A compilation of a podcast series Brian and I did for the Minnesota Fringe Festival, this episode looks at why we tell stories and how they can be elevated in a live performance. You can listen to the original series, The Minnesota FringeCast, at MinnesotaFringe.org/FringeCast.
You can't win if you don't enter.
The Minnesota Fringe Festival is a performing arts festival in Minneapolis and Saint Paul where you can see a crazy number of shows over eleven days in August. As an artist putting up a show, you’ll get to do your show five times with the support of Fringe staff, professional technicians and volunteers. For a chance to get spot in the 2019 Minnesota Fringe Festival, you’ll need to submit your application by February 14. If your number gets drawn on February 25, you're in the festival! You can find more information on the Fringe website.
We would love to see you there.
We're hosting a QuOTeD Social & Storytelling on Friday, February 22 at the Urban Forage Winery & Cider House in Minneapolis. More details are here. Or you can follow the event on Facebook.
Can I tempt you with a gift?
Honestly, I almost said "free gift", but if it's not free... well. It is certainly a modest gift, but a nice one. You can pick it up on Valentine's Day at the Urban Forage Winery & Cider House at 3016 East Lake Street in Minneapolis.
How do you start a craft beverage business?
How to start a craft beverage business will be the subject of a future episode of QuOTeD. It will be based on a panel discussion that I will be moderating at the Urban Forage Winery & Cider House on February 20.
Thank you
In the original FringeCast we talked to over 120 people and discovered different theater companies, businesses and blogs along the way. We were so grateful for the insights everyone shared. Here are some highlights:
Artists
Adrian Lopez-Balbontin, The Band GroupAmy Rummenie and John Heimbuch , Walking Shadow Theater CompanyBen Thietje, DalekoArtsChristi Smith and Jane Laskey , On the Verge Theater, Mankato (Facebook)Keith Hovis, Playwright and ComposerKarim Muasher and Carrie Brown, Animal Engine Theater CompanyKirsten Stephens, Laughing Nomad ProductionsKyle DeGoey and Travis Carpenter - Literally EntertainmentLevi Weinhagen, Comedy SuitcaseMatthew Saxe, ActorMax Wojtanowicz, Actor/WriterMitchell Frazier, Fringe TechnicianNoah Sonie, Magician/MentalisitRick Ausland, Sparkle Theatricals (Facebook)Sam Landon, WriterShannon Custer, Writer, Actor, DirectorSulia Altenberg, ActorTony Stoeri, Fringe TechnicianTracy Yang, Fringe Artist, Dancer, Movement Therapist (Facebook)Victoria Pyan, Little Life Boats Theater Company
BlogGers, Journalists, Podcasters...
Brian WeneLaura VanZandt, Blogger, One Girl, Two CitiesLaura Kulm, Blogger, Twin Cities StagesJill Schafer, Blogger, Cherry and SpoonJulie Jackson and Carol Jackson, Bloggers, Minnesota Theater LoveJay Gabler, City PagesStu King, Character Crusade Unbound Podcast Gary Gilson, Formally of Channel 2Ryan Barland, Oral Historian, Minnesota Historical Society
More...
Michael Gil, Head Brewer, Lake Monster Brewery Jake Rudegeair, Graphic Recorder, More Belief Laurie Pape Hadley, Audio Describer, Twitter Jennifer Pennington, Can Can Wonderland Minnesota Fringe Festival patrons, artists past and present, staff, board members and interns...
These are stories of persistence: A single mother who is trying to get some help. Campaigners who don't know when to quit. A fight against segregation. Cafeteria workers who are trying to get the attention of management. A student who won’t take no for an answer. A Senator who won’t say yes. What’s amazing is that all of these stories about persistence intersect over time and space.
Thanks for Listening!
Let me know what you think about this! You are always welcome to contact me here.
transcript
This episode called for a transcript because some of the oral history tapes I used might be a challenge to hear in some spots, although I don't think it will be needed in most cases. So why use these tapes in the first place? It's the kind of stuff that wouldn't likely make it on most radio shows. Nor would some of these interviews ever make it into an exhibit at the Minnesota History Center, for example. So I just like the idea of using some of these "scraps" in an audio format by mixing them with other voices. They are voices worth hearing.
A Single Mother's Pivotal Moment
I met Faith on the 2004 presidential campaign for Dennis Kucinich. We spoke on my porch earlier this fall. Or was it late summer? Whatever it was, it was warm enough to sit on the porch. I grabbed the microphone when Faith started to tell me the story about the time she applied for a government program that was supposed to help young single mothers get on their feet. The powers that be told her that she had little hope of ever being successful and that this was the reason she wouldn't qualify for a housing certificate that she desperately needed. Faith did more than be persistent. She got a handle on her view of things and that changed everything.
1964 - Do Something
The piece I share here was adapted from the one I submitted to the 2018 Sonic South competition held by the Southern Oral History Program at the University Of North Carolina. The idea was to use interviews from their archives to talk about persistence. The language used in these interviews sounded like persistence to me: “We kept going back…” They were done as part of the 50th Anniversary of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee:
Interview with Dunn, Arlene Wilgoren by Karlyn Forner, April 16, 2010 U-0447, in the Southern Oral History Program Collection #4007, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillInterview with Stoller, Nancy Elaine by David Cline, April 16, 2010 U-0456, in the Southern Oral History Program Collection #4007, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
In addition to these, you might be interested in hearing other interviews about SNCC. Here’s a link to several of them:
U.017. The Long Civil Rights Movement: The South Since the 1960s: The 50th Anniversary of Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
There is also this article about the segregated cafeteria at the Arkansas State Capitol:
Kirk, John. A. (Summer 2013). Capitol Offenses: Desegregating the Seat of Arkansas Government, 1964-1965. The Arkansas Historical Quarterly, Vol. LXXXII, No. 2, pp. 95-119.
While the piece I did about persistence was a quick sketch, this article takes you back to a moment that sparked protests and goes into a lot more detail about the legal arguments around segregation. You can access it here:
https://www.jstor.org/stable/24477433?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
Kirk also co-authored a book about the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, Arsnick, which you can find at the University of Arkansas Press.
Ms. Smith and Ms. Brooks of the Pine Room Part 1 & 2
This was another piece I submitted to the Sonic South competition using the following interviews:
Interview with Elizabeth Brooks by Beverly Washington Jones, October 2, 1974 E-0058, in the Southern Oral History Program Collection #4007, Southern Historical Collection,
