Orla McGovern visited Study Abroad Ireland in Athlone on Wednesday, June 23, 2022. Orla is an actor, writer, event organizer, and storyteller based in Galway. The participants were captivated by her compelling style of storytelling and how they felt pulled into her stories. Here are some of their comments:
Isabel Abadia: I observed the way Orla used facial and arm movements to add to the dramatics of the story. I learned that holding back emotions adds to the feelings that the audience feels.
Nicolette Beaulieu: I really liked hearing her stories and how her repertoire was so multidimensional. She embodied her stories so much so that it was easy to get lost in the story along with her. It was interesting hearing about her story-making process. She was very encouraging and was open to explaining her though processes. Overall, very positive experience.
Charlie Ellis Bradford: I liked her body language and expressiveness. I learned how vocal tone affects a story.
Ray Dutton: I noticed Orla’s casual air and tendency to slip into story rather than announce herself or say something like “once upon a time” or “long ago.” I liked this as it felt more immersive, less separated from reality. I think I learned about how to make the story more immersive by including the audience or room. This grounded the story further in reality.
Adamari Giachetti: I observed that I really enjoyed how Orla added a lot of different voices for the characters and how she added a lot of emotion. I learned that you can tell stories well without having to know it word-for-word. Unless they are traditional stories, then you would have to know it well.
Joely Hollander: I really liked how Orla was very descriptive in her storytelling which made it very easy to picture the stories, as well as her emphatic tone which pulled me into the story. From her, I learned about the Magdalene Laundries, which I’d never heard about before. The moment in her story when the woman grabbed her arm made me cry and I realized how absorbed I was when she finished the story.
Jorge Leon: I observed how people naturally have their own storytelling style despite them having little to no experience with storytelling. I liked the history of storytelling in Ireland. I learned about adding or taking away from performances thanks to my storytelling.
Sarai Lopez: I noticed that when she was telling her story she pulled a lot of things together when she talked about her life. I liked that she was theatrical and the EYE CONTACT! And she dragged me into the story when she grabbed my arm. I LOVED it! I also love how encouraging she is as well. I learned that if you hold your emotions, it has a pull-back method which made me feel the emotions she was feeling.
Susie Papadopoulos: I really liked how she told her own story and was telling stories naturally and extremely passionately which was very captivating, and she made every story seem very real.
Elizabeth Tejada Payan: I truly enjoyed how her storytelling just seemed to flow like regular conversation. It really drew me in. It moved me, the story of the nuns. I had no idea things like that happened in Ireland. Her story brought tears to my eyes.
Anna Thornton: I LOVED having Orla come to class. I was entranced. When she told the personal story of the Magdalene women, I cried real tears. I loved how she got lost in her own story. It pulled me in like magic. I loved her style and I learned how I could maybe incorporate some of that in my storytelling. I also really liked the advice she gave about writing stories.
Faith Wheelington: I loved the way that Orla used outside sounds to bring her stories alive. She was very personable and made it very easy to speak to her. I saw how she used different techniques to story tell like improv and her theatre background.
Malcolm Young: I noticed Orla had a very natural way of picking up a story by leading into it with the flow of conversation. I learned a lot about pacing and taking time to embellish details to the audience and the teller can get lost within the story.
Back row L-R: Axel Bejarano-Fahl, Faith Wheelington, Ray Dutton, Noel Martinez, Jorge Leon, Malcolm Young, Charlie Bradford, Nicolette Beaulieu, Isabel Abadia. Front row L-R: Joely Hollander, Sarai Lopez, Elizabeth Tejada-Payan, Orla McGovern, Adamari Giachetti, Susie Papadopoulos, Jenny Tripp, Anna Thornton.
Go here to learn more about Orla and her work.