Residency Artist - Traditional Arts
Residency Artist - Theatre

Omope Carter Daboiku

Homeside Cultural Programming
217 East Ross Avenue
Cincinnati, OH  45217-1105
Phone: (513) 542-0717
Email: omopecdaboiku@aol.com

Traditionally, storytelling has been the mechanism for maintaining a culture's collective memory. Major events were held in memory by an oral historian who retold the highlights over and over, keeping the event alive generation after generation. Other stories taught proper social interaction or explained spiritual principles and creation. Stories have helped me define myself. As an American of mixed ancestry born in the Appalachian hills of Southeastern Ohio, defining myself was very difficult. Listening to family elders recount the stories of talents, skills, conflict and migration helped me know my own worth. I am a griot, an oral historian, and carry responsibility for keeping memories alive for the next generation. My residencies focus on storytelling as a traditional art form. Research into telling styles will introduce a multicultural aspect to the work, allowing students to explore such styles as blackbox oration, shadow puppetry, dance and totem creation.