It was a story
of the wolf re-introduction to Yellowstone National Park that wholeheartedly
confirmed Sarah Syverson’s notion that starting the Raven Narratives was a good
idea. Syverson, who along with Tom Yoder, started the storytelling event
earlier this year; this weekend they will host two performances on Friday and
Saturday, in Cortez and Durango respectively.
Syverson’s face becomes illuminated
when she recalls Steve Underwood’s story from the inaugural Raven Narratives
event about the wolves in Yellowstone. Underwood, who is currently the fire
chief at Mesa Verde National Park, was part of the crew who facilitated the
controversial reintroduction of the wolf in Yellowstone in the mid-nineties. It
was so contentious they shipped the wolves in during the nighttime had a decoy
vehicle to ploy angry ranchers who might try to disrupt the process. Later, as
the wolves were transported into a truck they realized the alpha wolf had
chewed through the bombproof cage, and had escaped.
It’s these sort of stories Syverson
and Yoder knew were out there in the residents of our Four Corners region, they
just needed to provide a platform. Both longtime fans of The Moth, a
storytelling event and podcast based out of New York City, the inspiration came
a little closer to home when Yoder attended a Moth event at last year’s
Telluride Mountainfilm. After that Yoder knew he wanted to start something and
quickly turned to Syverson and together they created the Raven Narratives.
The format is simple: a quarterly
event, with eight people telling stories around ten minutes each, told without
notes, and each time there’s a different them. This time the theme is baggage.
Syverson, a playwright and director,
who lives in Mancos, was more than pleased with the inaugural events, which
were hosted at the Sunflower Theatre in Cortez and the Durango Arts Center here
in town. “They were so powerful, I just can’t get over it,” she said.
Syverson is also a huge fan of The
Moth, but what she loves about the Raven Narratives is the local flavor and the
fact that many of the stories are set in wild places, something that sets their
event apart from The Moth. “There’s a different flavor in the stories set in
wilderness versus urban environments,” she said. “There’s a beauty that comes
along with our landscape that really translates well into stories.”
Something both Yoder and Syverson
recognize is the desire for an authentic, human story told in person. “This is
a commonality that is in the DNA of the human being,” Yoder said. “It runs
really deep, we have been telling stories in front of campfires for as long as
humanity has existed.”
Yoder himself will be one of eight
storytellers this weekend, and he’s mentally preparing for the piece, which
involves exposing some baggage from events that happened in his childhood. He
wants to understand the process of telling the story so that he can help others
with their own at events in the future. He also wants to embrace the sort of
vulnerability he likes to see out of a good story, something not always found
in the modern day-to-day existence. “That is where our commonality is as human
beings,” he said. “But I’m also going through this oh-my-God moment that I’m
about to put this story out there. It takes courage. The intimacy of this event
is a big part of why it’s so appealing.”
Even though the inaugural weekend
was sold out, the Raven Narratives kept the same, intimate venues for the
follow up. Keeping the crowd small and close is a big part of why it was so
successful the first time around. “I don’t know if it would really work with
hundreds and hundreds of people,” Yoder said.
Each event is turned into a podcast
available afterwards on iTunes, Soundcloud and other free media outlets. The
radio station, KSJD out of Cortez, where Yoder works as a Program Director also
provides essential resources. Ticket sales help offset some of the costs, but
overall the Raven Narratives is a labor of love for our community. “The
storytelling creates a true sense of connection for the community. That kind of
thing is priceless.”
For this event there’s a lineup of
eight local storytellers, some of whom are likely going through the emotions of
feeling vulnerable, excited, nervous and eager to tell their stories. Yoder is
very ready to tell his story to the world, and is comforted that the crowd will
be his neighbors and community members. “I’m pretty nervous, but I know after I
get through it, there’s going to be this weight that will be lifted. Stories
want to be told, and have lives of their own. Once a story is told its
relieved. A lot of us carry around stories we are scared to tell. But there’s a
transformative power to storytelling.”
Syverson herself couldn’t be more
excited about the weekend, “This is my favorite medium of live performance. These
simple acts get to the core of what we really care about as a community.”
She also encourages everyone in the
community who is interested to consider telling a story, “everyone has a story
to tell and sometimes those who don’t think they are storytellers are the best ones”.
My new memoir, American Climber, is now available.
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