Challenges

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Challenge 1: A Far-traveled Fable. Master Dahrien will gather a handful of “volunteers”. He will begin a story… but just as it’s getting interesting he’ll point at a volunteer to continue the tale, until he points the Fabulous Finger of Foolery at another volunteer, who may well take it in a completely different direction. Listen carefully… you may be next …

Challenge 2: Rhyme Time. Tell us a fable (new or old) in rhyme. Any form, or none. (Norse personas may use alliteration to fit their style of poetry.)

Challenge 3: Aesop-Shmaesop! Bring us a fable written during the middle ages or Renaissance. (Please introduce (briefly) the originator of the piece.) Examples: Marie de France, Odo of Chariton, Berechiah ben Natronaj (12 c), Nicole Bozon (13c), Fabulae rhythmicae, Guillaume le Clerc (13c), Leonardo da Vinci…

https://www.brepolsonline.net/doi/abs/10.1484/J.VIATOR.2.301550?journalCode=viator

Fyt 2

Challenge 4: Aesop without morals. Modern “Aesop’s Fables” tend to have a “moral” tacked on, lest the victim audience miss the point of the tale. Tell a fable in its “original” form, and ask the audience to provide a moral to the story. (The narrator may choose up to five “moralists”.)

Challenge 5: Talk to the Animals. Many definitions of “fable” include “animal” as part of the definition. Sing us an animal song… new or old. Extra points for sing-along.

Challenge 6: Fables have been told in every corner of the world. Share a story from a non-European culture. (In English, and/or in its original language.)

Challenge 7: It has been hypothesized that some fables began life as a proverb. Give an old saw a new life by writing a fable to illustrate it. (This would be great for Bard, Scribe, Illuminator as well.) https://mymodernmet.com/dutch-proverbs-pieter-bruegel/

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Challenge 8: Gather a troupe of performers to act out a fable (new or classic) . Props and sound effects are welcome. (Extra points if it’s a Broadway musical!)

Challenge 9: Do the Aes-hop. From a list of words (provided at Gate) come up with a fable. (Moral optional). Use no fewer than five, no more than 12 of the listed words.

Challenge 10: The Moral is Oral! Celebrate the ancient story, told by firelight as the stars come out. Bring it straight from your memory – no book (of any sort). These may be used for Arwa’s “off-book” challenge.

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Challenge 11: An Instrumental Challenge. Some performances become fabulous because a beautiful instrument carries us away on a tune. Bring us a break from words, words, words, and let an instrumental piece carry us into fabulousness (if that’s a word).

Challenge 12: Short and Sweet: Turn a fable into a limerick or haiku. (The fable can come from Aesop, or a period writer, or from your own fabulous brain. (No “moral” necessary.))

Challenge 13: Bard, Scribe, Illuminator – Show your work! You know the drill – write the bard’s version of a fable (new or old), and illuminate the text. This may (or may not) be accomplished by a group of people. Perform the fable, and take the illuminated text around the room so everyone can admire it.

Extra challenge: (Lest we end the festivities too early) Bedtime Story: The time has come for good little bards to take their rest. Tell us a bedtime story that may (or may not) have been written by Aesop or his many followers.

Extra challenge: (In case there’s extra time during the day) Many fables take aim at sins or foibles of particular people. Without naming names, or being too explicit about the identity of a wrongdoer, bring us a story in which a person or group behaves badly, and receives just punishment (or not).