Raven’s RV
The ongoing education and adventures of two rank newbie RVers

Today I got to meet the Act!vated Storytellers (not a typo!). We’d been chatting on Twitter for a few months and I’d had their Lodi show pencilled in since February.

Their two to three person family theatre company has been touring full-time in an RV since 1990. Kimberly and Dennis are full-time and their son, Zephyr is now sometimes in and sometime out as he pursues his own interests (he has a band, among other things). Either way, I have a soft spot for theatre and was very much looking forward to the performance.

They have a 22′ Class C RV with a trailer. Their show dates are written on the back in erasible marker pen. Don rode downtown with me but didn’t want to stay, and I introduced myself briefly before showtime. Then I went to read the magazines in the library until it was time!

I went in to find Zephyr teasing the little row of kids in front with his attempt at sweeping the floor. He started with the broom upside down. The kids shouted instructions, which he followed…literally. (”Put it down on the floor!” — he lay it down. You get the picture.) The adults stayed in back on the chairs laughing at their kids getting ever more perplexed. And then he balanced it on his finger and started sweeping the ceiling. :)

The show started. First they did a little introduction about who and what and explained that the show would also be signed in ASL. They introduced Sarah, their guest for the week, and performed two folk tales, from China and Mongolia respectively.

The backdrop was a giant fabric book with pages that could be turned to show different scenes. Tucked behind was a tiny hut where the costumes were hung up ready to be grabbed and worn. The stage was never still, with something going on from almost every angle and there were many tastes of improv. The highlight was the kids’ participation and involvement in the story. At one point everyone was required to mime rain and wind. ;)

I have also never seen anyone pass their entire body through a tennis racket before(!)

There were little nods to the adults in the audience such as the informercial-style rapid disclaimer added to “Yes, you can have your wish.”

I liked the dragon. I liked that when it “threatened” to have fallen off the no-eating-humans wagon the kids moved backwards as a unit, all laughing. :)

The show can be booked for schools and libraries so if you’d like them to play near you, visit their website, poke your library and get them on board!

When the show was all over I wandered over to chat and also met the children’s librarian, a really nice guy with a sense of humor and wonderfully purple shirt. I helped them break the set and thus learned how to collapse a microphone boom. Then we arranged to meet over at Panera where we chatted and laughed some more. I really liked these people and their humor and enthusiasm. :)

At the end I took a quick dash home to get a copy of my book as a pressie, and invited Don. We met them up at Flying J where they were performing the ritual of the shower and the dump. ;) We had a fun chat about the vagaries of RVing. Then they had to be on their way and we shook hands–only we were standing in a square and ended up all shaking hands with each other at the same time by accident. :: big silly grin ::

It was a great way to spend an afternoon. :)

Left to right: Dennis, Kimberly, Zephyr, me!

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