Rachel Rose Reid: And They Lived ...

Rachel Rose Reid is a young storyteller who places herself firmly within a long tradition of oral storytelling. Winner of the Young Storyteller of the Year award, storytelling is embedded deep in her bones.

As a spoken/sung word performance, it comes across well. As a theatrical performance, less so, but Rachel clearly states that it is neither – it is storytelling. Her show is cosy, coaxing, comforting. Within a black box, with minimal lighting effects, Rachel Rose Reid uses classic storytelling techniques to direct the audience’s gaze inwards into their imagination, rather than directing them to view a theatrical production on a stage with set, costumes, lighting, script. All she uses is her voice, demonstrative gestures and some well-chosen phrases.

Like a siren, she draws the audience in at the beginning to join her in a journey which concerns endings. So do all fairy tale characters end up living happily ever after? It’s a theme Rachel plays with, and invites the audience to make their own connections.

Songs lead into stories, drawn from different cultures. Rachel’s voice is powerful and can easily carry over air conditioning and the sounds of audience participation.

In the first story, from Canada, princess Ma’ada achieves the happy ending, but what is it that creates that happiness? Bang. Rachel Rose Reid uses the ending like a spark to set off a moral firework of a question: To what extent does her happiness depend on other people’s unhappiness? The question is left for the audience to answer for themselves.

Then follows a short detour into the world of the Italian folk tale via a collection gathered by Calvino and published as a book which Rachel holds in her hand. She tells the tale with wry humour starting by reading aloud from the book, and continuing in the oral tradition. She holds the book – and the audience’s attention. The story works, the ending ridiculous in the context of how the story unfolded. Or is it? Is there any one particular way to achieve happiness? With the phrase, ‘some people say that true balance is about finding the darkness in light and light in darkness’ she launches her retelling of the Greek myth of Persephone, the most engaging story of the set. Retold in a complex manner, it allows listeners to really ‘get’ the complex relationships at play between the protagonists. The ending of the story is the same – but the characters each see it in a particular way. It is a powerful retelling, which works particularly well due to the heightened emotional content which Rachel gives it, without ever going over the top.

Rachel ends with an endearing story from Polynesia about a giant who sings to the moon – the show flows out with Rachel singing a song, which the audience follow out into the moonlight, the moon seems to shine brighter, the audience lives … well, if not happily ever after, then most certainly enriched.