STORYTELLER SPOTLIGHT
Our December Storyteller Spotlight shines on Bowen Lee. Bowen joined the Six Feet Apart Village in July 2021 when she appeared on our Open Mic StorySlam, “Revolution.” Since then, she has been on several other Open Mic shows and participated as a wild card in our 2023 StellarSlam. I was amazed when I read her response to the question, “How did you become involved in storytelling?” as I assumed she’d been telling stories for years. Her stories are wonderfully heartfelt, often humorous, and highlight the human condition. I’ve never heard a story of hers that did not strike a personal chord. .
Bowen’s featured story, “Santa,” was told on our December 2023 show, “Festive Fun & Follies.” You can see her story here:
Bowen’s answer to the question, “How did you come to storytelling?”
I didn’t know what storytelling was until the pandemic had me looking for storytellers for a Zoom event as part of a way to keep in touch with my contra dance community during shelter in place. I wanted to help out musicians who had lost their performance income, so I set up a virtual venue for out-of-work musicians with storytelling as a side attraction.
I found out that storytelling was an actual thing that people did for a living. It was an actual profession, and storytellers had agents, managers, and office personnel. I started listening to storytellers online during shelter-in-place, and Six Feet Apart was part of my introduction to storytelling magic.
We are so happy to have Bowen as part of our SFAP village.
To find out more about Bowen visit her website: HERE. Or connect with her on Facebook HERE.
Briane Nasimok. Briane with an “e” first found his way to our Six Feet Apart stage in 2023. He lives in Toronto and lends an international flair to our shows. He is a two time StorySlam winner, having taken home the Trophy Mug at our August 2023 show on the theme of “Schooled” and our March 2024 show, “Baked.” He brings humour (Canadian spelling:) to his stories and pretty much every conversation we’ve ever had.
Briane with his winning mugs
Briane won our StorySlam in March 2024 on theme of "Baked" . Here is his winning story:
Briane’s answer to the question, “How did you come to storytelling?”
My first story begins at age 7, blaming my brother for a kitchen mishap. It works. After seeing two stand-up comics, my older sister has me perform “Lady Featherbottom” with her, for family and friends. I get my first laugh. Then my sister decides to pursue a solo career and the team breaks up. Next, small parts at public school (a boy, a pirate, policeman number two).
At University, I play mute roles with the Canadian Opera Company and spend three years touring North America. Somehow that leads to stand-up comedy, in the ‘70’s. For those first few years I am a storyteller, but after Howie Mandel and Jim Carrey arrive, the audience changes and demands more punchlines. I retire.
I get a gig doing television warm-ups for live audiences which evolves to writing and producing television in Canada. That chapter has come to a close.
Fifteen years ago, I am writing and producing the Siminovitch Theatre Prize, someone asks, “why are you not performing?” Days later I get an email offering a course, “write you own story”. I have one. My opera career. After our student showcase, I turn the ten-minute tale into a 30-minute story at the Toronto International Storytelling Festival and Theatre Fringe Festival Production. Voila… I find my true passion. I create a monthly show, “But That’s Another Story” and discover Six Feet Apart. It takes me five years to turn from a funny guy telling stories, to a storyteller who share tales with humour.
We are so happy to have Briane as part of our SFAP village.
To find out more about Briane visit his website: HERE. Or connect with him on Facebook HERE.
Neshama Franklin has been part of our SFAP family as a teller since our Dec 2021 Open Mic and as an audience member before that. To hear Neshama tell is a joy. Her feisty, fierce nature, her love of language and a life filled with adventures gives her a vast repertoire of escapades to expound on.
She is a lover of language and a self proclaimed autodidact. We find it a good idea to have a dictionary handy when listening to her tell, unless you know the meaning of such words as lachrymose and labanotation. We didn’t.
Neshama with her StellarSlam Trophy
She was the winner of our June 2022 Open Mic StorySlam on the theme “School’s Out,” our 2023 StellarSlam “Leap of Faith”, and our May 2024 Open Mic “The Motherlode.” Here is her winning story from the show:
Neshama’s answer to the question, “How did you come to storytelling?”
It started in 1989. I didn’t realize I was a storyteller until I was recruited to be a storytelling witch for a Halloween program at the library where I’d gotten the job of my dreams. “What should I tell,” I asked. They gave me a positively bloodcurdling tale. “I’m supposed to tell this to kids?” “They’ll love it,” they reassured me. I read the story to myself a few times and it took hold and just like that I could tell it. It was so different from all those years learning lines as an actor and hanging out for endless rehearsals. So I plundered books of folktales, developed a considerable repertoire, and told all over the place: libraries, camps, gatherings and even a few festivals.
Then by chance I attended a show where the teller had a flyer that announced “your story must be told’ and offered workshops. People had been saying they liked the folktales but wanted to hear more about my life and that’s where I developed the personal stories I’ve been telling ever since. I joined local swap groups and moved on to the Moth where I became a regular and even won a grand slam or two. When Covid hit, there went those opportunities, but guess what? Six Feet Apart came into being and I’ve been with them ever since, greatly enjoying the opportunity to tell on a regular basis. Though it’s not like the reciprocal energy of live telling, I’ve discovered Zoom works just fine. I’ve become part of a cadre of regulars, as well as the brave souls who join us. I’m positively chuffed (that’s for Claire—so British) to be able to introduce you to their fine work.
Neshama volunteering at the Bay Area Storytelling Festival
We are so happy to have Neshama as part of our SFAP village.
To find out more about Neshama and watch more of her wonderful stories, subscribe to her YouTube channel HERE. Or connect with her on Facebook HERE.