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Olga Loya combines voice, body and imagination to present stories and monologues to her audiences. In certain performances she uses movement, music, and drums to enhance the story.

PERFORMANCES FOR ADULTS AND TEENAGERS

Nepantla (Between two worlds) * NEW SHOW*
Personal and original stories and folklore explore that place in between when we are trying to figure out who and where we are in this world. Using humor, wit, and and a fierce honesty we have an opportunity to look at ourselves in a whole new way.

Surprises of the Heart
Stories which incorporate exploring the themes or racism, self acceptance, forgiveness and redemption, featuring a short story where a mother takes in the boy who killed her son are told. In the performance you will hear a theater piece with music, folk tales with singing and a monologue. This is a multi-disciplinary performance utilizing theater and music.

Dancing Through La Vida
A performance piece about dancing, love and survival in the barrios of East Los Angeles with music and dancing.

Love and Ghost Stories from South of the Border
Hear scary stories that make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. Then be soothed by tales about men and women who love each other with a strength that overcomes all obstacles.

Day of the Dead Show
Listen to the story that tells the history of the “Day of the Dead” along with family stories, myths, folk tales and legends. Join in the discovery of the power of ceremony, and an opportunity to look at life and death in a more personal way.

She-roes and Heroes
Meet spirited feisty characters who act courageously even when they are frightened. These heroes and she-roes inspire us with their courage and willingness to act in trying times.

PERFORMANCES FOR ALL AGES

Juana Briones
In a dramatic and historically accurate monologue and dialogue with the audience, Olga Loya uses her storytelling skills to bring Californio Juana Briones to life. Olga presents this character from the 1900’s in full costume.

Stories from Latin America
Celebrate the magic of los cuentos (stories) with folk tales about self image, personal stories about discovering of one¹s own culture, myths from long ago that help us to understand the present, folk tales about learning about our own strength. Learning about the Latino culture as you learn about yourself.

World Tales
Travel the world with stories from Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and North America.

Let's Work Together
The power of community, people working together and peace stories are just some of the themes of this show. Listen to folk tales, myths, legends and personal stories from around the world with an emphasis on Latin American stories.

The Sky Above Us
Bilingual storyteller Olga Loya tells stories from the Aztecs, the Mayas, the Incas and more. A drum and participation will be part of the program as stories are told about how the sun, moon and stars came to be.

Native People of the Americas
Folk tales, myths and legends of native people from the United States, Mexico and Central America told using drums and participation.

The Trickster In Us All
Personal trickster stories and folklore from all over the world about wily hero/fool trickster coyote, raven, anansi and more.

Scary Stories
Stories of La LLorona
Flying Skeletons, Goblins and a ghost story or two are part of this program.

Singing and Dancing Through Stories
The culture of Latin America is passed on through personal stories about family and life, stories about community, stories about taking responsibility, stories about building character. Celebrate through dancing and singing as you hear folk tales, personal stories and myths.

Healing Stories
Folklore and personal stories as a healing mirror that give courage and insight to us all

The DeAnza Expedition * NEW SHOW*
A historical story about the DeAnza Expedition 1775-1776 from the view point of a 12 year old girl. Songs from the time period will also be shared.

AVAILABLE FOR AUTHOR FESTIVALS
Tales from “Magic Moments, Momentos Mágicos,” award winning bilingual Spanish/English book are shared.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING!

‘‘One could feel the sparks in the air as everyone suspended their everyday lives and activities to join you in tales of wonder and to fill the room with song and excitement.”
Doris Illes, Outreach Manager, Riverside Public Library

“As Olga Loya tells a story something comes over her and the audience as the story takes
them to new places.”
Times Standard, Eureka, CA

‘‘She mesmerized all ages with her refreshing, energetic and captivating style. Her performance entitled ‘Love and Ghost stories from South of the Border’ had the audience enthralled and asking for more.”
Sherry K. Gomez, Kern County Library Systems, Bakersfield

‘‘Olga Loya is great! Her sparkle and enthusiasm as a storyteller are reflected in the faces of the listeners.”
Pam Lucas, Coordinator-Migrant Education, Medford, OR

‘‘I greatly enjoyed the liveliness and humor of Olga Loya’s stories, and I especially appreciated the ways in which Olga engaged the audience’s participation. She made me want to learn more about the storyteller’s art myself!”
Jennifer Michael, Folk Arts Coordinator, Anthropology Department, California Academy of Sciences, Golden Gate Park, S.F

‘‘Take one steamy Ohio summer night, a few dozen tired migrant families sprawled on the ground under a tree, one effervescent storyteller, and what do you get—Momentos Mágicos, Magic Moments.”
Ohio Tribune, Toledo Ohio

‘‘Thank you for performing your entertaining storytelling for the Momentos Mágicos program. It meant a great deal to offer a program which was such fun for both Spanish and English speakers.”
Karen E. Brown, Monterey Public Library

‘‘Loya’s characters are humorous and animated, and tell the tales with their own magic voices.”
Bookshelf

‘‘A charming bilingual collection of 15 Latin American Folktales retold by a popular Mexican-American Performance artist. Several are variants of stories familiar to us from such earlier taletellers as Aesop, Hans Christian Andersen, and Joel Chandler Harris (e.g., ‘‘The money and the Crocodile,” ‘‘Uncle Rabbit and Uncle Tiger”). More specifically indigenous material includes the famous ‘‘The Virgin of Guadalujpe,”a selection of Aztec and Mayan creation myths, and some genuinely creepy ghost stories (especially the wonderful ‘‘the Rooster’s Claw”). A very attractive volume, and an ideal holiday gift.”
KIRKUS Reviews

I love telling stories to students from kindergarten to high school. Each age group has its own needs, and I plan the stories appropriate to that age.

My goals for student education in the arts are the following:

1. To demonstrate different types of stories—personal, folklore, improvisation—and, storytelling techniques
2. To stimulate the imagination and to encourage the students to listen, read, tell, and write stories
3. To recognize the style and mood of Latin-American tales and world tales
4. To expand their knowledge of other cultures through storytelling
5. To help them find their own life stories
6. To help them work on moral strength and healing through stories
7. To help them get more comfortable in front of an audience

I believe these goals contribute to the education in the arts by exposing the audience to a myriad of cultures through stories. Watching performances, students are able to see different styles of telling because I perform personal, folklore (myths, folktales and legends), and do improvisation as part of the program. I also involve the audience in different ways such as: Telling a personal story and then asking audience members to tell their neighbor a story; entreating them to go home and ask their family for stories; I do participation stories and improvisation, and then at the end, I tell the audience to engage in improvisation with their friends, family, and class. I also ask them to think about the story they liked the best and tell it to someone else so that the stories continue.

Storytelling is one of the oldest forms of folk art. Like dancing and singing, it grew out of people’s needs to share their experiences and emotions. Even though it is primarily an art form, storytelling has a sound educational basis. Children listen and, out of the words they hear, create their own mental images; this opening of the mind’s eye develops the imagination. It is a shared experience that shows our willingness to be vulnerable about our feelings and values.

Studies have shown that storytelling is important in the development of good listening skills, patterns of language, vocabulary, visualization, symbol association, sequencing, insight into human behavior, among other qualities.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING!

“Through lively performance audience participation and dramatic monologue, Olga conveyed the power of the myths, legends and storytelling to our students”
Jeanette M. Falassopoulos, M.A. Teacher, Title 1 Coordinator, Napa High School

“Thank you for giving our students such a wonderful experience. They loved everything you had to offer them.
The students will never forget you.”
Barbara Souza, Principal, Slater School, Mt. View CA

“Dear Ms. Loya. Thank you for the stories. I think stories are a part of us. We learned a lot.”
Your friend Alexandra, Star School, 2nd grade Fresno, CA.

“She had the children mesmerized and totally involved in her stories.”
Graciela Fonseca, Snake River Learning Academy, Nampa, ID

Olga Loya, a teacher for many years, founded and taught in an alternative school which has been running successfully for 30 years. As a workshop leader, Olga combines her skills as a teacher and performer to encourage participants to listen, to use their imagination, to begin to tell their stories and, most important, to develop a love for the story.

Bridging the Gap
This workshop is for at-risk groups—teen moms, juvenile halls, group homes, prisons, etc. The objective is to help participants identify their own stories and then to tell them. Olga inspires such narratives through her telling of personal stories and folklore about life changes and finding one¹s strength through the story. She uses story prompters, plays storytelling games, and employs other techniques to elicit narratives.

Parent Literacy Storytelling Workshop
These workshops can be done in English, bilingual, or in Spanish. The goals are to help the parents remember and feel pride about their stories, to work with them on folklore, to teach them games to play with their children, to help them see the relationship between talking, reading, and the use of the library. The workshop features Olga telling stories, the parents telling stories to each other, and playing storytelling games.

Our Culture Ourselves
Storytelling is an ideal tool for discovering the links between our individual stories and the deeper cultural traditions that shape our lives. This workshop will help you find stories that you didn't know you had inside you and strengthen your appreciation of the cultural heritage running through your individual and family stories. Pride, self–knowledge, and healing can come from finding your own story. Stories, movement, improvisational techniques will all be part of the workshop

Beginning Storytelling
Olga works closely with students to help explore and develop their own storytelling styles utilizing many exciting and fun storytelling games and exercises. This workshop will focus upon folklore and discovering how to tell stories.

Zeroing in on a Story
Using the senses and listening skills, participants explore a story so it may be more clearly seen and heard.

Exploring Bilingual Storytelling
Different bilingual storytelling techniques are demonstrated. Participants tell a short story using one of the techniques as well as play some games.

Games Storytellers Play
Find new ways to share stories with small group games, large group games, games to play in many different situations. Get ready to play!

Gods, Virgins and Death
Learning about the history of Latin-American folklore, telling a story, and playing storytelling games are all aspects of this workshop.

La Llorona (The Wailing Woman)
Many different types of La Llorona stories are shared, plus a discussion of why the La Llorona stories have remained so popular and what they have to say to us. This workshop is a combination of Loya telling La Llorona stories, a group discussion about La Llorona, and everyone telling stories.

Las Tres Mujeres
A comparison and contrast of three Latin-American icons, La Virgin de Guadalupe, La Llorona, and La Malinche, and how they relate to our own stories.

Storytelling and Literacy
This workshop shows the connection of literacy and storytelling through telling stories either personal or folklore and playing games that connect the two themes.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING!

“Olga recreated accounts of mystery, suspense, humor, and surprise that triggered our own experiences.
She truly instilled in all of us the power of telling tales, writing tales and reading tales.”
Jeanette M. Valassopoulos, M.A. Title I Coordinator, Napa High School

TEEN PANEL COMMENTS

“The thing that I got out of teen panel is that I know I helped some girls out there to prevent teen pregnancy
and that makes me feel good to help people.”
Daisa Flores 18, child 18 months

“It would make a world of a difference, if I could just change one person’s life.”
Savuth Phim, 17, child 18 months

“We got a chance to know each other personally and felt each other's pain that other parents felt but are afraid to show.”
Sabrina Conteras, age 16, child 15 months

“What I got out of teen panel is I learned how to speak in front of people.”
Hannah Rodriguez, age 18, child 18 months

“Olga Loya has an amazing capacity to engage the students in story listening. They then in turn begin to learn about themselves as they tell their own stories. They learn how to be in front of an audience, how to cooperate with each other and share. ”
Portia Harvey,Teacher in Charge, Osborn School, San Jose Juvenile Hall, San Jose, CA

“Thank you for coming to Osborne School. I really enjoyed your energy and enthusiasm.
You really made me feel at home.”
Student, Osborn School, San Jose Juvenile Hall, San Jose, CA

“She strengthened listening attentiveness and fostered the love for a well told tale. She stretched our students' capacities to perform before audiences carefully chosen to stimulate self esteem and minimize stage fright”
Janet Welsh, 98-99 Title VII Coordinator, Anderson Village School, San Jose, CA

“If only we could all have the ability to create the electricity of communication that you possess.”
Pamela Moore, San Jose State University, CA