Seth Castleman’s earliest memories are of family and friends sitting around the table after Shabbat dinner, telling stories.
One night in particular stands out in his mind. Castleman was about 5 years old, living in a Boston suburb. The rabbi, Lawrence Kushner — now a well-known author — was over for dinner. Castleman still remembers the story Kushner told.
“A man is walking through the woods when he hears a growl,” says Castleman, emitting a deep, guttural growl. It’s a mountain lion, which gives chase. The man runs, comes to a cliff, and begins descending. Hanging from a vine, he looks down to see another mountain lion looking up at him. Suddenly, two mice emerge from an opening in the mountainside and begin nibbling at the vine. To the man’s side is a strawberry, which he plucks and eats.
“This is the sweetest thing I’ve ever tasted,” the man says.
Castleman enjoyed the story. But what most intrigued him was his sense that the adults appreciated the story on an entirely different level, although they, too, didn’t fully understand its meaning.
This incident became a talisman of sorts for Castleman. It taught him that stories could be appreciated on multiple levels.
Many years later, Castleman got first-hand experience in the power of storytelling. Driving on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, he was stopped by a highway patrol officer for exceeding the speed limit by some 20 miles per hour. Summoning his innate storytelling skills, he wove such a sympathetic tale that the officer let him go without issuing a ticket.
“I realized I could pay the rent by telling stories,” Castleman says.
And that’s just what he proceeded to do.
The 23-year-old resident of Woodacre in Marin County is self-employed as a storyteller. He performs at synagogues, old-age homes, weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs and anywhere else the need arises. He has even told stories at the deathbed of friends.
“In Judaism there is a tradition of storytelling,” says Castleman. “It’s what kept [Judaism] alive, written text and oral tradition.”
The Torah itself, Castleman points out, teaches through stories that are still relevant today.
“Adam and Eve is about teenage kids getting thrown out of the house by their parents,” Castleman says by way of example.
Rich with natural storytelling abilities, Castleman interjects anecdotes and stories into his conversation, and adopts different voices and changes his inflection to suit the mood.
His tales come from everywhere, geographically and spiritually. He also relies on his imagination, creating his own stories.
For weddings, Castleman creates personalized stories using incidents from the couple’s lives and courtship. At the wedding and during the weeks before, Castleman talks to the bride and groom, their family and friends, gathering anecdotes about the couple. He then weaves the information into a story that he tells at the wedding and later transcribes into a handmade book.
Having been to many weddings, Castleman finds his 10 to 45 minutes of after-dinner storytelling is a good vehicle for helping guests connect.
“People come to weddings to feel a connection to the family and these two people who they love,” says Castleman. “I’m sure we all remember some wedding we went to where we didn’t know anyone. Storytelling can bring the whole group together.”
Castleman tells stories of love, matrimony and wisdom. Or, “looking at the light and shadow side of coming into marriage,” as he calls it.
One of his favorites is about a woodcutter who gets lost in the woods and meets a beautiful woman. They fall in love and he asks her to show him the way out. She can’t show him the way out, she says, but now he has a companion to wander with.
“[The story] shows the true nature of love and marriage,” Castleman says.
When not plying his storytelling, Castleman teaches at the religious school at Congregation Kol Shofar in Tiburon, and leads adult storytelling classes and workshops for teachers.