BRATTLEBORO -- Whether home for the holidays or out and about, take a break to enjoy two new community-created stories presented especially for seasonal listening on the monthly Brattleboro Words Trail Podcast. Available for free on all platforms, the podcast celebrates "fascinating writers past and present in and around Brattleboro, America's most storied small town."
'Story-maker,' writer and voice actor Tom Bodett tells the entertaining story of his evolution of his relationship with writing, storytelling and all things 'words' for the December episode. Best known as the enigmatic spokesperson for Motel 6 ('We'll leave the light on for you'), Bodett has become a local legend not only for his storytelling prowess but for founding HatchSpace, a busy woodworking school and gallery providing a positive community center in downtown Brattleboro. You can listen to Tom's self-narrated story here: https://brattleboro-words-trail-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/tom-bodett-maker-of-stories-87atXz_V
'It was such a delight interviewing Tom to explore his long love affair with words," Sally Seymour, a Dummerston-based media-maker who produced and edited the Bodett piece for the Brattleboro Words Trail, said in a news release. "He's such a compelling storyteller, drawing you completely in with an honest reckoning with himself about his life and career, a wonderful listening experience to share this time of year."
The life of folk music legend Margaret MacArthur (1928 - 2006), an internationally recognized singer, collector and performer of traditional folk music from Marlboro, Vermont comes alive with lively musical selections in the November podcast. Namesake of the 'MacArthur Harp,' she devoted her life to keeping early folk music and telling the stories behind each song. The episode is available at: https://brattleboro-words-trail-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/margaret-macarthur-marlboro-folk-legend
The Brattleboro Words Trail helped Nora Rodes, a singer studying traditional music at college, research, write and narrate this episode as part of its mission to nurture youth storytelling about people and places important in the theme of 'words' in and around Brattleboro. Through Nora's storytelling and adroit use of multiple musical selections, listeners get an entertaining synopsis of Margaret's life and work.
Megan MacArthur, Margaret's daughter who lives in the Brattleboro area along with other family members, said. "Nora has told my mom's story beautifully, and our whole family is pleased to have it preserved and available for all to enjoy through the efforts of the Brattleboro Words Trail."
The Brattleboro Words Project, which builds and manages the Brattleboro Words Trail under the auspices of the Vermont Folklife Center, connects community members to the Brattleboro area's unique history, the art of audio storytelling - and each other. Its main focus is working with community members to produce audio pieces, all professionally mastered thanks to Guilford Sound, and maps. The Project also produced the 278-page book Print Town: Brattleboro's Legacy of Words, available at Everyone's Books in Brattleboro. The Trail has won local and national awards for excellence and will be featured - working in collaboration with artist Cynthia Parker Houghton, Muse Arts, Brooks Memorial Library and HatchSpace, among others, on the new Brattleboro Amtrak station which broke ground this Spring.
For more information on how to participate in telling audio stories for the Trail, visit the BrattleboroWords.org website or email Lissa Weinmann at [email protected]