama, facial expression, creative visualizations, and vocal exploration, we will work in pairs and in groups to prepare our stories for telling. Come ready to grunt, laugh, make funny faces, and take risks in a safe atmosphere. Emphasis will be on finding your own style and strengths as a teller of stories.
Stories are effective, powerful, and magical tools. Most of the best orators and educators are storytellers! If you want to bring creative energy into your life, this workshop will help you develop an ease with communicating, entertaining, and expressing yourself. And you'll have lots of fun! Please join Rona as she returns to Rowe for the third time, bringing her enthusiastic nature to share her skills and love for teaching and stories! PDPs available for teachers.
Rona Leventhal is a Storyteller, improvisational theatre and movement specialist, certified teacher and environmental educator. She is applauded for her dramatic, warm, and enthusiastic spirit, supportive nature, and inspiring talent. An eclectic Educator, Rona is deeply committed to helping children develop positive attitudes towards literacy, to helping all people discover their imaginative and creative selves, and to nurturing their abilities and confidence in expressing themselves with others. Rona is recognized for her artistry by the Arts Councils of Massachusetts, NY, Utah, and Alaska. She travels internationally telling stories, presenting workshops and school residencies for children and adults, giving keynote addresses at professional conferences, and providing coaching to small groups, individuals, and organizations. She has taught at U Mass, Lesley University, and Cambridge College, and is coeditor of Spinning Tales, Weaving Hope: Stories, Storytelling, and Activities for Peace, Justice, and the Environment. We welcome Rona back to fill our walls with laughter and spirit once again.
"Rona's animated and expressive story telling captivates the hearts and minds of listeners of every age. Her inner beauty is apparent in every word and gesture. She is a sensitive and talented teacher and a beautiful human being." Rabbi Herman Blumberg, Temple Shir Tikva, Wayland, MA Rona Leventhal
"For me, your workshop has taken me into new corners of my being -places that are wonderful, but where I rarely go....places of chance, of whimsy, of risk. I can confidently say that these previously unused parts will unfold in me for a long time to come. For this, I am very grateful. A thousand thanks!" Donna Lippman