Dancers can tell stories

By Rick Garrick

TORONTO – The graceful kicking and twirling fancy shawl dance moves of Jennifer Meness highlighted the 35th annual Toronto Storytelling Festival.

“It just felt great to dance with Gayle (Ross), the way she tells the butterfly (fancy shawl dance origin) story,” says the champion fancy shawl dancer and storyteller from the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan.“I always enjoy listening to the different (storytelling) styles and the tellers, you know how they each have their own voice and what they contribute to the craft.”

Ross, a Cherokee storyteller from Oklahoma, and Louis Bird, a Cree storyteller from Peawanuck on the Hudson Bay coast, shared a variety of traditional stories and discussed the oral traditions of their First Nation cultures during the March 16-24 festival.

Meness says the fancy shawl dance origin story gave people a deeper understanding of First Nations culture.

“It’s more than just getting out there with the shawl and dancing and kicking and twirling,” Meness says. “When you emulate the movements and the grace and strength of that story, it just gives it depth.”

Meness performed the fancy shawl dance in conjunction with Ross’ telling of the fancy shawl dance origin story, which focused on a young widow grieving over her lost partner, wrapping herself with her bridal shawl and smearing it with ashes from the campfire and eventually turning into a butterfly, during the First Nations myth, legend, oral histories storytelling session on March 24.

“I started dancing when I could walk,” Meness says. “And I probably started fancy dancing when I was 19.”

Meness has since performed with a number of international touring companies across North America and around the world, including a tour to Australia.

“It was quite an experience because I was storytelling as well — I was mentored by Gayle Ross,” Meness says. “I would be part of the way through the story (in Australia) before I would realize these kids had never smelled a skunk. They knew Pepe Le Pew, but they didn’t have a reference for what skunks smelled like or how otters loved to swim, so in the middle of the story I had to explain they were like a platypus.”

Respecting and understanding the oral traditions of First Nations cultures was the focus of Ross and Bird’s March 22 workshop, Teaching First Nations Stories, which was emceed by former Pic Mobert citizen and current Toronto resident Hilary McWatch.

“As an apprentice storyteller, it was an honour and privilege to be on the same floor with them and to share some words with the crowd,” McWatch says. “I’m from a long line of orators myself: both my mother and father had quite the tales to tell and I’m a jester and a joker.”

McWatch picked up some knowledge about old teachings and wisdom, sharing, the cycle of life and spirituality during the festival.

“I’m a mental health worker so I need to share a lot of wisdom,” McWatch says. “To be able to bring a teaching to the table for somebody, that acts like a bridge between that storyteller and this person in need, is a huge gift.”

This story originally posted April 16, 2013.