Irish Storytelling for Children is a show that does exactly what it says on the tin. The four tales which make up the show are drawn from Irish folklore and not updated for a contemporary audience but left in their original form and related in the traditional method of oral storytelling.
The target audience is youngsters aged seven to twelve and, perhaps to give them a relatable focal point, sole performer Neysa Killeen adopts a persona like an approachable teacher. Occasionally, she breaks off from the narrative to make sure the audience is paying attention by checking to see if they remember the name of the hero’s best friend. I’m half expecting Killeen to tell me to sit up straight and pay attention.
There are minimal props, as Killeen prefers to rely on the power of storytelling to engage and retain audience attention. We are invited to close our eyes and imagine the battles which Killeen describes, aided by her basic vocal sound effects.
Killeen does not shy away from audience participation, encouraging us to deliver, on cue, the sound of galloping horses or the ‘thwack’ sound of a ball being struck. So as not to distract from the narrative, the personalities adopted by Killeen to illustrate the stories are simple but effective; a warrior queen is suggested by an arrogant tossing of hair and an imperious gesture.
At no point does Killeen indulge in irony; the stories are treated seriously with no winking at the audience during the more outlandish aspects involving, say, a prize bull provoking a war or a demonic dog choked by a ball. A rare example of humour is that the dog’s name is ‘Fluffikins’.
The stories are well outside of the experience of the young audience (not just the youngsters—I’m familiar with only half of the stories: The Salmon of Knowledge and Tir na nÓg). It is not so much the stories originate from a different country and concern, say, Irish tribes, fairy princesses or warrior queens but also feature occupations like a blacksmith with which the audience may not be familiar. The closest the show comes to giving the audience something contemporary to which they can relate is when the fairy kingdom of Tir na nÓg is described as wonderful but deadly dull—with no distractions like watching movies or YouTube videos. Maybe Killeen is simply lucky, but the youngsters at 422 Community Hub are remarkably attentive and polite.
Killeen concludes by drawing the themes of the four stories together in a tribute to the storytelling technique, and her vivid yet sincere approach serves to introduce the audience to the value of traditional oral storytelling. Spread the word.