International storyteller Cassandra Wye with children in Sharjah With an effervescent personality and a passion for storytelling, Cassandra Wyeconnected with her audience of all ages during her storytelling sessions at theSharjah Children's Reading Festival.Cassandra'sapproachtostorytelling "Stories in Motion" has taken her around the globe to work in temples and train stations, forests and festivals, in an out of theatres, festivals and schools. "My father's family were gypsies so storytelling is part of me," she said, adding that her work takes her to various storytelling cultures that she connects with. "Street storytelling was the norm, up until the 60s and until TV took over," shesaid.InspiredbyAsianinterweaving of art forms, Cassandra combines elements of circus, theatre and dance to create a style of storytelling that is truly her own. "I was interested in the Asian form of storytelling through dance so I did my research into that storytelling culture," she said. She finds it important to connect with everyone in her audience. This is why she includes sign language in all her shows. "Storytelling is for everybody," she saidadding that she doesn't think that storytelling or using props can get in the way ofusing sign language. "You dance, you move, you make a sign, you connect," she said.She explained that every time you tell a story, you'll find a new way of doing it.As a solo artist, she has toured nationally and internationally, including: Australia,Barbados, Hong Kong, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, Switzerland, South Korea,Thailand, Taiwan and Vietnam. All that travelling is her source of inspiration. "A lotof my stories come from the places I visit and from the various landscapes. I tellstories inspired by rain forests and mountains for instance. I travel because I meetpeople and learn and then I do what's right and fits the community I work in."
Source: WAM