By Jason Hagey and Alisha Hagey
Every year at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, Utah, the Timpanogos Storytelling Conference & Festival puts on Shivers in the Night, an evening of creepy, thrilling, and oftentimes scary stories to keep you up at night. Four storytellers come together, each with their own unique brand of telling, to get your spines tingling and hair raising. This is a unique event at the Festival—one not to be missed.
This year, Simon Brooks takes us back to seventeenth-century Scotland, Motoko transports us to feudal Japan, Antonio Rocha reveals a deep South, and Tim Lowry summons the ghosts of the Civil War.
Brooks tells a delightful tale of a prank that goes eerily wrong by its end. Brooks has a naturalness to his physical brand of storytelling. He creates his characters with love, makes you laugh, and then leaves you hanging, wanting to know what will happen next.
Motoko’s story is haunting, proving that every culture has a fear of little dolls. Her presentation is otherworldly. With simple song, carefully crafted pacing, and a little wooden doll of her own on display, Motoko keeps you guessing through her whole story.
In Rocha’s terrifying tale, a young boy with visions grows up to be a man who hopes to protect his family with his gift/curse. Known for his extraordinary gifts of pantomime, Rocha inhabits a world that becomes powerfully real for his audience. His tale is frightening.
Ghosts of the American Civil War march by in Lowry’s retelling of Lincoln’s assassination. He gives context in Southern superstitions regarding the dead, speaking of monsters as allegories of our own regrets and shame. Lowry then takes you to the night of Lincoln’s murder in meticulous detail before getting you to reflect on our own times with surprising poignancy.
All four storytellers have their own blend of wit, wisdom, whimsy, and total terror. They enchant you with their words and actions, pulling you into their stories without the need for typical theatricality. The tellers are able to weave varied and rich narratives right until the very end, keeping you tantalized with their tales. Next year, don’t miss the chance to be scared at Shivers in the Night. Sometimes it is spine-tingling, oftentimes thought provoking, and always a perfect evening. The Festival continues through Saturday with many other events, so don’t miss out!
Ride UTA Want to avoid traffic, construction, and parking at the Festival? Ride UTA for $3.75 round trip per person per day.
Timpanogos Storytelling Festival Presents Shivers in the Night.
Thanksgiving Point, Show Barn, 3900 Garden Drive Lehi, UT 84043
September 6, 2019, 8:00 PM
Tickets: $10 per person (or included in Festival Day and Weekend Passes $20-$150)
Contact: 801-426-8660, Story@TimpFest.org
Timpanogos Storytelling Festival Website
Timpanogos Storytelling Festival Facebook Page
App: TimpFest
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