There are some people who are born to perform and Cat Weatherill is one of them. Promising to take a group of adults on a magical ride to Italy and its deep seas, she did just that. Using gestures, facial expressions, and change of tones in her voice, the storyteller from Britain brought to life a tale of “love, adultery, and loyalty” to an audience at the Hay Festival in Kerala.
The story begins with a man named Maximo and his wife, Nina. Maximo has a mistress – the sea. One day the king sees Nina when her husband is on one of his voyages and is taken in by her beauty. He asks Nina to join him in his castle and she agrees. Leading an idyllic life, Nina soon feels suffocated and discovers she misses her husband and that she too wants to see the world. She returns to her husband and joins him on an expedition to India. Whilst on sail, he accuses Nina of her infidelity and pushes her overboard. She is saved by a group of mermaids and she begins to lead a life of a mermaid. Her heart still longs for her husband though. How she turns down the chance to rejoin her husband as she doesn't want to betray the trust of her mermaid clan forms the rest of the story.
It was at a Hay Festival like this that Cat discovered that she could tell a story. “I lived near Hay-on-Wye and was a frequent visitor to the festival. During one of my visits, I received a flier, which invited people to a story-telling competition. I attended it and thought, ‘Hey, I can do that,'” says Cat, who is also an actor and singer.
Her love for storytelling stems from the fact that she can use it to explore the emotions in her life. “It is interesting. When I choose stories, I fail to realise why I choose them. It is only later that I discover how the stories mirror my life. I was fond of stories of princesses trapped in towers and I recently left a 15- year-old marriage. The same number of years I have spent in this field. Also I was staying in a rather remote place, so that trapped feeling was stronger. That is why Cinderella is one of the most popular stories. It is a story people can identify themselves with. Hollywood has spun many a tale with Cinderella as a base. Pretty Woman , for instance.”
And although her tales are inspired from stories in books, folk lore and superstitions also seep into her tales. “Once at a hospital I was stirring a spoon in a teapot when a nurse exclaimed I would have red-headed twins if I did so. That struck me as a fine thread for a story and I weaved one out of it.”
Children's tales
Her tales are not confined to grown-ups alone. She tells stories for children and writes them too. Cat has five books in her kitty. “I have just realised that my books usually have a character who is an outsider, who isn't human. My first two books [ Barkbelly and Snowbone ] were based on children made out of wood. The heroine of my third book turns into a fox [ Wild Magic ], while the hero in my fourth book turns into a leek [ Jaco the Leek ].”
Writing for children, she says is difficult as children know what they want. “You need to get a subject that captures their imagination and also get their language right. As I don't have children of my own, the dialogue part is often a disadvantage. But I do work with children and often carry a notebook with me to pen down interesting phrases or on how kids view a particular thing.”
The storyteller-cum-author who currently resides in Birmingham, England, is planning to write a book for women. “It is based on one of my shows called ‘How to be Glorious.”
In the city for the first time, Cat calls the city a feast for the senses. “I love the colours, the smells and the noises. I'm hoping to squeeze in some time for shopping,” she says signing off.
