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About Us
Both Kamini Ramachandran
and Verena Tay
attended a storytelling course organised by
Asian Storytelling Network and the National Book Development Council of
Singapore during 2003 and have never looked back since. In November
2004, we
joined forces
to found MoonShadow Stories
with the aim of promoting
the lost art of the oral narrative. We strongly
believe that if we can re-introduce the beauty and wonder of
storytelling to adults, then children will benefit. Hence, we were the
first contemporary storytellers in Singapore to focus on storytelling
for adults. Since 2005, MoonShadow Stories has been busy telling stories
to adults and children at The Substation, the Armenian Church, various
museums and other venues in Singapore.
What We've Done
Collectively under
MoonShadow Stories, Kamini and Verena have performed, organised and/or
conducted the events listed below. For our individual achievements,
please refer to our respective pages in this website.
Performances
(as of 11 July 2008)
•
Storytelling at various community venues
-
16 May
2008:
Dinner Storytelling as part of The Arts House’s My Own Series
(MoonShadow Stories/The Arts House/National Book Development Council of
Singapore; The Hall, The Arts House) ~ E-flyer courtesy of The Hall
 -
15
May 2008: Dinner Storytelling for sponsors of the Singapore
International Storytelling Festival 2008, National Book Development
Council of Singapore (The Hall, The Arts House)
- Mar 2007: Storytelling for adults
(NUS Arts
Festival 2007)
- 31 Oct 2006: Storytelling for adults (The
Lightworkers' Space)
- Feb–Mar
2006:
Tales Apart: Asian Tales for Adults;
storytelling to support the Power Dressing exhibition of traditional
Chinese costumes and textiles (Asian Civilisations Museum)
-
12–13 Aug
2005:
Archipelago!: Southeast Asian Island Stories and Music;
a landmark storytelling event for youths and adults at the Armenian
Church in celebration of Singapore’s 40th National Day (a
MoonShadow Stories/The Substation co-production)
- 3 Jun 2005: Pushing Boundaries: Power
Women (AWARE)
•
Storytelling for adults
at The Substation
- 4 & 5 July 2008:
Fracture
- 23 & 24 May 2008:
Charming...
- 6 & 7 Oct 2006:
Witches, Sirens &
Crones: Tales of Magickal Women
- 11 Feb 2006:
A Woman Divine: Walking
with the Goddesses
- 15 & 16 Oct 2005:
The Unnatural
- 20 & 21 Aug 2005:
Faeries for Adults
- 8–10
Jul 2005:
The Male Instinct
- 13–15
May 2005:
A Spring Feast
- 25–27
Feb 2005:
All About Hearts
- 14–16
Jan 2005:
Strong Women
- 14, 15 & 20 Aug 2003:
Women Who
Act: Asian-Pacific Folktales (Distressed Damsels
Not Wanted)
Workshops
(as of end 2007)
•
Storytelling workshops for adults and children
- 7 & 14 Jun 2005:
Stimulating the Mind’s Eye: How to Choose/Create Stories & Tell Them
Effectively (AWARE)
- 31 May 2005:
Stories in Art: Shoes That Tell Tales;
storytelling performance and craft workshop for children aged 5 to 7
(Singapore Art Museum)
Some Reviews About
MoonShadow Stories
"The
content: excellent selection and organisation. The language is very
amenable to the oral register (it’s simple yet vivid, also in many
instances there was appropriate rhyming etc); also liked the delivery –
hardly a dull moment.
~
Constance Wee
"I
found the stories original & marvellously well adapted. Keep finding new
stories from round the world!"
~
Pauline Steele, Accent 2000
"The
stories! Each was different but very welcome – quite a range!"
~
Cathy Spagnoli
"An
enchanting evening in a cosy setting taking you away from the city
life."
~
Georgina Robinson, Jobs DB Singapore
“I've never
attended a storytelling session for adults before and this one proved to
be a pleasant way to spend an evening with a friend, listening to the
beauty of the spoken word. Some might argue that storytelling is not as
challenging as traditional plays. However, with few or no props, there
is a great challenge in capturing and sustaining the audience's
attention. The storyteller's facial expressions, tone of voice, pacing,
use of gesture and attention to details all come into play. And through
these skills, Moonshadow Stories pleased its audience with its
simplicity and its desire to tell good stories.”
~ Nadia
Binte Ibrahim, ‘Once Upon a Time…’, Review of The Male Instinct,
Storytelling for Adults by MoonShadow Stories, 9 July 2005, The
Flying Inkpot Theatre Reviews,
http://inkpot.com/theatre/05reviews/0709,maleinst,ni.html (last
accessed: 6 February 2008)
“Chilling
folklores from all around the world were told by three professional
storytellers with three very distinct styles that managed to draw the
audience into the magical fold of wandering spirits, everlasting love,
and spine-tingling supernatural happenings...
With only the
manipulation of breath, the three skilled storytellers brewed
spine-tingling concoctions, vile and fantastically wicked. Retellings of
stories from Tibet, Southeast Asia and even a re-contextualizing of a
Native American story set in India about a love that endures beyond
life, sometimes scared, at other times soothed the listeners, who
allowed themselves to be willingly hypnotized by such a terrifying tale
told so enchantingly...
There was
nothing to distract the listeners from being immersed in story after
story. The crowd present clearly showed an intense appreciation for the
art of the oral tradition and one could only marvel and willingly submit
to being taken far away on flights of the imagination and journeys of
the heart, purely by active, collective listening. An intimate
atmosphere, eye contact between the tellers with the members of the
audience and an uncomplicated naturalness of human communication through
voice and presence was sheer soul candy.”
~ Chand,
‘Spooks up their Sleeves. Supernatural Weaves’, Review of The
Unnatural,
Storytelling for Adults by MoonShadow Stories, Oct 2005, The Ridge,
2005 Holiday Issue, p. 18
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