Interview
Murrumbeena Primary School Interviews Cora Zon
When did you decide to become a storyteller?
Once upon a time when I was a little girl I had a magical green book. This book whisked me away into another world, a world where ants and ducks and bees could talk and help with difficult, seemingly impossible, tasks.
Time passed. The book had been placed on a shelf and all but forgotten.
Then one day, in 1993, my daughter and I were travelling along Bridge Road in Richmond when suddenly I saw a life-sized sculpture of a winged horse in the window of a shop.
As soon as it was possible I pulled over and parked the car.
Once inside the shop we were told that a story was about to begin.
A story? I asked.
‘Yes’ the woman said, with a twinkle in her eye. ‘You must experience this.’
We were ushered into a special room where gum leaves were scattered on the floor and fairy lights were twisted around the branches that encircled the space.
Like stepping through the cupboard into Narnia we were now in a forest, complete with stars overhead. Children, seated on mushroom shaped cushions, were waiting with eager anticipation.
A fairy floated into the room and began to tell the group a story. It was a story she knew off by heart; a story she told without a book.
It was quite enchanting. My daughter was delighted. It had that special charm that had so captivated me as a little girl with the magical green book.
An old door into the world of the imagination had reappeared and opened.
I was keen to explore.
Where did you learn the art of storytelling?
The shop in which I first encountered storytelling was called Wonderwings. I discovered that there was more than one fairy shop in Melbourne. We went to listen to storytellers in all of them.
A friend encouraged me to tell a story at her daughter’s birthday party. My daughter and I developed the story together incorporating elements that she loved: cats, colour, painting and magic! We called it “The Rainbow Kittens.” I made a fairy costume, complete with wings and wand.
I found out that there was a Storytelling Guild. I joined and attended meetings. I listened and listened and listened. The Guild ran workshops on the art of storytelling. I went to several of those workshops. The opportunity to try out stories was also offered at Guild gatherings.
The world of story was rich and beautiful.
I discovered that stories were not just to entertain pre-school children but food for the soul for all… from the youngest to the oldest, to encourage, inspire and nourish.
The second story I told began in text form. It was “The Little Match Girl” by Hans Christian Anderson. Tears fell when I read the version in the book “Women who run with the wolves” by Clarissa Pinkola Estes. The story moved me and that made me want to tell it.
How do you learn to tell a story?
I begin the process of learning a story by writing down the main events and drawing pictures.
I also write down phrases I like.
After I have mapped the story on paper my favourite way to begin telling it is with a friend who would also like to learn the story.
We put away our notes and drawings and begin by taking turns telling it, bit by bit. Throwing a small pillow or a soft toy to each other as way to indicate, “your turn” makes it fun. Once we have told the story in this fashion we then tell the story all the way through by ourselves.
Then the only way to feel comfortable with a story is to tell it many times, over and over and over.
Another thing that I find helpful is to do some research.
I have seen and handled a piece of silk brocade to get a feel for the material that was made in the story “The Dream Brocade”. I have walked amongst apple trees in an orchard. I have patted a camel. I look at illustrations and photographs. I look up words in the dictionary. I look at maps. I read about the history of a place. I listen to the traditional music of an area. All of this helps to create a picture in the mind of the setting and the features of a story. The blending of memory and imagination help make the story feel real.
How do you remember the whole story?
When I am telling a story it is like being in a dream; telling a story to a captivated audience is like experiencing the dream together. Remembering the whole story is more about relating what is happening in each moment because when a story is working it is happening in that moment. One event follows another.
Do you tell stories other than folktales?
My genre is folk and fairy tales. I love to tell folktales, fairy tales, tales of the fantastic, tales of things that could only happen in the world of the imagination. I love the drama, the images and the sense of wonder that these stories evoke.
The stories in my collection illustrate qualities such as vision, courage, integrity, patience, persistence, appreciation and the inner strength to triumph over physical and emotional challenges… sometimes by describing what happens without those qualities!
Where do you get your stories from?
I have collected stories from books and from other storytellers. There are stories in my repertoire that I have read first and stories that I have heard first.
