A Fantastic Partnership Blooms with Haley House Bakery Cafe!

Co-host Nina LaNegra welcomes massmouth co-founder
Andrea Lovett to the Art Is Life Itself Performance Series
 at Haley House Bakery Cafe. 

On Thursday, February 24th, massmouth partnered with Haley House Bakery Cafe in Roxbury's Dudley Square to bring storytelling to the Life is Art Performance Series hosted by Bay State College Professor Nina LaNegra. A huge success, this collaboration was a first for both massmouth and Haley House! Haley House's intimate setting, soft lighting, and gorgeous quilt lined walls blended with the tantalizing smell of healthy, lovingly prepared food to relax the crowd of new storytellers and set the tone for the evening. Quintessential performer ToRena Webb Thomas and massmouth co-founder Andrea Lovett co-hosted the evening along with Nina LaNegra and Fulani Marilyn Haynes.

Quintessential Performer and co-host
ToRena Webb Thomas shares a story.

Ten brave tellers grabbed the mic and shared their "Point of View" on topics as varied as hair length, unions, religious and racial tolerance, fasting to reach spiritual enlightenment, ethnic profiling, and love. First place winner Margie Klein, however, stole the show with her story about her experience as an environmental activist working in South Florida to influence a senator's vote on the Clean Power Act.

The youth she recruited to deliver signatures to the senator included a young arsonist who expressed anger that he was in juvenile detention for setting fires that created the smell of burning chemicals, while companies that build power plants that create the same smell make money, instead. After hearing the juvenile's passionate comparison, the Senator voted to support the Clean Power Act. Margie vowed never to judge a person based on their circumstances again.

First place winner Margie Klein!

Margie's powerful, personal story won her a $50 gift certificate to the Haley House Bakery Cafe, a massmouth winner's t-shirt, and the opportunity to influence others' point of view when she tells her story again at the Big Mouthoff on April 26th at the Boston Public Library's Rabb Hall. A second story slam will be held at Haley House on Thursday, March 31st! In the meantime, you have the opportunity to tell your story on the theme "Death and Taxes" on Sunday, March 13th at The Enormous Room in Central Square with co-hosts Gus Rancatore of Central Square's Toscanini's and massmouth co-founder Norah Dooley. Check out the details on this and other massmouth events here: http://massmouth.ning.com/events

massmouth offers LANES conference scholarship

For 30 years, Sharing the Fire and LANES have been gathering storytellers and story lovers together to deepen their art and practice. For more than 100 years, Lesley has been sending inspired individuals into the world to share their gifts though creative teaching, counseling and management. For over 20 years storytelling has been offered as a graduate level course Lesley U and storytelling skills already add to the powerful work of Lesley University students as they enrich the lives of communities, clients and students.

This year The League for the Advancement of New England Storytelling (LANES.org) and massmouth,inc. are extending a special invitation to Lesley students.  Sharing The Fire was created when the Outreach Division of Lesley College Graduate School, Cambridge, MA, hired Lee-Ellen Marvin to “do something with storytellers.” Lesley College was the original sponsor of “Sharing the Fire” (first through seventh annual). LANES was formally organized in the summer of 1987 and officially launched in 1988. In 2008 the conference was renamed “Sharing the Fire: The Northeast Storytelling Conference”.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of “Sharing the Fire”, and to honor the historical relationship between Lesley U and storytelling, LANES.org and massmouth, inc. have created 4 scholarship slots at this year’s “Sharing the Fire”, themed "Healing The World...One Story At A Time” on March 19th - 20th, 2011 in Warwick, Rhode Island. The conference provides workshops, performances, round table discussions; vendor exhibits and thought- provoking Keynote Speakers. This conference is renowned for the supportive atmosphere for veteran & beginning storytellers alike.

Norah & family on graduation day, 1991

Lesley's Creative Arts in Learning graduate and co-founder/executive director at massmouth inc., Norah Dooley and all the co-directors are very excited that massmouth will provide the opportunity to attend “Sharing the Fire” to two graduate Creative Arts and Learning students.  LANES.org is equally excited to provide 2 scholarships for Lesley University Expressive Therapies students studying now “where it all started”.  All 4 scholarship recipients will receive a one-year student membership to LANES.org.

Each scholarship to “Sharing the Fire” will include:

·       One full day registration on Saturday (or Sunday but Saturday has the fullest schedule)

·       A one year student memberships to LANES.org

·       $25 cash stipend to help cover travel expenses ( given on the day of attendance)

·       Meals for the day and evening

To apply for this scholarship opportunity, students in the Expressive Therapy, Art Therapy, Creative Arts and Learning or Education program will fill out an online application https://massmouth.wufoo.com/forms/lanes-massmouth-scholarships-to-sharing-the-fire/ by MARCH 10th, 2011 including a 500 word maximum written response to the prompt, “How has knowing or telling someone’s story played a role in the expanding your mind, your world view, your emotional self or the effectiveness of your work?” Students with most compelling statements will be entered in a drawing chosen by a random drawing and will be notified no later MARCH 14th, 2011.  The stipend will be dispensed in cash, at the conference.

Sincerely yours,

Norah's first experience with storytelling was at Lesley, in Jennifer Justice's class

LANES.org
Yvonne Zinicola, Executive Director

Joanne Piazzi, President of the Board

Andrea Lovett, Program Director

Nicolette Heavey, Managing Director

Norah Dooley, Executive Director