LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT

"When I first saw the story swap with a mentor, I was quite skeptical. Why would anyone would want to share a half-cooked story and make a fool of themselves in front of so many people. I was also scared of people judging me - and of the mentor scolding me!

In the Fulcrum meeting before the coached story swap, Sheila mentioned there were not enough members offering to tell . When I raised my concerns (fears!), Sheila forcefully challenged to sign up - and I am so thankful that she did.

Kevin Cordi created a safe space in which thee three of us telling felt very comfortable. He was encouraging througohut, and in that 15 minutess that I got from him, I think I learnt more than in hours of workshops that I have attended. The audience was also supportive and provided lots of supportive comments and suggestions in the chat. I will certainly consider applying for another coaching session in the future." - Prakrati April/2022.

Our MENTORSHIP programme usually runs over five once-a-month 90-minute sessions. The mentor usually works with between three-five mentees and tries to tailor the sessions to address the individual concerns of the mentees.

The ADULT PERFORMANCE STORYTELLING mentorship runs differently: it provides one-on-one coaching with one mentor working with one or two mentees on a story of the mentees choosing (with varying degrees of input from the mentor) and culminating in a showcase. The mentees also plan the showcase - the sequence of the stories and how they will link from one to the next.

For an insight into the benefits of the mentoring process, do read the report on the sharing of the 2022 Cultural/Heritage Sites Mentorship facilitated by Jo Henwood. News Archive (POST CULTURAL/HERITAGE SITE MENTORSHIP SHARING)



Prerna was a mentee in the 2021 programme and shares something of her experience in the video in the net cell.

The STORY WOK is our monthly podcast programme.

It began in 2021 as a response to a webinar in late 20202 facilitated by one of our members, Rituparna Ghosh, who is a keen podcaster herself. Sensing that there was interest in putting the skills shared during the webinar into practice, the Directors encouraged Ritu to start a group and six enthusiastic members committed to the idea of creating a series of 8 hour-long episodes which debuted in March.

In the process, each member was able to experience conceptualising a programme, interviewing guests, recording and editing and finally compiling the episode complete with links and musical bridges.

To prepare for the second season a different group of members were put thruogh a six x 90 minute online training programme run by a very experienced podcaster. This was the first time that FEAST had sponsored direct training for our members. The Story Wok is an excellent example of how our webinar series not only shares knowledge/skills but can also inspire members to try new things.

For more information on the latest episode and current season, do visit the Story Wok page.

Currently there are two Special Interest Groups.

PLOT LUCK is our improvised storytelling group and you can find out more about this really fun group on PLOT LUCK SIG

FEAST FUNDAMENTALS is an optional group for Community and Young Storyteller members only. It is designed to offer a safe and supportive environment for those who are still developing their competence and confidence as storytellers. There will be workshops offered by three of our directors (Jeeva, Roger and Sheila) as well as regular Story Circles at which members can share a story and receive constructive feedback on how they might make their telling more effective and engaging.

There is an annual fee of $5 to join a SIG and this fee applies from July to June, regardless of when during the year you apply to join the group.

Hosting a webinar/now called learning capsules has been our most regular activity since the very beginning. By December 2022, we will have presented more than 40, featuring some of the most popular tellers from the UIS, Europe, Asia and Australia.

FEAST was founded to enable tellers scattered throughout Asia to have access to a wide variety of training opportunities at a relatively low cost. These sessions usually run around 90 minutes and cover either practical storytelling skills and approaches, or aspects of the business of storytelling.

Recordings of all our previous webinars are archived and available for purchase from the store.

The recordings are edited so as to enable you to view the webinar concisely and without the distraction of the time-sensitive announcements and chit-chat that naturally occur pre- and post- session.

Our first Conference (2018) was in Singapore and linked to the 398.2 Storytelling Festival. Coming only three months after FEAST was officially launched in Chennai, it was a remarkable occasion that made our dream manifest. 105 participants gathered together at the opening dinner and virtual friends became real ones over the next two days. It set the warmly welcoming and informal tone that characterises FEAST events, with members freely and generously sharing experience and stories. 19 members had the chance to tell at the 398.2 and for most of them it was their debut appearance in an international festival.

In 2019, the Bangalore Storytelling Society did an excellent job of hosting our second conference, with memorable workshops and performances. Having most attendees in the same hotel added greatly to the frequency of social interaction and networking opportunities too.

The 2020 conference was planned for Jakarta, postponed due to covid, and finally took place in 2023.

In 2025, FEAST partnered with KISA (Korea International Storytellers' Association) to hold it's 4th Conference in Suwon, S.Korea.

In 2026, Chennai will host FEAST's 5th Conference. Save the date- 24-25 September 2026.

Our first online Learning Fest took place on 16 - 25 September 2022.

It consisted of three elements

• four 3-hour workshops by leading storytelling practitioners
• a series FOCUS ON FOLKLORE, consisting of eight 45-minute programmes highlighting cultures in Asia;
• the Adult Performing Storytelling Mentees Showcase, featuring the five mentees currently being mentored under FEAST's seconds adult storytelling programme.