Shameless Bragging

For press photos

Judith Black is a professional storyteller, story maker, and teacher/coach with an international following. Originally trained at Wheelock College as an early childhood educator, Judith leapt from the classroom to the stage after training at London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. Ultimately she bound these two passions with storytelling and for 35 years has been using story to motivate, humanize, entertain, and teach. Most recently she has turned her attention to the climate crisis and in June of 2016 gave a TEDX talk on the link that can bind storytelling and climate. She is the winner of many awards in her field, including, but not limited to:

National Storytelling Network Oracle Award: Circle of Excellence
MASSMOUTH Big Mouthoff 2012 Winner
Wheelock College: Centennial Alumni Award
Boston Phoenix: Banned in the Western Suburbs: One of the year’s ten best
Storytelling World Multiple honors for CDs
New England Emmy Awards (nominated) Outstanding Performing
Cable Ace Award Performing Arts Award
League for the Advancement of NE Storytelling Brother Blue and Ruth Hill Award
Boston Parents Paper: Gold Medal Family Entertainer of the Year
Parents Guide to Children’s Media “Outstanding Achievement” for CD
National Youth Storytelling Pegasus Award
Parents Choice Magazine: Gold Medal Award

As a creator of tales she has been commissioned by organizations to develop stories that reflect their mission/history. In the last couple years these have included: Morton Museum of Collierville History The Hoosic River Revival, and the Mugford Street Unitarian Church.  For more about this work go to: Commissioning A Story

As a coach Judith helps others explore and shape their experiences for audiences and then bring that work to the stage. For instance, she was engaged in directing and script writing Searching For my Own True Voice: One Deaf Woman’s Story, by KR Glikman that premiered at the Salem Theatre Company. For more information: http://patch.com/massachusetts/salem/ev–searching-for-my-own-true-voice  Black also creates original, full length, theatrical pieces based on her own carefully observed life and world. The latest, That Fading Scent: A Seditious Comedy About Women and Aging has played at theaters from Florida to California.

:“This is the thinking woman’s version of Menopause: The Musical,….. Black is a warm and dynamic storyteller with a wry sense of humor………. Smart and undeniably funny” Orlando Sentinel

Judith’s work both as a teacher and teller has been broadly produced. Following is an abridged list of some of the organizations and institutions that have featured her:

Theaters and Festivals: (abridged list)

The National Storytelling Festival‘90, ‘92, ‘94, ‘96, ‘2000 ‘03 ‘07
‘08 ‘12 ’16              Plus 3 times as their artist-in-residence
Jonesboro, Tennessee
The American Story Theater  Providence, RI
The Montreal Comedy Festival The Hoosier Festival
The Hoosier Festival Indianapolis, Indiana
The Timpanogos Storytelling Festival Orem, Utah
The Sierra Storytelling Festival Nevada City, CA
The Three Apples Storytelling Festival (founder) Harvard, MA
The Vermont Storytelling Festival Burlington, VT
Las Vegas Storytelling Festival Las Vegas, Nevada
Columbia Festival of the Arts Columbia, Maryland
Johnstown Storytelling Festival Johnstown, PA
Stories From the Heartland Austin, Minnesota
Clearwater Revival Poughkeepsie, NY
Jung Center 92nd St. YMHA (multiple appearances) New York, New York
Missouri River Festival St. Louis, Missouri
The Ark Ann Arbor, Michigan
The Flynn Theater Burlington, Vt.
Boise River Festival Boise, Idaho
The Mariposa Storytelling Festival Mariposa, CA
The Flying Leap Storytelling Festival Solvang, CA
Bay Area Storytelling  Festival(multiple appearances) Kennedy Grove, CA
Toronto Jewish Storytelling Festival Toronto, Ontario
The Barter Theater Bristol, VA
Salem State Summer Theater Salem, MA
Ohai Storytelling Festival Ohai, California
Michigan Storytelling Festival Flint, Michigan
Washington Storytellers Theater(multiple appearances) Washington, DC
Winter Tales(multiple appearances) Oklahoma City,OK
Cave Run Storytelling Festival Morehead, KY
Mesa Storytelling Festival Mesa, AZ
Caldwell Theater Boca Raton, Florida
Orlando International Fringe Festival Orlando, FL
Leheigh Storytelling Festival Bethlehem, PA
Keepers of the Word Amherst, MA
Delta Queen-Storyteller in Residence The Mighty Ohio River
Orcas Storytelling Festival Orcas Island, WA
Forrest Storytelling Festival Port Angeles Washington

 

Conferences:  (Abridged List) Judith has offered seminars, conducted workshops, or been the featured keynote speaker at the following:

Int. Conf. on Brain Development and Learning         Vancouver, BC
40th Annual Inst, of Alcohol and Drug Studies          Austin, TX
Unilever: N.AM Leadership Retreat          NY State
National Breast Cancer Awareness Conference       Disney Institute, FL
Ericson Institute        Sturbridge, MA
Hillel International Leadership Conference        Lake Como, PA
6th Annual Hollywood Literary Retreat        Santa Monica, CA
 Arizona State Library Association         Phoenix, Arizona
C.A.J.E.  12 years featured        Various Locations
Mid Atlantic Storytellers (MAST)         College Town, PA
Wisc. Institute of JudaismScholar in Residence  Lake Denton, Wisc.
The Memory Clinic-Keynote Speaker    Bennington, VT
MASS ALFA-Keynote Speaker     Newton, MA
 IFS Annual Conference    Providence, RI
Wheelock Alumni Forum    Boston, MA
National Congress on Storytelling (9 years)    Various Locations
Boston Bi-Lingual Conference    Boston, MA
Lesley University Early Childhood Conf.    Cambridge, MA
New England Round Table of Librarians    Sturbridge, MA
The Spellbinders National Conference    Denver, CO

 

International

Cape Town Museum of Fine Arts Cape Town, Sooth Africa
Hebrew University Jerusalem, Israel
Stockholm International School Stockholm,Sweden
Schools through the townships

of Cape Town

Cape Town, S.A
Fabula ( Performance Series) Stockholm,Sweden
Helsinki International School Hesinki, Finland
Komeettankoulu (Komeetta School) Espoo,Finland
International Storytelling Café Hesinki, Finland
Oulun Lyseo Oulu Finland
Toronto Jewish Storytelling Festival Toronto, Canada
Kulosaaren Yhteiskoulu   Helsinki, Finland
International School    Bejing, China
Institut Notre Dame    Saint Germain en Laye, France
Lycée International     Saint Germain en Laye, France
ELSA Conference      Paris, France
MEZRAB Gallery      Amsterdam, Netherlands
American School of Paris      Paris, France
ESSEC Business School       Cergy, France

Universities and Humanities Counsels (abridged list)

New Hampshire Humanities Council Concord, New Hampshire
Catholic University San Diego, CA
Midland College Fremont, Nebraska
 University of Southern Tennessee Johnson City, Tn.
Hebrew College Brookline, Ma.
Buckeye Community College Great Falls, Iowa
Brown University Providence, Rhode Island
Hebrew University Jerusalem, Israel
Society of Female Engineers Cambridge, MA
White Fund Enlightenment Series Lawrence, MA
Texas A&M  Bryon and College Station, Texas
Bowling Green State University Ohio
Emory and Henry College Emory, Virginia
Exeter Hospital: Grand Round,

Community Performance Series

Exeter, NH
Northern Essex Community College Haverhill, MA
Vermont Counsel for the Humanities Montpielier, VT
 Florida Atlantic University  Boca Raton, FL
 Fitchburg State College  Fitchburg, MA
 Keene State University  Keene, NH
 Fischer College  Boston, MA

Libraries and Historic Sites and Institutions  (abridged list)

Smithsonian Institution/National Museum of American History Washington, DC
High PlainsChautauqua Greely, CO
National Trust For Historic Preservation Boston, MA
The Rockwell Museum (‘89, 94, 98, 2001) Stockbridge, MA
Springfield Armory National Historic Site (multiple times) Springfield, MA
National Interpreters Conference (Keynote) Syracuse, NY
Yosemite National Park Maripos, CA
National Heritage Education Program: Ontario Parks Dorset, Ontario, Canada

Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center

Great Falls, Montana
National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center Baker City, OR
Trustees of the Reservation Walpole, MA
Montclair Historic Society Montclair, NJ
Sturbridge Historical Society Sturbridge, MA
National Park Service Boston, MA
The Conservation Foundation Naperville, Ill
Peabody Essex Museum Salem, MA
American Antiquarian Society Worcester, MA
Tsongas Industrial History Center Lowell, MA
Wright Museum of WWII Wolfboro, NH
Boston Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA

Health Care Organizations and Interesting Sundry Hosts

QMN, Leadership Training for

Health Care Managers

Boston, MA
Grand Rounds and Community

Outreach:Exeter Hospital

Exeter, NH
WMAAP Holyoke, MA
Del Mar Caregivers Resource Center Sacramento, CA
Inland Caregiver Resource Center Colton, CA
The Memory Clinic Bennington, VT
 The American Balint Society  Jonesboro, TN
 Lynn Community Health Center  Lynn, MA
 Early Childhood Teachers Assoc.  Norfolk County, MA
 Lucent Technologies,  Andover, MA
Cumberland Presbyterian Annual

Minister retreat: Guest Artist

Mid- TN
North Shore Elder Services Danvers, MA
Del Oro Caregiver Resource Center Carmichael, CA
Highland Valley Elder Services Florence, MA
Home Care Association of NH Concord, NH
Hospice of the North Shore Danvers, MA
MASS ALFA Woburn, MA
Mystic Valley Elder Services Stoneham, MA
Benchmark Assisted Living Multiple Locations
Landmark Assisted Living Multiple Locations

Background

Judith Black brings to her storytelling a varied background in education, theater, and creative writing. Having studied early childhood education at Wheelock College, she taught for three years before moving to London where she studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Later she toured as an actress for two years with Little Flags Theater Company. Judith was a founder and ten year board member of The Three Apples Storytelling Festival. She helped to initiate and produce Storytellers in Concert , the first and longest running storytelling series for adults in the nation. Her award winning original stories have been commissioned by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities, The Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Old South Church, National Public Radio, The Artist’s Foundation, The U.S.S. Constitution Museum,The U.S. Department of Forestry, North Shore Symphony and many others. She has created three television series’s for Massachusetts Cable Educational Television, worked with organizations who objectives are to prevent domestic violence, has worked with elderly housing organizations to introduce and support caretakers through their journey, and been a grant recipient of the CDC, creating program with ‘at risk’ youth exploring health choices. Basically, Judith wants to take storytelling into any area that can use it to educate and influence, creating a richer world for all.

Publications:

Judith’s articles and stories appear in the following book:

The Arts Education and Social Change 2005, Peter LangPublishers
Literacy Development in the Storytelling Classroom 2009,Libraries Unlimited
Ready To Tell Tales 1994, August House
Chosen Tales: Stories Told By Jewish Storytellers 1995, Jason Aaronson Inc.
Many Voices: True Tales from America’s Past 1995, National Storytelling Press
Chicken Soup for the Single Soul 1999, Health Communications Press
Bringing the Story Home: The Complete Guide to Storytelling for Parents 2000, WW Norton & Co.
Telling Stories to Children  2005, National Storytelling Press
Jewish Stories of Love and Marriage: Folktales, Legends and Letters

2015

Rowman and Littlefield

 Journals
Storytelling Magazine Kansas City, MO
The Yarnspinner Jonesboro, Tn.
 Journal of Reading:

International Reading Assoc.

Newark, DE
The Inside Story Santa Rosa, Calf.
AudioFile Magazine Portland ME
Storytelling World Johnson City, TN
The Story Bag San Diego, Calf.
The Museletter Boston, MA

Press Quotes

The National Storytelling Festival:  “Thank-you for bringing such a variety of strong work to the Festival…Your repertoire is like none other and adds a dimension to our programming that is special to offer.”                                                                  Susan O’Connor, Director of Programs

The Boston Globe:   “For a wicked good time, see Judith Black’s Banned in the Western Suburbs……Black’s lively presentation is more of a one woman show than a session of storytelling.”

The Boston Phoenix: (Banned in the Western Suburbs) “Her sympathetic persona is a cross between Lily Tomlin and Woody Allen, the hard edge of feminist certitude cushioned by self-deprecating humor that never slides into self hatred.”

The Boston Phoenix: “Storyteller, Judith Black’s latest solo performance may be called Teetering on the Edge, but this actress/storyteller is one awesomely confident babe…. she’ll have you giggling in the aisles.”

North Shore Sunday: “Judith Black’s audience hangs on every word.”

Chicago Tribune: (Deborah and Simon) “She received a standing ovation after her engrossing, often hilarious, and in the end poignant portrait of a contemporary urban romance.”

The Montreal Gazette: “By the time Black is through with her show, she’s fashioned a world of giants, castles and disco pool parties with nothing more than her imagination. The adults are smiling as broadly as the children.”

Christian Science Monitor: “There were tales and tellers that had moments of nobility and beauty. Judith Black’s strongly felt parable about a grove of rootless trees symbolizing the Jewish people evoked feelings of shared humanity.”

The Boston Globe: (Adult Children of …Parents) “Black has culled the minefields of childhood and elevated them through her storytelling to a level of universal experience that is not only painful and poignant, but gut-wrenchingly hilarious.”

The Jewish Advocate: (Adult Children of …Parents) “Judith Black should be sought after by one and all for her wisdom, for her wit, for the risks she takes on stage and for her genuine warmth which she abundantly shares with one and all.”

University of San Diego/Storytelling Series: “The silence and deafening cheers of the audience gave tribute to the incredible genius of Judith Black.”

The Boston Globe  (Looking For G-d’s Doorbell) “Spellbinding, heartwarming, and yet oh so familiar, a wonderful evocation of the struggle to keep one’s children rooted in Judaism. Judith’s story reaches the depths where we all are one.”

The Improper Bostonian (Retiring the Champ) “Judith Black is like a repertory company of one….She wittily conveys the trials and tribulations of one of life’s trickiest passages, negotiating our parents’ sometimes long and winding ending.”

The Jewish Journal (Retiring the Champ) “A superb one-woman show by the multi-talented Ms. Black. She can swagger like a sailor or act meek as a mouse. Her emotional range seems boundless. “

The North Shore Sunday “Black’s one woman show, Retiring the Champ, is about redemption…also like all of Black’s tales, filled with laughter.”

The Orlando Sentinel (That Fading Scent) “This is the thinking woman’s version of Menopause: The Musical,…..Black is a warm and dynamic storyteller, exposing the legacy of bias against older women with a wry sense of humor………. Smart and undeniably funny, That Fading Scent… is a great example of the power of storytelling.”

North Shore Art Throb “There are two sorts of storytellers in the world: those who like to hear themselves talk and those who embody the voices of others. And, we all know with which type we’d rather spend an evening. Thankfully the Salem Theatre Company (STC) has made arrangements with storyteller extraordinaire Judith Black in her one woman tour de force Bittersweet Midnight.”

The Providence Phoenix “Yet that outline of gigs doesn’t convey the ever present humor and heartfelt humanity of her stories, especially those drawn from personal experience, be it single-parenting her son, coping with aging parents, helping her mother-in-law through the journey of Alzheimer’s disease, or coming to terms with the changing sexuality of a woman over 50. “

Judith’s Mother “If only she got a good hair cut, she could be such a pretty girl.” Judith’s Response: Oh well, you can’t win over all the people all the time.