Clare Murphy brings storytelling to IU

Last night, 800 N. Indiana Ave. was transformed into the verdant, rolling hills of Ireland during the days when gods and goddesses ruled the land.

The spacious room, which used to be a church, could contain 125 people. It began filling steadily at 6:40 p.m. though the performance did not begin until 7 p.m.

A white screen hanging in the front of the room read, “Clare Muireann Murphy presents INISFIL: Island of Destiny.”

More chairs had to be added to accommodate the growing crowd. Soft, natural light filtered in through the stained glass windows.

At about 7:15 p.m., Chad Buterbaugh, a doctoral student in the Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology, made his way to the front of the room.

“Well, I am not Clare Murphy,” Buterbaugh said.

Laughter rippled through the crowd.

“This is an overwhelming turnout,” he continued. “I’m so happy at the diversity in this room.”

Department faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, the Irish Language group and members of the Bleeding Heartland Rollergirls attended the event.

Buterbaugh looked out at the crowd and spoke of a conversation he had with Murphy a little while earlier.

“I asked Clare what one of the most challenging things about storytelling in this era was,” Buterbaugh said. “She said, ‘when something modern tries to interrupt.’”

Almost everyone in the room reached for their cell phones, shutting down the modern, electronic devices.

After that, Buterbaugh welcomed Murphy, who bounded up the stairs in two flying leaps, to the stage.

Loud applause greeted her unusual entrance.

“It’s a brilliant thing, being applauded for being yourself,” Murphy said when she reached the microphone.

The rest of the evening was filled with laughter, sighs and gasps as Murphy’s tales twisted and turned from love and happiness to blood and war.

“I take no responsibility for what happens onstage,” Murphy said. “We start hanging around with gods and goddesses, and weird things start to happen.”

Murphy, born in Dublin, is an international storyteller who has performed in more than 20 countries.

She has served as guest lecturer and visiting artist at institutions such as Vanderbilt University and the National University of Ireland in Galway.

Recounting three of the oldest Irish mythological tales, Murphy’s first story told of the origin of satire. Her second explained why properties of many plants are still a mystery, and her third and final story defined the creation of fairies.

Her last story discussed how the gods and goddesses of Ireland fell, becoming elusive fairies in many tales today. They were banished underground by humans who won the battle for Ireland.

“They come back to make mischief, murder or, if you’re lucky, love,” Murphy said. “They come back because they remember what it was like to live above ground. And now, hopefully, so will you.”

Murphy received a standing ovation.

“I thought she was mesmerizing,” graduate student Betsy Shepherd said. “She transfixed the room with her storytelling.”

It was Murphy’s first performance in Bloomington and was part of her summer tour of the U.S.

“I didn’t really know what to expect,” Shepherd said. “I would recommend it to anybody. It’s really cool seeing a one-woman show. The modern day equivalent would probably be comedy. It’s a one-person show with great audience interaction. It’s amazing how she brought all of these dusty old myths to life by acting them out.”