Rob Zonfrelli grew up in suburban Boston where he was raised to believe that everyone was either Italian or Irish or a combination thereof, that work was supposed to be hard and that's why it's not called "play," and if you ate a hamburger on Friday during Lent - God would make sure something horrible happened to you. He received a Masters of Arts from Boston University in Film Theory and painted houses, became the casting coordinator for Nickelodeon, the network for kids, worked as a legal assistant and wrote a short film that was produced by Standback Productions.  Two years ago, Rob and his partner Alex, moved to Tucson. In the time that he's been here, Rob has been able to write a segment for Public Radio International's OutRight Radio, write another short film for Tucson Art Theater, and finish a book he's been working on. Rob currently works at Prescott College as a student advisor. Clearly, while he can't make a decision to save his own life, he is quite adept at telling other people what they should do.

Yarrow King, currently a student at Prescott College, is pursuing her love of using the performing arts for personal and community empowerment, as a tool for social change, and for good fun. Yarrow has studied, taught and performed as a member of the Rhythm of Life! Educational Performance Ensemble for over 10 years and the Spiral Fusion Performance Company for two years. As a new member of the comedy improvisation troupe Not Burnt Out Just Unscrewed she aspires to weave the vital elements of humor and global consciousness together; as laughter is good medicine and so is community awareness. Until recently she has primarily used dance and music to tell stories of traditional village life in Africa and the Caribbean. A new student of the spoken word she has begun to vocalize personal and collective tales. She thoroughly enjoys using her voice as the means for stories from characters of the contemporary world village to express themselves.

Amy Weintraub is NOT a story teller. She doesn't think fast on her feet. Her mind works slowly, mulling over words, again and again, nudging and striking and aligning them into a story on paper. In other words, she's a writer, not a performance artist. She tells lousy jokes and usually blows the punch line. On the other hand, she could pull through on May 6th and actually entertain you. The potential is there, since she's been an award-winning television producer and writer, and her fiction has also garnered national awards. And she can speak spontaneously from her yoga mat. She's a senior Kripalu Yoga Teacher and Mentor, who leads national workshops on Yoga and depression and regularly writes on the subject for magazines like Yoga Journal, Psychology Today and Yoga International. Her book, Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books, 2004), which is part memoir, i.e. story, is receiving great reviews. Amy is also featured on the new audio practice CD, "Breathe to Beat the Blues."  She holds the Master of Fine Arts degree in Writing and Literature from the Bennington Writing Seminars, Bennington College. She can definitely write a story, but can she just get up there and spontaneously tell a story?

Sheila Wilensky has been a mother, a teacher, a writer, owned a bookstore on the Maine Coast and tap-danced in a lobster costume. She doesn't have any idea what she'll do when she grows up.

Alan Maness came to Tucson by way of Motown 25 yrs ago. He has spent a great deal of his working life in public schools working with high risk students counseling, mediating, and planning enrichment opportunities for their continued educational growth. But his real passion in life comes from his time spent adventure traveling whenever possible, exercising both in & outdoors, playing ice hockey, & being with his friends. He can't decide what else to say about himself, maybe that's why he's here.

ODYSSEY STORYTELLING PHOTOS and BIOS