"I am 17, and as a child I was fascinated by tales of dragons and warriors. I loved hearing and reading stories of men who stood for something as opposed to our modern society where most men will fall for anything. I loved this story. Throughout, I felt as if I was not at a storytelling festival but in a dirty 13th century street, that I was not wearing jeans and a button-up shirt, but rather a tunic. You kept me hanging on every word wanting to know exactly what was to happen to these two lovers who became very real for those few moments. After the performance, I noticed that I had gained something from the experience. Your story stretched my mind -- it gave me new ideas and a lot to think about. Though the performance was over, I carried the story with me." -- Adam B, audience member at the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival
Romeo and Juliet. Tristan and Iseult. Antony and Cleopatra. Bonnie and Clyde.
Some people are just made for each other. How they got together, how it all worked out… well, that’s what love stories are all about.
One love story that’s been around for hundreds of years is the hauntingly beautiful medieval tale of Eglamore and Cristobel, star-crossed lovers from long ago. Theirs is the story of a cruel father, three dangerous tasks, a fateful journey, and a love that will not be denied. The random winds of fate conspire to keep them apart. Will they lose each other forever? Or will love conquer all?
Dolores Hydock, in the voice, spirit, and costume of a cranky crone, brings to life this original adaptation of a passionate 14th-century tale of desire, heartache, treachery, and the triumph of true love. The storytelling crone, as always, adds editorial commentary as she tells the tale; medieval music trio PanHarmonium lends musical punctuation on harp, hurdy-gurdy, lute, viol, recorder, and other instruments of old.
Click on the photo above to see a video excerpt from a performance of Eglamore and Cristobel.
"When I was not laughing out loud at the old lady’s opinion about minstrels and legends of 14-year-old "lovers” (quite true if you ask a Middle Ages – fanatic like me...), I was sitting with wide eyes, only drawing a breath when it was absolutely necessary, and it required some self control to keep my mouth from hanging open. Many times during the story, I was biting on my hand to keep from shouting at the most dramatic turn of events. Towards the end of the story I kinda said goodbye to my makeup with the tears and all (and there was some sniffing around me in the audience, too); when the story ended, we all jumped up from our seats and applauded till our palms hurt." --
audience member at the International Storytelling Center, Jonesborough, TN
Click on the arrow on the photo at left for a video excerpt from Eglamore and Cristobel.
The Making of Eglamore and Cristobel
Click here for an article about the development of Eglamore and Cristobel: A Love Story.
Other medieval story adaptations Eglamore and Cristobel is the fourth collaborative effort of Dolores Hydock and PanHarmonium. Click here or use the "silence on stage" button in the upper left of this page for excerpts from Silence: The Adventure of a Medieval Warrior Woman. They also collaborated on modern-language adaptations of the stories Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and The Juggler of Notre Dame.
Click here for a review of a held-over run of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight at the Birmingham Festival Theatre.
All video: Copyright Dolores Hydock 2010. All rights reserved. Please contact Dolores at dolores@storypower.org for photo permission.
