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Once upon a time

Latino storytellers carry on oral tradition of classic tales, legends

From classic legends about La Llorona to modern chupacabra thrillers, it’s no wonder that the rich Latino tradition of storytelling would make its way from backyard family get-togethers to the stage.

On Oct. 27 and 28, the nationally-recognized Mesa Storytelling Festival will feature a well-respected national Latina storyteller as well as a local Latina talent. Leeny Del Seamonds, of Massachussetts, will perform in Mesa after completing a three-week storytelling tour of China. The Cuban-American was named the 2002 National Storyteller of the Year and spices her work with stories from her heritage as well as expressive mime. She is one of eight national storytellers scheduled to perform during the two-day festival.

When tale spinners are ready to share their family stories on a professional level as Del Seamonds does, one option is the South Mountain Storytelling Institute. South Mountain is the only community college in the country that offers an academic certificate in storytelling.

Ricardo Provencio, a counselor and professor, was one of the founders of the Institute a dozen years ago. Telling stories came naturally to Provencio. As he grew up in Superior, one of his first teachers was his Tìa Luisa – a "feisty woman" who entertained the family with stories of her three marriages and eight kids.

"We’re always around storytellers in our families, whether at weddings or bautismos or birthdays, we always hear stories," he says. Provencio performs at libraries, schools and museums sharing family stories and Mexican folktales that he has researched. Some of his stories feature Pedro Ordimales – a classic trickster character popular in northern Mexico. "Every culture has its own story bank," he says.

Liz Warren, another co-founder of the Storytelling Institute, says the Latino culture has a wealth of myths, legends and folk tales for storytellers.

This year, the Institute will add a bilingual storytelling class to its list of 17 different classes. Marilyn Omifunke Santiago, a graduate of the program, will teach the class in the spring.

Omikunke Santiago has been storytelling for 25 years, since she visited Nigeria in her 20s to find out more about the African part of her heritage.

"I’ve always been a traditional teller and I fell in love with the process – the idea of initiating and awakening the innate storytelling gene that we share across cultures."

Omikunke Santiago is one of the regional talents chosen to spin tales at the Mesa Festival, sharing stories from her Puerto Rican, African and Native American cultures.

As with many storytellers, she finds the art can be used in her day job as a teacher in a dual-language charter school.

While oral stories were the "first form of entertainment," LynnAnn Wojciechowicz, director of the South Mountain Storytelling Institute, fears that the tradition is fading. "So many young people today grow up with video games and television and they don’t get the stories."

Wojciechowicz, who will host a storytelling swap at the Mesa festival where anyone can tell a five-minute story, believes events such as this can help continue the tradition. "Coming to a live storytelling event brings you back into community with other people, it’s really unifying."

MESA STORYTELLING FESTIVAL

9 a.m. -- 9 p.m., Friday, Oct. 27 9:30 a.m. -- 9 p.m.,
Saturday, Oct 28
On the lawn of Mesa Centennial Hall,
201 N. Center St., Mesa
Tickets: All Access/Both Days -- $35 adult/$20 student
All Access/One Day -- $25 adult/$15 student
Early Bird Concert Only (Friday 4 to 5:30 p.m.) -- $7 per person
Family Concert Only (Friday or Saturday 7 to 9 p.m.) -- $10 per person
Free admission for kids in costume on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. -- noon includes scary stories for children, costume parade and activities.

For more information and schedule of performances: visit www.mesastorytelling.org

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