What begins as an effort to understand family history becomes a joyous and surprising round-the-world adventure, as a storyteller attempts to make sense of her place in the world, and whether art can cross physical, cultural and emotional borders.Taking a pilgrimage to Rousillon, the small French village where her grandfather saved her Jewish grandmother from the Nazis in World War II, storyteller and performer Naomi Steinberg is confronted with new questions: What connections to place can we claim? How can we begin to measure belonging? How do stories quantify and connect these distances in ways science cannot? To answer them, Steinberg embarks on a ‘round the world tour of storytelling, performance and open-hearted connection.Goosefeather is a remarkable travelogue and memoir, chronicling Steinberg’s 382 day adventure, covering 55, 965 kilometres around the world by road and rail, land and sea (without air travel), performing a playful and profound one-woman show that questions the very nature of modern connection. Crossing 18 borders to perform 37 productions everywhere from Japan to Russia to Belgium to the middle of the ocean, upon the decks of a cargo ship, Steinberg explores what it means to tell a truly universal story. Candid and compassionate, Goosefeather shares the ups and downs of an extraordinary year of global travel and an uplifting look at how stories can resonate across even the most enormous distances – thus bringing us all closer together.
GOOSEFEATHER
Once Upon a Cartographic Adventure
Naomi Steinberg
Pub Date: June 9, 2020Hardcover
$30.00 CAD
9" x 6" / 201pp
ISBN: 978-1-7770496-0-7Softcover
$18.00 CAD
9" x 6" / 201pp
ISBN: 978-1-7770496-1-4
Payment Portal www.goosefeather.ca
Points of Interest
• Illuminating interrogation of belonging in an era of “global citizenship”: In a moment of increasing migration and xenophobia, Steinberg’s precarious journey by cargo ship, rail, car and foot invited her to be vulnerable with the world. Reflecting on her international adventures, Steinberg explores how we can develop an ethical and truly global sense of belonging – regardless of where in the world we find ourselves.
• Moving meditation on the power of art to overcome distances:
Performing 37 shows in locations across four continents, Goosefeather is an empowering examination of what it takes to make a story translate across disparate cultures. Throughout the process, Steinberg uncovers surprising and heartwarming similarities from people as seemingly different as curious Japanese schoolchildren and hardened sea captains, and the necessity of art to spark wonder and empathy.
• Evocative and inspiring travelogue: Beautifully written, Steinberg proves her credentials as an engaging storyteller, bringing to life the red clay of rural France, the wild green of California, the winding rice fields of Japan – and sharing the local stories that help each culture make sense of the place that shapes them. The result is an immersive, nuanced reimagining of geographies both familiar and foreign, that will invite you to seek out new stories in even the most familiar spaces.
• Intimate, heartwarming behind the scenes look :
It wasn’t always easy! Whether finding one’s balance amidst rough ocean waves or bartering theatre for phone calls, Steinberg provides a humorous and refreshingly honest look at what it really takes to bring a show across 18 borders and survive a successful year on a highly unconventional road.
author available for interviews & readingsemail to arrange!
....... looking forward to hearing from you!
NAOMI STEINBERG born on Canada's supernatural Westcoast, in Coast Salish territories, of French and Jewish descent. Naomi has told traditional folk stories, fairy tales professionally since 2001. Goosefeather is her first book.
