Examples Of Our Projects

SENSE A STORY (2008) - was a project for the Telford Culture Zone co-ordinated by Telford & Wrekin Library Services. We worked with four schools leading classes on a morning storywalk near to their school and then helped the pupils create a story using the sights, smells and feel of the walk.

A musician from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and a dancer from Dance Xchange, who’d accompanied us on the walk and witnessed the story creation then helped the children turn the story into a dance and music performance for parents.

Library staff then helped the children make a story-chest; a trunk containing all the elements of the story’s characters and landscape.

The project culminated in a two day extravaganza at Enginuity (part of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums Trust) where Mythstories storytellers led class groups of “story archaeologists” on walks to discover the story-chests and uncover their stories.


STORYSCAPE (2008) - The creation of a ‘hands on’ contemporary artwork that can be manipulated by museum visitors to ‘tell’ a traditional story, ‘Edric and Godda’, which is very firmly rooted in the Stiperstones area of Shropshire.

Four people worked on the project, Louise Frances Evans created the artwork, Xanthe Gresham performed the story and Dawn and Lydia Powell represented the potential audience of museum visitors. These project ‘partners’ lived and worked hundreds of miles distant, in Leicestershire, London and Shropshire respectively.

Close liaison was factor that set this project apart. The Storyscape and the story developed side by side. The made artwork needed to reflect the narrative created as well as interpret the spirit of the story. The narrative needed to be grounded in the Storyscape and allow museum visitors to explore the artefact without losing the thread of the story.

They shared a visit to the Stiperstones, and met for lunch and coffee. Most of the liaison was by a private on-line blog where they shared ideas and posted photographs of work-in-progress.

The blog was also used by Mythstories, to manage the project. The blog gave us confidence, so much so that Xanthe and Louise only had one 15-minute face-to-face meeting with museum staff before the Storyscape was installed.

Xanthe Gresham recorded a ten-minute version of her re-telling on CD. This is now installed in the museum alongside the Storyscape.

She also worked up a 30-minute performance piece which additionally explored aspects of mythology and folklore found within the story. This was performed in the museum on 21st August.

Louise Frances Evans created a very feminine and beautiful artefact that enhances our museum gallery