Soundings
Soundings is the sandbox for all student work from the Stanford Storytelling Project (SSP). SSP is an arts program at Stanford University that explores how we live in and through stories and how we can use them to change our lives. Our mission is to promote the transformative nature of traditional and modern oral storytelling, from Lakota tales to Radiolab, and empower students to create and perform their own stories. The project sponsors courses, workshops, live events, and grants, along with its radio show State of the Human.
Listen on:
Episodes
Thursday Mar 20, 2014
Thursday Mar 20, 2014
Some 76 million years ago an asteroid smashed into our planet, killing the dinosaurs and three-quarters of the Earth’s plants and animals. Once again our planet is facing a wave of extinctions, this one of man's making, and more than ever we need to know what it takes for a species to survive a cataclysm. Laura Cussen traces the improbable story of an ancient, venomous mammal of the Caribbean, and of the local people who have unearthed its secret to survival.
This project was made possible by a Braden Grant from the Stanford Storytelling Project. More info about the Braden Grant:
http://web.stanford.edu/group/storytelling/cgi-bin/joomla/index.php/grants.html
Producer: Laura Cussen
Featuring: César Abril, Nicolás Corona, Pedro Martínez, and Alexis Mychajliw
Special thanks: The Last Survivors, Natacha Ruck, Will Rogers, Graham Roth, Weston Gaylord, Professor Elizabeth Hadly, to all the people who have made this project possible, and to the Hispaniolan solenodon.
Music: Sunsearcher, Chris Zabriskie, Nicolás Corona
Image via flickr
Wednesday Mar 19, 2014
Wednesday Mar 19, 2014
In 1999, France created the French equivalent of a civil union. The PACS--an acronym for "pacte civile de solidarité"-- was intended as an alternative to marriage for gay couples, but it was open to straight couples as well. And it was used by them--perhaps paradoxically, 94% of PACS couples are straight. With the legalization of gay marriage in May 2013, gay couples who want legal protection are no longer relegated to the PACS. What does the PACS mean to the people who get it, and how is it different from marriage? How can love and commitment be expressed, and how is this changing in modern French society?
Savannah Kopp interviews PACS couples in Paris about their love stories and their PACS stories. This piece explores how a culturally specific label for a relationship comes to have meaning and how, as the cliché goes, maybe the French can teach us about love.
This story was supported by a Braden Grant from the Stanford Storytelling Project. Click here to learn more about the Braden Grant:
http://web.stanford.edu/group/storytelling/cgi-bin/joomla/index.php/grants.html
Producer: Savannah Kopp
Featuring: Laura Berrey, Guido Panel, Kelsy Wilson, Suzanne Newman, Sylvia Calle, Valerie Lincy, Anne Bayley, Dana Conley, Channa Galhenege, Coralie Ossant, Diane Bonifaix, Roberto Conradi
Merci à: Estelle Halevi, Wilfried Rault, Natacha Ruck, the Stanford Storytelling Project, the PACS couples, and everyone who helped me realize this project.
Music: Podington Bear, Broke for Free, Kevin MacLeod, Everybody Was In the French Resistance
Image courtesy of Savannah Kopp
Tuesday Mar 18, 2014
Tuesday Mar 18, 2014
Birth is celebrated as one of the most profound and joyous moments in life. Yet in the nation of Uganda, delivering a child is an undertaking steeped in danger. The African country faces one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. Why are so many Ugandan women dying in childbirth?
In this piece, Charlotte Sagan explores the issues surrounding maternal health in the Southeastern district of Iganga. Conversations with Ugandan mothers, fathers and health care practitioners reveal intimate narratives of health, perseverance and family. The delivery story of a young woman named Miriam, in particular, illustrates the perils and joys of childbirth.
This project was supported by a Braden Grant from Stanford Storytelling Project. For more information about the Braden Grant for the Study of Oral Narrative, go here:
http://web.stanford.edu/group/storytelling/cgi-bin/joomla/index.php/grants.html
Producer: Charlotte Sagan
Featuring: Nabalumba Miriam, Joshua Moangze, Dr. Charles Waiswa, Kaina Rita, Nampina Ruth
Special thanks: Christy Hartman, John Lee, Victoria Hurst Muirhead, Jacquie Cutts, Nakasango Evelyn, Mukalu Mohamed, Margreth Mpossi
Music: Kevin MacLeod, Jamal Wasswa, Mohr Productions, Jess, Eddy Kenzo
Image courtesy of Charlotte Sagan