In the cozy cabaret of The Marsh in Berkeley, five Stagebridge Storytellers brought an array of entertaining stories to the crowd. The Marsh’s monthly Tell it on Tuesday program, helmed by long-term producers Rebecca Fisher and Bridget Frederick, hosts an annual show co-produced by The Marsh and Stagebridge every October. Wayne Harris (independent actor, playwright, director, and producer) and Barbara Johnson (Stagebridge Staff) worked together to produce the October 28th program that featured Storytelling students who were auditioned and selected for this year’s show.

For the show at The Marsh, Wayne generously offered coaching to all of the Tellers. In addition, some of the Tellers polished their stories in Joel ben Izzy’s Story Lab, a performance-enhancing storytelling class at Stagebridge. Wayne served as master of ceremonies, offering delightful introductions of each Storyteller, all in rhyme! As an additional treat, showcasing his talent as a blues singer, Wayne was accompanied by the featured musical guest, pianist Jordan Feinstein, on several of Wayne’s original songs at the top of the show.

Samir Saad, Melinda Ginne, Cynthia Cudaback, Linda Wright, and Eleanor Clement Glass were this year’s featured Storytellers. Samir led with a touching reminiscence of leaving a high-powered corporate job in New York for a more fulfilling career as a special education teacher in Oakland. In this role, he touched the life of a little boy named Albert. Melinda’s personal story was about her budding career as a gero-psychologist that began with a humorous, though humiliating, first client encounter and ended with a poignant experience with a client who prospered by her counsel. Having looked for a sign that she was ready to retire, this last encounter brought her career full circle. Cynthia masterfully wove three Native American Trickster folktales together for an energetic and animated adaptation of a pourquoi story about the trickster, Raven, that explains how the ocean’s tides came to be.

After the intermission, Linda embodied Fannie Lou Hamer, an African-American civil rights activist, in her historical story. Fannie Lou grew up as a poor sharecropper picking cotton as a child in Mississippi. She learned to fight, the hard way, for the right to vote, ultimately inspiring thousands of people in the struggle for voting rights. Eleanor colorfully and lovingly

brought her Filipino mother into the room with her family story of how her mother engaged her four children in a game involving multi-colored post-its and lots of fun, which helped them to distribute her belongings and stay a close-knit family even after her passing.

The enthusiastic audience demonstrated their enjoyment and appreciation of the stories throughout the evening!