Dealing with the Dark: Personal Storytelling

Much of Sharon Kopriva’s art in the current exhibit, “No Small Thing,” deals with dark primal and spiritual forces - powerlessness, judgment, retribution, decay and death. Throughout history humans confronted with such forces have turned to art in an effort to contain them.

One of the oldest human art forms is storytelling. Story is a powerful tool in the face of the deep and difficult aspects of life. Through story, we express, learn, teach, confirm and challenge our values, confront and manage our fears.

In this hands-on workshop, you will have a chance to reflect on your own life experiences and/or your response to Kopriva’s art and create and tell a short story of your own.

The workshop will cover:

• Elements of storytelling, especially stories with challenging themes.
• Techniques for freeing creativity.
• Choosing the story you want to tell and accessing the heart of it.
• Telling your story to listeners. No need for any prior experience with storytelling or writing.

Biography:

Patricia Drury Sidman is a Lafayette-based storyteller, actor, author, playwright, workshop leader and professional life and spirituality coach. She has studied and performed storytelling for the last twenty years. She is skilled at creating an accepting, safe and fun environment for exploring personal experience. As a recipient of a 2019 ArtSpark grant, she is currently writing and producing a full-length storytelling theatrical piece, entitled There’s More to the Story, based on the stories of forgotten or maligned women in scriptural texts.