The Magic Carpet: Songs and Stories from Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt
Take a magic carpet ride to ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt in story and song with storyteller Judith Heineman and musician Daniel Marcotte in an engaging and interactive performance. Learn how tales like Star Wars and Harry Potter got their start. Hear of ancient quests, magic, monsters, epic battles between good and evil, and how mummies are made. Replica artifacts, early musical instruments (the oud), and period costumes enhance their lively presentation. The epic story of the world’s first superhero, Gilgamesh, deals with the basic qualities of what it means to be human—courage, strength, friendship, loss, betrayal, death, and the quest for immortality. It lay hidden for over 4,500 years until it was literally unearthed about 150 years ago. This program brings these lost stories to life.
Judith Heineman, professional storyteller, holds an MA in English from the College of the City of New York and is a member of several theatrical unions, including Actors Equity. She is the founder of the Chicago Storytelling Guild, a co-founder of the Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival, and producer of Tellabration, an adult storytelling festival.
Daniel Marcotte holds a BM in Voice Performance from Illinois Wesleyan and an MA in Musicology and Certificate in Early Music from Florida State University. He is currently the Music Director of the Bristol Renaissance Faire and teacher of voice and music theory.
Watch video of Judith Heineman and Daniel Marcotte performing "Grimm's Grimmest: The Darker Side of Traditional Fairy Tales."
