Activated Stories

The Flying Bed is a story from India that bears similarities to many other stories, including Aladdin, East Of The Sun and West Of The Moon, The Golden Pitcher, and the Aesop's Fable The Lion and the Mouse. It tells of how one good deed deserves another, and everybody can be of help to somebody, no matter the differences in size or species.

We come to you from Reno, Nevada, where we've been holed up since the pandemic hit. This is our first podcast in a couple of months, so we bring you up to date on our restricted explorations of Northern Nevada while we wait for things to change. We may not be able to go into stores very easily, but we got to pet wild horses!

Stay safe and productive. And happy listening!

Dennis (Ali, Ant, King) and Kimberly (Narrator, Ant, Lion, Fakir, Passerby, Princess Lalun)

The Golden Beetle is a story about how a magical object comes to the aid of poor people in need, who then become careless with whom they share the secret of their good fortune. In that respect, it is somewhat like the Arabian Nights tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. But here there is an added element of an origin story, explaining why cats and dogs fight like... well, cats and dogs.

We come to you from Simi Valley, a suburb of Los Angeles. We've been doing some work in the film and TV industry, and we had some performances scheduled, but they have cancelled because of the coronavirus COIVID-19. In the meantime you can attend our daily "Theatre Camp" on Facebook and YouTube.

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Happy Listening,
Dennis (Son, Hermit, Mrs. Wu, Cat) and Kimberly (Narrator, Cow, Mom, Mr. Wu, Dog)

The Bamboo and the Stars is our first podcast story from the Philippines. Welcome to the family, Philippines! And it's yet another one of those celestial phenomenon stories that we seem to be uncovering quite a bit lately. (Story starts at 4:00.)

We're in Yuma, AZ, just a short hop from the Mexico border. While in town we visited The Camel Farm, where we were able to feed and pet camels, goats, sheep, a zebra, a zeedonk (half zebra and half donkey) and a hinny (half horse and half donkey).  And we held a teeny baby goat, only a week old.

We've been driving from East Coast to West coast, taking as much time as we can to see some sights along the way. This has included Saguaro National Park near Tuscon, full of cacti/cactuses/cactus (all are acceptable) that look as if they belonged in a cowboy cartoon. And we saw the Odessa Meteor Crater in Texas, made by a meteor that struck at least 10,000 years ago. So let's call it an even million.

Happy Listening,
Dennis (Narrator, Aponitolau, Baby, Star) and Kimberly (Narrator, Wife, Star)

Wishing On The Moon is a sort of male Cinderella story from the Inuit (Eskimo) people of Alaska/Canada. We wanted to sneak in one more story about the moon before the end of this 50th anniversary year of the walk on the moon.

We're currently taking a holiday break in Atlanta, where we'll be for the end of 2019 before we start touring again in 2020.

In this story, we mention the 1922 documentary Nanook of the North by Robert J. Flaherty. You can watch it on Youtube but we should caution you to take it with a grain of salt. Flaherty took a great deal of poetic license, including making up the name Nanook for the main character, a man he falsely states died of starvation. He also staged scenes and had his subjects use antiquated tools rather than more modern things they normally used. Still, it's a fascinating cinematic and anthropological relic.

Happy watching, happy listening, happy holidays, and happy 2020.

Dennis (Nukilik, Man 1) and Kimberly (Narrator, Man 2, Man 3, Akna, Man in the Moon)

The Harpist and the Princess is a story from Burma that is somewhat similar in theme to Beauty and the Beast, East of the Sun and West of the Moon, Lohengrin, and a number of other stories in which a maiden falls in love with a person who has been transformed into an animal or beastly shape of some type. In many such stories, as in this one, she is asked to curb her curiosity to find out something about the beastly person -- his name, origin, appearance, or true identity.

We come to you from Marietta, GA, just outside Atlanta, where we're getting a bit of a break from our usual activities, thanks to the holiday season. We took advantage of the time to attend the Atlanta Water Lantern Festival, where people come together to celebrate their hopes and wishes and dreams by decorating a wooden lantern and giving it a symbolic launch on the water.

As haunted attraction enthusiasts, we also made a mandatory stop at Netherworld, one of the most phenomenal and awe-inspiring haunts in the whole country. This attraction, located near Stone Mountain, is open until the second weekend in November, so we were able to catch the final night, and were delighted by all the detail that went into the venue.

Happy Listening,
Dennis (Thi Hah, Wizard, King) and Kimberly (Narrator, Person, Yi Yi)

Just in time for Halloween, Ameen and the Ghoul from Persia (now known as Iran) tells of a brave man who defeats a terrible monster by using his brains rather than his brawn. It's a story in the tradition of Brave Little Tailor and Dragon of Krakow.

We come to you from Warwick, RI, where we are wrapping up our annual fall jaunt in New England by spending some time scaring people at a haunted attraction in Abington, MA. And soon we being migrating south for the winter.

Happy listening,
Dennis (Ameen) and Kimberly (Narrator, Friend, Wife, Ghoul)

The Wooden Tablet is a simple little story from China about the importance of keeping promises and honoring your elders.

We come to you from Seekonk, Massachusetts, having just returned from spending nearly a month touring Vermont for the first time. We were amazed and impressed by the state's unspoiled beauty -- there are no billboards anywhere! We took a train ride and a boat cruise, and did a lot of hiking (and photographing wild mushrooms) and even toured Vermont Teddy Bear Factory, Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream, and Cabot Cheese Factory.

Now we're getting ready for Halloween once again!

Happy Listening,
Dennis (Father, Narrator, Grandfather) and Kimberly (Narrator, Ming, Servant)

Rabbit Sells Corn is the first story we've presented from Canada. It originated among Native Americans up north (yes, we can call them Native Americans too, since they lived on this continent) and has undergone some modifications as it was transmitted to white settlers. And we, of course, have done some tweaking of our own. It stems from a tradition of animal stories that also seem to have much in common with African-American tales about tricky and deceptive and clever critters.

We come to you from Attleboro, Massachusetts, as we wind down our summer touring season. Recently we performed on Cape Cod, where we took advantage once again of the Cape Cod Rail Trail to do some biking. This time, we rode a tandem bike for the first time ever.

We also spent a day in Boston attending Wanderlust 108, an event that features a curious triathlon of running, yoga and meditation. And we took the “Bones and Bells” tour at King's Church, visiting a crypt in the basement of the church and then climbing up to the bell tower, which features a bell made by Paul Revere and sons.

Happy listening!
Dennis (Narrator, Farmer, Fox, Bear) and Kimberly (Rabbit, Duck)

Out Of Season is a Cinderella-type story, rather similar to the Russian Vasalisa, which is rather similar to the story of Hansel and Gretel. These stories just won't stay in their own boxes. This is a tale from what used to be called Yugoslavia, before it was chopped up into smaller nations with less humorous-sounding names.

We bring you this story from a country that no longer exists, from a town that didn't exist back then: Kill Devil Hills, NC. In fact, it didn't exist in 1903 when the Wright Brothers made history here. So the site of their experiments was recorded as Kitty Hawk, the closest town at the time.

We've been taking advantage of the great beaches in this part of this state. We've also said howdy to some wild horses on Shackleford Banks, and we spotted an even dozen wild bears at Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. But we did not, alas, spot any alligators or any rare red wolves.

On the way here, we dug for diamonds (and didn't find any) at Crater Of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas and panned for gold (we found some!) at John Reed Gold Mine in North Carolina. In Atlanta we spent a day at the Center For Puppetry Arts, admiring the varied puppets, some vary old, from many cultures; marveling at the genius of Jim Henson; enjoying a thoroughly imaginative puppet theatre production of Beauty and the Beast; and (literally) making a couple of friends, whom we call Buford and Otis, to bring home with us. Watch all of the latest Act!vated Adventures on YouTube

And now, we're off again in search of strawberries, violets and apples. And maybe even some diamonds and gold.

Happy Listening,
Dennis (Narrator, Marta, December) and Kimberly (Anka, Gretchen, April, June, September)

The Prince and His Servant from Poland is one of those folk tales that sound like it actually could have happened -- or something like it. It's a tale about betrayal and trickery, with a little plug for literacy thrown in to boot.

We come to you from Heber Springs, AR., having just started our summer season of performing at libraries across the country. We drove out from Reno, where we always put together a new show. While we were there, we did a week residency at Acro Enso, a new facility that offers training in a variety of circus arts, including juggling, tumbling and handstands. We picked up some new skills that we plan to insert into our performances.

Happy listening,
Dennis (Henrik, King) and Kimberly (Narrator, Frederick, Servant)