As a storyteller, you sometimes you have the opportunity or the challenge to tell the same set of stories to multiple audiences/classes in quick succession. I had that chance when I was teaching the difference between democracy and a Republic to multiple classes and student groups at the patriot camp this year.
Each class had the same information repeated from class to class. The challenge of this, of course, is that you tell your stories two, three or four times, it is very easy to lose track of what stories you’ve told to which group of kids. Sometimes that can hinder a performance because you don’t want to repeat a story in fear that you have very told up for this particular class. In hindsight, I now have a solution for such forgetfulness.
My recommendation is to have some kind visual objects that are nearby. One object might be a pair of glasses to represent Ben Franklin’s quote that ‘democracy is like having two wolves and a sheep discussing what will be for dinner.’ I might have a toy of a wolf that is assigned to my Cry Wolf story that was part of my set. Finally, a third object might be a skirt gun that can be related to a posse of cowboys chasing after a bank robber.
As I tell each specific story. I move that object from my right to my left. It’s an easy way to keep track without he trying to remember things. Then I don’t have to remember if and tell the same story twice in the same class. At the conclusion of that particular performance, I move all my visual cues to right to. They are ready and imposition for the next telling on the next class. You want reminders that will not add more stress to you as a reformer. We try to remember all the proper details of the story were telling.

What techniques do you like to use to make sure that you remember things in proper sequence. In doing the performance? Please feel free to share you recommendations in the comment section this blog. Thank you.