It’s time to kick-off another week of fabulous story-telling in Voice, brought to Second Life by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library SL.

As always, all times SLT, and unless otherwise stated, events will be held on the Seanchai Library’s home on Imagination Island.

Sunday April 13th

13:30: Tea-time at Baker Street: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes



Tea-time at Baker Street sees Caledonia Skytower, Corwyn Allen and Kayden Oconnell open the pages of the very first volume of Sherlock Holmes short stories, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.

First published in 1892, the volume brought together 12 of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s short stories about his fictional detective and companion, Dr. John Watson, all of which had been first published by the Strand Magazine between 1891 and 1892.

This week, we have the very first of Holmes’ tales to appear in the Strand Magazine, and one of the most popular of his adventures: A Scandal in Bohemia.

It is 1888, and Sherlock Holmes is receiving his good friend (and recently wed) Dr. John Watson. Their time together is interrupted by the arrival of a masked man claiming to be Count Von Kramm, who is seeking Holmes’ help on behalf of a wealthy client.

Holmes, however, isn’t fooled. He quickly challenges the visitor, correctly identifying him as Wilhelm Gottsreich Sigismond von Ormstein, Grand Duke of Cassel-Felstein and the hereditary King of Bohemia.

Admitting Holmes has correctly identified him, the king admits it is he who is seeking Holmes’ assistance with a matter of some delicacy, revolving around a liaison he had five years’ previously with an American opera singer, Irene Adler, and which could now threaten his upcoming marriage to a Scandinavian princess.

And so it is that Sherlock Holmes finds himself pitting his wits against an adversary he will forever only refer to as “the Woman” …

18:00: Magicland Storytime – Spring into Spring

With Caledonia Skytower at the Golden Horseshoe in Magicland Park.

Monday April 14th, 19:00: More Sci-Fi Adventures

With Gyro Muggins.

Tuesday April 15th, 19:00: The Raven and the Storyteller



Aoife Niphrendil reads from A. Gouedard’s novel, an enchanting tale of the travels of a Raven called Wilf and Moon the Storyteller, both of whom are immortal, and of the people and events they meet on their journey. The stories told are set within the book as their journey unfolds, and in the tradition of fables and stories within a story.

Wednesday April 16th, 19:00: Tír na nÓg



Tír na nÓg (“Land of the Young”) is, in Irish folklore and mythology, one of the names of the “otherworld”, in part a supernatural realm of everlasting youth, beauty, health, abundance and joy. It is also the title of the first volume of Marni L.B. Troop’s The Heart of Ireland Journals.

In looks, the Faerie are folk little different to humans, other than their pointed ears, although they are vastly different in other ways, and Casey is a princess among them.

She is horrified when a stranger from Iberia arrives on the shores of Ireland, home of the Faerie, believing them to be the gods of his people, but the kings of the Faerie respond to his overtures by having him slaughtered.

Thus the Faerie kings bring down the vengeance of the Iberian people upon their own folk, and war comes to their land. Caught in the middle, and herself in love with an Iberian called Amergin, Casey tries to find a way to bring peace between the two peoples so that they might live together. Unfortunately for her and her beloved, things do not go as she had hoped.

Join Caladonia as she continues reading this intriguing faerie tale.

Thursday April 17th



16:00: First Nation Tales

Caledonia Skytower and Dubhna Rhiadra sit down to bring us more native tales from the first peoples of the North American continent.

Drawing on number of sources and resources, Cale and Dubna have, over the years, drawn together collections of stories and legends from across a number of First Nation tribes, including the Zuni, Omaha, Paiute, and Hopi as well as legends from Kwaikutlsome in Western Canada. Some of these stories have been published, others of which have come from the long tradition of the spoken word, with archetypal tales handed down through successive generations.

“We have everything from Raven stealing the moon, to how Winter and Summer came to be, and the Creation of Corn,” Cale says of the stories. “The thing I like about them, is the imagery and the “themes” are almost Aesopian. They are all lesson/moral/cautionary tales.”

Join Cale and Dubhna as they delve into this treasure chest of tales and legends.

19:00: Geraint, Son of Erbin, Part 2

Another Middle Welsh tale included by Lady Charlotte Guest among those she collected under the title The Mabinogion.

When his father, King Cilydd, remarries following the death of his mother, the young Culhwch finds himself in the middle of an attempt by his stepmother to marry him to his stepsister. When he rejects the attempt, Culhwch earns himself his stepmother’s ire, and she curses him so that he can marry no-one but the beautiful Olwen, daughter of the giant Ysbaddaden Pencawr.

Infatuated by Olwen even though he has never seen her, Culhwch learns from his father that he will never find or win her without the aid of his cousin, King Arthur. Together, and with the aid of Arthur’s men, they find Olwen, and she is receptive to Culhwch’s advances. Her father, however, is not, He determines that if Culhwch is to take his daughter’s hand, first the young man must complete a series of tasks …

Join Shandon Loring to learn the rest of the tale.

21:00: Seanchai Late Night

Details still TBA, so please check with the Seanchai Library blog as the week progresses.

—–

Please check with the Seanchai Library SL’s blog for updates and for additions or changes to the week’s schedule. The featured charity for March and April is Project Children: building true and lasting peace in Northern Ireland one child at a time.

Related Links