Storytellers to spin tales at Bradbury fest

The literary world is filled with fantastic villains.

They grip the reader's attention and are long remembered after the book is put down.

Literary villains will be summoned by master storytellers as the third annual Ray Bradbury Storytelling Festival will take place Friday, Oct. 17, at the Genesee Theatre.

Sponsored by the Waukegan Library Foundation, the festival will begin with ghost stories for all ages at 10 a.m. Then, for those who can handle the chill, a group of literary villains will be visited at 7:30 p.m.

Performing these stories will be renowned storytellers Megan Wells, Judith Black and Jim May.

To help plan what villains they should spotlight, Elizabeth Stearns, the library's assistant director for community services, said they went to the festival's namesake, Ray Bradbury, to find out his favorite villain. His choice was a character of his own, Mr. Dark, the mysterious ringmaster of a dark carnival that arrives in a small Midwestern town one autumn night from "Something Wicked This Way Comes."

"We get to honor and bring a Ray Bradbury work to life," Stearns said.

On Friday night, Wells will perform the library scene eerily set in late October in Green Town, Illinois, Bradbury's fictional Waukegan.

She also will tell the tale, "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," where Stearns said "we see both sides of the villain."

Black will perform a more comedic piece, "The Three Mothers," a spinoff of Snow White told from the wicked stepmother's perspective. And Dan Keating will share Edgar Allen Poe's tale, "The Cask of Amontillado," where the narrator seeks revenge against Fortunato by chaining him to a wall and then building a wall brick by brick to seal him inside. The suspense builds as Fortunato knows his fate but tries to save himself.

Stearns said they select stories each year that may be recognizable, but not so common that the audience would already know all the details.

"We try to give them pieces from the literature so they may want to go back and read it," she said. "It's our opportunity to bring literature to life."

If you go

What: 3rd annual Ray Bradbury Storytelling Festival

Date: Friday, Oct. 17

Time: 10:30 for ghost stories; 7:30 for literary villains

Place: Genesee Theatre, 203 N. Genesee St., Waukegan.

Cost: $5 for ghost stories, $17 for villains. Tickets are available at the Genesee Theatre box office, Ticketmaster outlets, at ticketmaster.com or by calling (312) 559-1212.