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- #1
Many years ago, I attempted a story about a storyteller's spin on a Pokemon journey. So here, I've revisiting the idea, mainly to account for the three generations (Kalos, Alola, and Galar) that came out since that original story.
Episode 0: Practicing for the Journey
"Okay, Jackie...here's what to expect on Kanto's new Lore Stage..." Brock explained as he and his auburn haired mentoree arrived in a backstage meeting area at the Theater de Pallette. "The route follows the old Indigo Trail, where Gekijou and Tawame troupes once traveled to the Indigo Plateau. You will be performing on many historic and modern stages..."
"...and maybe seeing some of these ancient plays?" Jackie asked as she found a seat at the table overlooking a whiteboard.
Brock nodded. "That, and playing on as many mini golf courses as we can find along the way." He had learned early that besides the stage, Jackie enjoyed mini golf more than anything.
He turned business-like again. "Basically, all you have to do is pick a story according to a theme, and tell that to the audience. You're not limited in how you do this--if you want to just stand there and talk, you can do that. If you want to turn your story into a full on dramatic production, you can do that too."
"Can I use the guitar as I'm telling?" Jackie asked.
"Of course--you can improvise, or play appropriate songs as you talk." Brock assured the excited auburn haired girl. "I do it all the time when I perform..."
He then showed Jackie a glittering rainbow brooch with hundreds of tiny beads. "If you do well in telling your story, you get a bead for your Rainbow Brooch. If you can finish the rainbow by the time we reach Indigo Plateau, you'll get to tell for the Grand Lore Stage during the Pokemon League."
After pocketing the finished brooch, Brock turned his attention to the whiteboard at the front of the room. "On that note--let's review the basic building blocks of storytelling..."
"Tell what you love!" Jackie smiled.
Brock nodded before writing "1. Tell what you love" in black on the whiteboard, complete with a few red hearts around the word "love". "Okay...what else?"
"Know thy story, and know it well." Jackie replied.
Brock wrote 2. "Know your story, and prepare." on the whiteboard. "This is why I record you telling when you're learning a tale--so you can listen to yourself, and easily spot bits that need work."
"I will admit it was a little scary when I went in the recording booth for the first time, and weird to hear my own voice when you played it back." Jackie shuddered at a memory of her first few terrible attempts a few months before.
"You've come a long way from that stuttering mess, and there's so much more you can learn." Brock smiled. "No matter what happens this trip, we'll face it together."
"This is the beauty of the arts--they're never complete." Jackie agreed. "There's always something new to learn, and there will always be someone better than you to learn from."
"Moving on...you have no obligation to tell every part of the story." Brock went on as he wrote "3. You don't have to tell EVERYTHING". "While there may not be a clock on the wall keeping track of how long you've been telling, if you go on too long, you're going to bore your audience. So focus on the important events, and leave out tangents, characters and episodes that don't contribute to the overall story."
He next wrote "4. Use a confident voice", complete with sound waves coming from the V. "You know this well as an actress, but it's worth a periodic reminder--speak confidently, and project to the back. You don't want to race through the story at a hundred words per minute, nor do you want to go too slow and lose the audience. Pace yourself."
He next wrote "5. The mic is your friend", complete with transforming the I into a handheld mic and drawing a headset mic on the C. "You know this well, too--microphones are your friends, not your foes. Especially in a large space like a theater or outside."
"If given the option, I prefer the headset mics." Jackie smiled, bemused in the letter artwork for some of the points on the whiteboard. "Much more discrete than a handheld, since they can blend into costumes. Although handhelds are great if you're playing something like a game show host."
Brock smiled at the thought of his mentoree playing a game show host before turning back to the whiteboard. "These next two are very important...look at your audience..." He proceeded to write "6. Look at your audience" before turning the O's into green eyes, like Jackie's. "Eye contact means the world to your audience. It shows them they are valued, and appreciated, on the journey into the world of fantasy you are leading them on."
"So if somebody's zoning out, look at them." Jackie smiled.
"That's right." Brock agreed before writing his next point. "Keep your gestures natural and relaxed, even if you are telling a comic tale. No one likes someone flailing all over the place, even for comedic reasons."
"Pretend like you are telling for a friend, and you're just having a friendly conversation." Jackie agreed, recalling an exercise the two of them had done a few days before.
Brock nodded. "And lastly, but by no means least...let the audience draw their own conclusions, so steer clear of 'moral of the story' endings. That being said, 'moral of the story' endings can work very well for comic effect, or by allowing the audience to share their thoughts at the end. One example of a 'moral of the story' ending we like to use for comedy is 'Sorin and Illumise's Egg Hunt'..."
"I remember that!" Jackie smiled. "I loved how you, Misty, Ash, and Serena just feed off each other..."
"Well, when you perform often with people you naturally click with, you naturally support each other." Brock explained. "Let their strengths shine, and support what they're not so good at."
He took a seat by Jackie for a moment. "Do you want to talk about any of those points some more, or are you ready to head out to the stage and practice your story?"
"I think I'm ready to give 'The Rescue of Princess Miranda another go." Jackie smiled.
"Okay...let me clean up in here, then we'll go onstage." With that, Brock erased the whiteboard and tidied up the front of the room as Jackie read over some story notes...
Episode 0: Practicing for the Journey
"Okay, Jackie...here's what to expect on Kanto's new Lore Stage..." Brock explained as he and his auburn haired mentoree arrived in a backstage meeting area at the Theater de Pallette. "The route follows the old Indigo Trail, where Gekijou and Tawame troupes once traveled to the Indigo Plateau. You will be performing on many historic and modern stages..."
"...and maybe seeing some of these ancient plays?" Jackie asked as she found a seat at the table overlooking a whiteboard.
Brock nodded. "That, and playing on as many mini golf courses as we can find along the way." He had learned early that besides the stage, Jackie enjoyed mini golf more than anything.
He turned business-like again. "Basically, all you have to do is pick a story according to a theme, and tell that to the audience. You're not limited in how you do this--if you want to just stand there and talk, you can do that. If you want to turn your story into a full on dramatic production, you can do that too."
"Can I use the guitar as I'm telling?" Jackie asked.
"Of course--you can improvise, or play appropriate songs as you talk." Brock assured the excited auburn haired girl. "I do it all the time when I perform..."
He then showed Jackie a glittering rainbow brooch with hundreds of tiny beads. "If you do well in telling your story, you get a bead for your Rainbow Brooch. If you can finish the rainbow by the time we reach Indigo Plateau, you'll get to tell for the Grand Lore Stage during the Pokemon League."
After pocketing the finished brooch, Brock turned his attention to the whiteboard at the front of the room. "On that note--let's review the basic building blocks of storytelling..."
"Tell what you love!" Jackie smiled.
Brock nodded before writing "1. Tell what you love" in black on the whiteboard, complete with a few red hearts around the word "love". "Okay...what else?"
"Know thy story, and know it well." Jackie replied.
Brock wrote 2. "Know your story, and prepare." on the whiteboard. "This is why I record you telling when you're learning a tale--so you can listen to yourself, and easily spot bits that need work."
"I will admit it was a little scary when I went in the recording booth for the first time, and weird to hear my own voice when you played it back." Jackie shuddered at a memory of her first few terrible attempts a few months before.
"You've come a long way from that stuttering mess, and there's so much more you can learn." Brock smiled. "No matter what happens this trip, we'll face it together."
"This is the beauty of the arts--they're never complete." Jackie agreed. "There's always something new to learn, and there will always be someone better than you to learn from."
"Moving on...you have no obligation to tell every part of the story." Brock went on as he wrote "3. You don't have to tell EVERYTHING". "While there may not be a clock on the wall keeping track of how long you've been telling, if you go on too long, you're going to bore your audience. So focus on the important events, and leave out tangents, characters and episodes that don't contribute to the overall story."
He next wrote "4. Use a confident voice", complete with sound waves coming from the V. "You know this well as an actress, but it's worth a periodic reminder--speak confidently, and project to the back. You don't want to race through the story at a hundred words per minute, nor do you want to go too slow and lose the audience. Pace yourself."
He next wrote "5. The mic is your friend", complete with transforming the I into a handheld mic and drawing a headset mic on the C. "You know this well, too--microphones are your friends, not your foes. Especially in a large space like a theater or outside."
"If given the option, I prefer the headset mics." Jackie smiled, bemused in the letter artwork for some of the points on the whiteboard. "Much more discrete than a handheld, since they can blend into costumes. Although handhelds are great if you're playing something like a game show host."
Brock smiled at the thought of his mentoree playing a game show host before turning back to the whiteboard. "These next two are very important...look at your audience..." He proceeded to write "6. Look at your audience" before turning the O's into green eyes, like Jackie's. "Eye contact means the world to your audience. It shows them they are valued, and appreciated, on the journey into the world of fantasy you are leading them on."
"So if somebody's zoning out, look at them." Jackie smiled.
"That's right." Brock agreed before writing his next point. "Keep your gestures natural and relaxed, even if you are telling a comic tale. No one likes someone flailing all over the place, even for comedic reasons."
"Pretend like you are telling for a friend, and you're just having a friendly conversation." Jackie agreed, recalling an exercise the two of them had done a few days before.
Brock nodded. "And lastly, but by no means least...let the audience draw their own conclusions, so steer clear of 'moral of the story' endings. That being said, 'moral of the story' endings can work very well for comic effect, or by allowing the audience to share their thoughts at the end. One example of a 'moral of the story' ending we like to use for comedy is 'Sorin and Illumise's Egg Hunt'..."
"I remember that!" Jackie smiled. "I loved how you, Misty, Ash, and Serena just feed off each other..."
"Well, when you perform often with people you naturally click with, you naturally support each other." Brock explained. "Let their strengths shine, and support what they're not so good at."
He took a seat by Jackie for a moment. "Do you want to talk about any of those points some more, or are you ready to head out to the stage and practice your story?"
"I think I'm ready to give 'The Rescue of Princess Miranda another go." Jackie smiled.
"Okay...let me clean up in here, then we'll go onstage." With that, Brock erased the whiteboard and tidied up the front of the room as Jackie read over some story notes...