Sherry, one of the participants who is a librarian and a brand new storyteller made an interesting observation about appearance and dress. Some time ago she hired a performer to visit her library based on a brochure they had sent. When the performer showed up she had to ask twice if they were the performer she had hired.
Why? Because they had multiple photos in the brochure of them in a particular costume that appeared to be part of the program. When the performer arrived they were dressed in plain clothes, not the costume. Not only was she disappointed, but all her promotional materials she had printed had the performer in costume.
Several folks including our librarian friend offered another observation about some performers, including storytellers when they mentioned that performers AND storytellers often come to gigs dressed poorly or inappropriately. When I asked privately for more details several things were mentioned often...
- Dirty jeans or pants... or shirts
- Inappropriate blouses for women
- Slogans on tee shirts that were not appropriate... even political tees at an event that is not political in nature.
- Shorts when not appropriate
- See through clothing
- Pants worn WAAAYYYY to low on men or women
- Sloppy clothes
Don't forget you are a professional! As we talked three names were mentioned more than once. Donald Davis was the choice for a great professional appearance. Doc McConnell was mentioned because everyone remembers Doc in that plaid vest. Ray Hicks always stepped onto stage in his overalls, but you knew they looked new and clean. "They were his Sunday overalls" was the comment.
Think about how you look when you go onstage. You may not think it matters... but those who hire you do!
I think the key word above is "professional." Surely a pro teller would know better. Usually we say the garb of the storyteller should stand out from that of the crowd, but for the right reasons, not because it's dirty, indecent, or inappropriate. "Jack's Mama" always wears and ol' raggedy apron that's patched and stained, but it's the best ol' raggedy, patched, and stained apron she has.Her fancy hat makes up for any other wardrobe shortcomings. And like Mr. Twain, Santa, the good doctor, and other mutual friends, she stands out from the crowd.
ReplyDeleteDo tell, Cousin!