`warts And All, Vol. 1,' Is Moe. At Its Best

Ann Laychur

By MARY THERESE BIEBEL marytb@leader.net
 Thursday, November 15, 2001 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1D 





Swaying left and right, the perky chorus of ``nymph cheerleaders'' giggled
and chanted a warning, ``Don't mess with Minerva.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Moments later, with a quick change of voice and body language, the rah-rah
squad transformed itself into the legendary goddess - arrayed in gleaming
armor and accompanied by her pet owl - and a defiant young weaver named
Arachne, who dared to compare her human skill with Minerva's divine command of
the loom. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Let the contest begin,'' the two snarled at each other. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 As a small audience applauded, the pair dissolved into laughter and resumed
their everyday personas as Leanne Grace and Gerry Hart, two Shickshinny-area
educators who love a good story enough to commit it to memory and practice it
so thoroughly that they can tell it in exquisitely timed tandem. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Hart and Grace,'' as they call themselves, are two of six word weavers
from the Voices of the Valley storytellers club who will present the 10th
annual ``Tellabration'' 8 p.m. Saturday at Barnes &amp; Noble Booksellers in the
Arena Hub Plaza, Wilkes-Barre Township. Admission is free. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Similar events will take place all over the world that day, as storytellers
celebrate the bond their traditional art allows them to create with their
audience. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Tuesday night, the Voices of the Valley celebrated their own bond by
rehearsing a bit for each other. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Trish Palmer of Sugarloaf Township began a story about a prolific fisherman
who shared his bounty in ``one person, one fish'' fashion. Hands on hips,
Palmer took an angry stance to show how annoyed a monarch became when the man
wanted to limit even his royal highness to a single fish. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Elaine Rash of Plains Township told the group about ``The Cleverest Son,''
a fable of three brothers who were challenged by their father to see who could
most easily fill a room. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The first brother tried a wagonload of hay. The second thought feathers
would work. The third returned with two very small items in his pocket, Rash
said, mysteriously rummaging in the pocket of her skirt as listeners tried to
guess what that young man had brought. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Later, Maria Capolarella-Montante of Pittston told a Japanese folk tale
about a badger and a magic fan that could make a person's nose grow longer or
shorter. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 No one could help one unfortunate little girl, whose nose was ``out to
here.'' People suggested she eat thistle or sea urchins or cabbage, tie her
nose in a knot, or put a bow on it. But nothing worked except the magic fan,
which Capolarella-Montante demonstrated with a flutter of her hand against her
face. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I'm going to have a fan on Saturday,'' the storyteller said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Oh, no, I like your hand,'' Grace said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``A fan would be distracting. Your hand was very powerful,'' Hart advised. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``And your face, too,'' Grace added. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Convinced, Capolarella-Montante nodded. She would not bother to bring a
fan. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 No matter how experienced the storytellers become, they crave such
feedback. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I wanted to make sure it felt like it was flowing,'' said Mary Baker,
Voices of the Valley president, who accompanied herself on guitar as she told
a story she'd written about a dam that accepts more and more water - until
it's just too much. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Yes, her friends told her. The story flowed. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I love your personification of the dam,'' Palmer said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``And the repetition,'' Grace added. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``It puts me in mind of the Agnes Flood,'' Capolarella-Montante said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The story took 10 years to evolve, Baker said, and it's becoming part of
her. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I'm feeling it now.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 IF YOU GO &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 WHAT: Tellabration &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 WHEN: 8 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 WHERE: Barnes &amp; Noble Booksellers in the Arena Hub Plaza, Wilkes-Barre
Township &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ADMISSION: Free &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 BENEFIT: Books purchased at the balloon-decorated cash register benefit the
Osterhout Library and Voices of the Valley &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

'once Upon A Time...there Were Storytellers' 10th Annual 'tellabration' Set Saturday At Barnes & Noble