Magician Richard Hatch to perform in Farmington

PRLog (Press Release) - Jun. 27, 2011 - As part of this year's Farmington Festival Days, Karl Behling, President of the Utah Storytellers' Guild, has once again hand picked several premier performers from the Guild to entertain at Thursday evening's "Tales for a Summer Evening." The first storyteller will be George McEwan, recently crowned "Utah's Biggest Liar" at the annual Liar's competition in Orem last April. Suzanne Decaria, a.k.a. "the Story Mom", will delight audiences young and old with her original stories and poems. "Deceptionist" Richard Hatch, a professional magician who combines stories with his magic, will perform magical feats from India, Japan and China. Finally, David and Carol Sharp, a.k.a. the Glastonbury Duo, will perform Celtic inspired music and stories. Hosted by Behling, this performance is free and open to the public and begins at 6:30 p.m. in the Farmington Community Arts Center, 120 So. Main in Farmington.

For more information on the Festival, check out their website at http://www.farmingtonfestivaldays.com/

Performer's biographies:

Karl Behling has been an active (some say hyper-active) storyteller for over 20 years as a 4th grade teacher, backpacking dad, and very proud Grandpa of a bunch of story-loving grandkiddies. His original children’s stories, tall tales, Mountain Man lore, and folktales from around the world are sure to tickle, tease and please. To quote one of his favorite poets, Shel Silverstein, “Come in, for we have some flax-golden tales to spin. Come in.”

Karl’s storytelling roots go back to his childhood, which some folks say he never left. As a school teacher, storyteller, and author he has given the gift of story to generations of eager listeners. His stories draw us in and hold our imaginations for a magic moment, and then we say,“Ahh, that was good!”

Karl has told stories for the Sons of Utah Pioneers, the Gallivan Center Lunch Bunch concert series, Ogden City School District’s Storytelling Festival, the Utah County Fair at Thanksgiving Point, and the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival Swapping Grounds.He was recently featured at the Weber State Storytelling Festival. Karl currently serves as President of the Utah Storytelling Guild.

For more information on Karl see http://www.kbstoryteller.webs.com/

George McEwan has been creating and collecting story material for years. As a world traveler, soldier, pilot, parent, madcap inventor and perhaps the most out-of-control child without a juvenile record, his stories range from hilarious to inspirational.  He loves to educate kids with the adage “Kids, don’t try this at home – just look what happened to me.”

Suzanne Decaria strives to promote literacy through the arts as a storyteller, writer, and educator, . She believes stories help young children make sense of their world. Her original poems and stories bring out the humor in everyday situations and have delighted audiences at the Clearfield Storytelling Festival, the Sunset Liar's Contest, Farmington Festival Days, Utah StorySwap, and Municipal Elementary School.

Some of Suzanne's favorites include Mother Goose stories, fables, humorous poems, and personal tales. She enjoys telling for children and former children of all ages.

Visit Suzanne's website here: http://storymom.weebly.com/

Richard Hatch bills himself as a "deceptionist" rather than the more common "magician" because he feels it is a more accurate description of his profession. He is not a traditional storyteller, but often uses stories to enhance his performances of magic, and uses magic to help tell his stories. Although he holds two graduate degrees in Physics from Yale University, he finds it easier apparently to violate the laws of nature than to discover them. He has been performing his unique brand of magic full time since 1983. In 1985, shortly after winning first place in the annual New England Close Up Magic Competition in Worcester, Massachusetts, Richard moved with his wife, violinist Rosemary Kimura, to Houston, Texas where they were based until moving to Richard’s hometown of Logan, Utah in the Fall of 2010. For several years he honed his craft entertaining the guests as one of the house magicians at Houston's Magic Island Nightclub before devoting himself exclusively to private and corporate work, traveling internationally on behalf of his clients. Hatch is a member of the Academy of Magical Arts, the International Brotherhood of Magicians, and is a lifetime member of the Society of American Magicians. Among magicians he is known as the translator from German into English of works about Johann Nepomuk Hofzinser (1806 – 1875), Paul Potassy, and the first four volumes of Roberto Giobbi’s acclaimed “Card College” course of card manipulation. In 2010 he was a featured performer at the exhibit "Magic: The Science of Wonder" at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. He currently teaches group and private lessons in magic and offers monthly performances at the Hatch Academy of Magic and Music, housed in the historic 1878 Thatcher-Young Mansion in downtown Logan, Utah.
For more information on Richard, see http://www.hatchacademy.com/

Carol and Dave Sharp, a.k.a. the he Glastonbury Duo,  play many kinds of music, including haunting harp and flute, songs of long ago, and rousing dance tunes. Glastonbury Duo includes period costumes, hand carved instruments, and storytelling, with elements of culture, history and language. (Stories include: Tom the Tailor, David of the White Rock, The Glashan's Flute, The Lobster, Donald and the Changeling Child, Donald and the Water Kelpie, The Jackdaw's Ring, The Fairy Tinker and King Halvar's Cat.) Instruments include a hand carved Celtic Harp, Bowed Psaltery, Irish Flute, Whistles, Recorders, Flute d'Accord, Alto Cornamuse, Rebec, Zils, Bodhran, Tamborine, Mountain Dulcimer. (known as the Schietholt or Epinette). Vocals are sung in Gaelic, Welsh, English, and Latin. You can even see a Unicorn percussion toy that was used in Medieval and Renaissance music and plays. For willing participants, they might pass out percussion instruments and teach a dance or two from the villages and courts of Europe. We also have a small puppet show "The Clown and the Princess" and "The Trouble with Crickett". The Sharps are founding members of the Celtic Group Idlewild that has toured and played in many major festivals in the region for over 12 years. Recently, Glastonbury Duo has performed in the "Age of Chivalry Festival" in Las Vegas, Nevada, "The Merry Greenwood" Renaissance fair in the Tri City area in Washington, Pioneer Trails "Candle Light and Pumpkin patch tours, the Utah Performing Arts Tour 2004 through 2008, the Farmington New Mexico Medieval faire and the Timpanogas Storytelling Festival, to name a few. Dave and Carol have released 24 albums through Idlewild Recordings. Their current CD's are available through CD baby or as mp3 downloads at: http://cdbaby.com/all/Idlewild
For more information, see their website at http://www.idlewildrecordings.com

For more information on the Utah Storytellers' Guild, see their website at http://www.utahstorytellingguild.org/

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The Hatch Academy of Magic & Music is an educational institution in Logan, Utah offering private and group instruction in sleight-of-hand and violin performance.

Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/11559305/1