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Bobby Norfolk Visits McCurdy Elementary School
During one of the “Anansi the Spider” tales from Ghana, Africa, musician Robert Fishbone weaves between rows of students at McCurdy Elementary School. Fishbone accompanied well-known local storyteller Bobby Norfolk on a Storytelling Express, an imaginary train that visited different nations.
Well-known local storyteller Bobby Norfolk has visited the Hazelwood School District many, many times over the years. However, on a recent visit to McCurdy Elementary School, he made a big change to his performance – he performed with someone else.
Robert Fishbone, a musician, music teacher and storyteller in his own right, joined Norfolk as conductor and engineer, respectively, on “The Storytelling Express: A Musical Journey Around the World.”
“Robert had all of this equipment and all of this talent – storytelling, music and dance – so I said, ‘Let’s take this to another level.’” Norfolk explained. “It would be difficult for me to do all of what he does and tell my stories.”
The pair put on two shows, one for kindergarten through second grade students and another for the older children. In each, Fishbone and Norfolk took the group on travels to various countries through music, story and song. Upon “arrival” at each destination, Fishbone would say “Hello” or a greeting in that land’s language and he asked the audience to repeat the greeting. Between each stop, he and Fishbone would recite their theme song, “This Train is Comin’ on Time.”
“We wanted our new show to have flow, with a beginning, middle and end,” Fishbone said.
“The idea of a journey became our theme and we decided to craft an around-the-world trip on a magical train, The Storytelling Express.”
The first stop was Oslo, the capital of Norway. After the Norwegian version of hello finished echoing in the school gym, Norfolk started his rendition of “The Three Billy Goats Gruff.”
Parked primarily behind a drum kit, Fishbone provided the rhythm, pace and even the train whistle for the Storytelling Express. On occasion, however, he would take a portable instrument like a bell or a drum, into the audience.
The train’s next stop was Ghana, a nation in western Africa. While there, Norfolk regaled his audience with an “Anansi the Spider” adventure. Anansi had six sons who all possessed superpowers, which are reflected in their names – See-Trouble, Road-Builder, River-Drinker, Stone-Thrower, Game-Skinner and Cushion.
While in Germany, Norfolk recounted the well-known fable, featuring a donkey, cat, dog and rooster, “The Brementown Musicians.”
“It is really nice to see how pleased the schools are to see him again and I feel blessed to be able to work with him,” Fishbone said. “During the show, I learn a lot just watching him and I hope he picks up a few things from me when it’s my turn to shine. Between the two of us, we have a lot of experience to share and as artists, enjoy the challenge of coming up with new ways to entertain and teach.”
(story and photo courtesy of Hazelwood School District)
