'The Mahabharata Adventure' Newport Folk festival 5 July 2015

'The Mahabharata', one of the world's great stories, will be honored in one of Newport's humblest buildings. I think Vyasa would approve. A celebration and exploration using film, poetry, song, visual art and story at the Newport Folk Festival . A collaboration involving local, national and international minds and glued together by members of Storytelling Australia Victoria and the Newport Fiddle and Folk Club. 

We approached this project rather like a shambolic Book Club which a couple of us set up as an open group on Facebook. Our hope was to broaden and deepen our understanding of the epic. It wasn't long before storytellers, artists and other curious folk joined us from around the world and together we pecked away for 8 months exchanging links and and ideas. We decided that the exploration needed an outcome - some kind of event so the 'The Mahabharata Adventure' was born.

'The Adventure' was the brainchild of myself and Gerry Nelson from Storytelling Australia Victoria and includes SAV members Peter Fernon and Lana Woolf.Other adventurers came from the Newport Fiddle & Folk Club, Greg Hammond, Leonie Kervin and Christine McDonald. We are also indebted to Kala Paramanathan, Laura Sheridan, Rupa Anurendra and Anu Jegadeva, Aunty Nesa, Richard MacNeill and Michael Stewart as well as the countless enthusiasts who joined us on the journey from around the world via Facebook. Special thanks to Andy Fraenkel, Narayan Arunasalam, Kamini Ramachandran, Asha Sampath, GoodDay Tarmada and Kiran Shah.

‘Whatever is here, is found elsewhere. But what is not here, is nowhere else. ‘ (The Book of the Beginning)

Full Details for the Newport Folk Festival HERE