Once Upon a Nation is Philadelphia's summer-long celebration in the city's Historic District, featuring day and evening storytelling with performers trained at the Benstitute. Thirteen free storytelling benches (featuring two new locations and over 30 new stories) are located in such places as the Betsy Ross House, Carpenters' Hall, City Tavern and Franklin Court to name just a few. The storytellers will entertain locals and visitors alike with three- to five-minute tales from Philly's past.
I sure did. Named after Benjamin Franklin whose life story is one of America's greatest tales, the Benstitute trains all of the storytellers and re-enactors who will be featured in Once Upon a Nation. They receive extensive training in Philadelphia history, the art of story-telling and good customer service. Faculty from local universities and leaders from such places Colonial Williamsburg conduct the three-week certification and training.
The storytellers are dressed in contemporary clothes with a distinctive colored polo shirt. They tell their stories from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and will be doing so from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day. They begin each story by ringing a special town crier bell. Once the story is completed, they'll give you a copy of The Gazette that has a map showing the location of all of the storytellers.
Absolutely! There are evening activities, Adventure Tours, Harmony Lane, the Independence Living History Canter and, this summer, Heritage Fair at Franklin Square. The storytellers are the principal focus of Once Upon a Nation but the other activities are equally exciting.
At the Free Quaker Meeting House you can hear longer stories written by nationally known writers. You may hear a tale from Edgar Allan Poe, or a story from George Washington or Thomas Jefferson - all told by candlelight by period re-enactors. For something really fun, you can catch 1776 The Movie-Musical at the Independence Living History Center and they'll provide the song lyrics and props so that you can participate in the show. (There is a reasonable fee for these evening items.)
These are guided excursions highlighting some of the most popular areas of the Historic District conducted by historic re-enactors. There's a Morning Adventure Tour, and Evening Adventure Tour that includes a visit to Independence Hall at night without the crowds, a dinner at City Tavern and a ticket to the Lights of Liberty Show. There's also a Tippler's Tour that wanders through the Old City and stops at several modern-day pubs. (There is a fee for these tours.)
At 4th and Walnut Streets, you can catch Colonial characters going about their daily activities such as churning butter or spinning wool, and talking about their lives. Young folks can take part in some of the games played by Colonial children, such as playing hoops or hopscotch.
It's a new name for a very familiar place - the old Visitor Center at 3rd and Chestnut Streets. In addition to hosting 1776 The Movie-Musical, you can stop by here in the daytime and watch archaeologists working to conserve some of the more than a million artifacts unearthed when the National Constitution Center was built. You can even catch a story about some of thee artifacts from one of the Once Upon a Nation storytellers.
In July 2006, Once Upon a Nation will open Heritage Fair at Franklin Square. Franklin Square was one of Philadelphia's original squares but is little used today and in poor condition. It is located at the foot of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge and across the street from the Philadelphia Police Department Headquarters. As part of the celebration of Benjamin Franklin's 300th birthday, this historic square will be cleaned up and brought back to life with the new Liberty Carousel, Philly Mini-Golf, two playgrounds, more storytellers and a renovated Franklin Square Fountain.
Also, 2006 will feature even more storytellers and Adventure Tours to some outlying areas such as Valley Forge Historic Park and Cliveden in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia.
This Sounds Great. Can I Get More Information?
Sure, First, we have a sample story that you can listen to right now called Lydia Darragh - Spy.
Secondly, Once Upon a Nation has a large website that gives even more details as well as dates and times for all of the various tours and activities as well as information on prices for the evening storytelling, Adventure Tours and showing of 1776 The Movie-Musical.
I've attended several tours with Once Upon a Nation as well including the "Independence After Hours" tour which includes dinner at City Tavern the Lights of Liberty Show and the wonderful "Tippler's Tour" which winds its way through the streets of Old City enjoying drinks and a little sip of history at Colonial and modern day watering holes.
Now in its second year, Once Upon a Nation is an exciting addition to Philadelphia's Historic District. Its educational, exciting and fun for families of all ages. This summer promises to be even more exciting once Franklin Square reopens and as the City and Region celebrates the Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary.