The Storytelling Ape
21st - 23rd November 2007
A Cumberland Lodge conference about
storytelling, imagination and society
in association with the London Centre
for International Storytelling
This
conference will introduce you to the world of the storytelling ape. Join us as
we explore humankind's need for storytelling, what we pass on through oral
stories, why we tell them, what happens to us when we listen, and the cultural
and political power stories can have. Encounter truths and lies, meet the preacher
and the poet, and grapple with issues of how to value the vanishing magic of
the ephemeral art of storytelling in today's society.
The format will be a combination of
performances, talks, panel debates and discussions.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
The
event is for artists, academics, arts organisations, educators, students and
researchers. It will also appeal to
sociologists, philosophers, writers, theatre directors, actors and therapists.
COST
The
registration fee is £395,
and includes all meals and accommodation at the Lodge. A subsidised rate of £185 is available for unwaged,
self-employed, or student guests which will be on a twin bedded room-sharing
basis, and includes all meals.
CONTACT
To
register your interest please e-mail: Janis@cumberlandlodge.ac.uk or call 01784 497794 (places are limited so
book early to avoid disappointment)
LOCATION
Cumberland Lodge, Windsor Great Park, Berkshire
Cumberland
Lodge is a splendid seventeenth-century house set in the heart of
Cumberland
Lodge is an independent organisation which aims to promote fresh debate and
cross-sector co-operation on a range of matters affecting the development of
society. It fulfils its mission by designing and running seven or eight residential
conferences a year which enable invited guests to discuss contemporary issues
of national and international significance. In addition, Cumberland Lodge
encourages university students and academics to discuss the social and ethical
implications of their work.
Wednesday 21st November
15.30 Arrival, tea
16.45 Welcome by Dr Alastair
Niven, Principal,
17.00 The storytelling ape
We
uniquely and universally tell stories; what is the nature of humankind’s need
to tell stories; orality and oral storytelling as the primal form of narrative;
stories in all media; why do we tell stories?
Marina Warner, Robert Irwin
17.50
Discussion about the above topics, in
relation to different forms of storytelling
Marina Warner, Robert Irwin
18.30 Drinks reception in the Drawing Room followed by dinner
20.30: Storytelling performance
Ben Haggarty
Thursday 22nd November
08.15 Breakfast
09.00 In the presence of a
storyteller
How does
cognition and imagination respond to oral storytelling?
Ben Haggarty, Abbi Patrix
10.30 Coffee
11.00 Only for children...
Why the
oral story has become to be seen as the preserve of children and ‘alternative
types’; where does the adult imagination go?
Nicola Bown, Neil Philip
13.00 Lunch
14.00 A story can kill
The
power of oratory and the manipulation of myth; political and religious
storytelling
Ngugi
Wa Thiong’o (provisionally confirmed)
16.30 Tea
17.00 Tell me so I can see
Social
uses of storytelling; why and how oral storytelling is used in education,
therapy and business
Susanna Steele, Alida Gersie, and John
Simmons
19.00 Dinner
20.30: Storytelling performance
Jan
Blake, Abbi Patrix
Friday 23rd November
08.15 Breakfast
09.00 Storytelling and cultural
identity
What is
the role of oral storytelling in cosmopolitan and multicultural societies?
Shahrukh Husain
09.50 Panel discussion
Whose
story is it anyway? What is the relationship between traditional stories and
human
commonality?
Do we have a national mythology? Do societies
respond to communally shared
stories?
Jan Blake, Robert Irwin, Michael Macy
11.00 Coffee
11.30 Vanishing magic
Where is
oral storytelling now in our society and how can we find and rediscover it?
Erica Wagner
12.30
Lunch
and departure
The information is correct at the
time of printing - July 2007.
Cumberland Lodge reserves the right
to alter the programme in the event of unforeseen circumstances.