Always in English and always entertaining, Stories in the Park is proudly Muslim, proudly Australian and uniquely both.
Bankstown Memorial Park
In a world where entertainment is dictated by the majority's wants, it rests with the minorities who want something different to stand up and do their own thing. And so it is with the Muslim community in Sydney and Stories in the Park.
Of a Saturday evening, where would Abdul take his wife and children to get them out of the house? Well, the list consisted of restaurants and, maybe the occasional art house film that DIDN'T portray us as terrorists. But that was about it. Until recently, the list of 'halal' entertainments options was pretty short.
In 2006 Benyameen Issa and Sean McNulty got to thinking about exactly this issue. Instead of looking to larger Muslim communities or countries from around the world, they looked at entertainment from the past. Common to both Ben's Arab ancestry and Sean's Irish - and indeed most cultures from around the world - was the concept of stories around the campfire.
One of the tribes' more eloquent or charismatic members would get up in front of the campfire and quite simply, tell a story or recite poetry to those gathered before him. Stories that they had probably heard a thousand times before but no less potent in entertaining them. The pictures in one's mind when listening to a good story teller are far superior to anything that Hollywood has ever brought to us.
There had also been a very successful series of events in the UK and US called Shakespeare in the Park, where come sunset, thespians would assemble in a park and put on the plays of Shakespeare for everyone to enjoy, free of charge.
Taking that concept, Ben and Sean came up with Stories in the Park. Over the previous four years that the project has been running, many of our community's more eloquent and charismatic speakers have sat in front of the pagoda in Bankstown's City Gardens on Restwell Street and enchanted audiences with the stories they have told.
We are now entering Year 6 and alhamdulillah, we are pleased to announce that not only will Stories in the Park be coming back to Bankstown for another season but will also be opening for its third season in Melbourne insh'Allah.
No pictures or video can come close to capturing what Stories in the Park is all about. But if you think about a balmy summers night, lying back on your picnic blanket and gazing up at the stars - the smell of the earth and the citronella mingling subtly in the warm air around you whilst you run your fingers through the grass at your side - and the only sound that one can hear is the telling of a story that is not only Islamically appropriate but entertaining too... well, then you start to come close.
As with previous years, Season 6 will be free for all to attend - Muslim or non-Muslim, young or old - all are welcome. Always in English and always entertaining, Stories in the Park is proudly Muslim, proudly Australian and uniquely both.
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