Six years ago Willow Tales was established
in Northcote; an event where people were invited to tell short autobiographical
stories to a theme. The popularity of this kind of storytelling has grown and
grown.
Jon Bennet and Cathy Culliver now manage
three events under the umbrella title of COCK AND BULL:
Cock and Bull (Fitzroy)
Bazaar Tales (City)
Felix Tales (St Kilda)
As well as the live storytelling nights,
Cathy and Jon have gone into podcasting with "The Cock and Bull".
Cathy, what inspired these nights of
story?
It all began about 6 years ago with Willow
Tales, which was originally called Northcote Storytellers. Local poet Dan Lee
wanted to recreate the days when people would sit around the house telling
stories to each other around a fire. The format began as being like
a grandfather telling stories to his grandkids; there was a lounge chair
on stage with the only lighting being a small lamp attached to the chair. The
storyteller would sit in the chair, turn on the lamp and the story would begin.
Jon Bennett was one of the inaugural
performers to get involved, having recently started to include more
storytelling in his comedy routine. He eventually took over the running of what
we now know as Willow Tales, and it's all grown from there.
What must a storyteller do if they wish
to tell a story at any of the events?
They should have a read of our storyteller
guidelines (available on the Facebook page), and if they've never been to one
of our nights before, we usually recommend coming along as a spectator first,
just to get an idea of how it all works. There's also a list of upcoming dates
and themes on the relevant Facebook pages.
Then it's just a matter of getting in touch
with us on Facebook and letting us know which event you'd like to tell a story
at. For those who don't have Facebook, you can email us at podcast@cockandbull.com.au.
Is there an entry fee to the night?
No it's free entry, but we do usually ask
the audience for "pay as you feel" donations at the end if they have
enjoyed themselves. It goes toward paying our MCs and other acts, as well as
the general upkeep of the events.
Jon Bennet is a comedian. Do the
stories have to be funny?
Have you plans to include live
storytelling in the comedy festival or the Fringe?
Probably not for the Fringe, but we
definitely have plans to put on a storytelling show for next year's Melbourne
International Comedy Festival, so stay tuned.
Are you are storyteller too?
What is the best story you have heard
so far?
- Harley Breen's story of his wife
giving birth
- Simon Keck's attempted suicide
- Pinky Watson's story about pretending to
be a hippy in the 60s and living across the road from Jefferson Airplane.
Anything else you would like to say?
And to listen to our podcast, search
for "Cock and Bull" in the iTunes store, or visit cockandbull.com.au. The podcast features
many live recordings from the various events around Melbourne, as well as other
interviews etc.
PLUS I'd like to say that anyone who has
the slightest interest or curiosity in our nights should come on down to check
it out. People are constantly coming up to me to say what a wonderful night
they've had, but it feels like live storytelling in Melbourne is still a
bit of an underground movement and not many people know about it. So please
come along, and if you like it (which I promise you will), tell all your family
and friends to come too!
You can follow Cock and Bull and keep up
with the dates and themes of all the storytelling events and podcasts.
