Art and Community: A Story Circle Gathering
Calling all artists and neighbors!
Saturday, December 7
1:00-4:30 pm
Hill Street Baptist Church
111 Madison Ave. NW, Roanoke, VA 24016
Join us in this gathering to learn about Story Circles and their role in connecting neighbors and building a stronger community. We will learn the history and practice of Story Circles as a tool for community engagement and through the gathering, you will learn how to lead a Story Circle and explore ways to apply them. Insights from our story sharing will inform our next steps as a community. Light refreshments will be provided.
The gathering will be facilitated by Bob Leonard, Professor of Theatre in the Virginia Tech School of Performing Arts Theatre and Cinema and Senior Fellow with the Virginia Tech Institute for Policy and Governance. Katie Trozzo, Roanoke Artist Resident, is hosting this gathering and she along with fellow Roanoke Artist Residents will be supporting with facilitation! For more information about the initiative visit Roanokearts.org/story.
What are Story Circles?
Story Circles are essentially a small group of people sitting in a circle telling their stories, led by a Story Circle facilitator. This tool was developed by John O’Neal in 1963 as a way to build trust between volunteers and communities in Mississippi to support the voter registration work of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee. Story Circles have since been applied in a variety of community contexts as a way for people to get to know one another “on an even playing field,” learn new perspectives, build trust, and grow relationships. We invite you to watch this short video to learn more about story circles from John.
Facilitator Bio
Bob Leonard is a theatre maker, writer, teacher, and arts organizer at Virginia Tech, where he advises the MFA program in Applied Theatre and Public Dialogue and serves as senior fellow with the Institute of Policy and Governance. He has directed numerous productions and led community projects, including Building Home with the New River Valley Regional Commission and the historic Christiansburg Institute. From 1975 to 1998, Leonard founded and directed The Road Company, creating over 20 original plays. He co-authored Performing Communities and co-founded the Community Arts Network. Leonard is also a founding board member of Alternate ROOTS and the Network of Ensemble Theaters (NET).
Partners
This gathering is offered by the Roanoke Arts Commission partnering with the Roanoke Neighborhood Association, Roanoke Cultural Endowment, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
