Good Grief - The Heart of the Matter

Janet LeRoy and Heather Whaley, and musician Scottie Irving with Good Grief - The Heart of the Matter

Thursday, January 25, 2024 7:30pm ET | Blackbox Studio, Arts Court (2 Daly Ave) and On Demand

Grief is as natural to life as the air we breathe; yet we live in a culture that disparages grief. Janet LeRoy and Heather Whaley share a vision – to bring grief out of the closet and into the world through the healing art of storytelling. Through an inspiring medley of Scottish folktales, personal stories, and songs, Janet and Heather lead listeners through the wilderness of grief into brighter pastures.

Janet’s stories reveal how a bereft mother is comforted by the healing presence of a loving child, and how life unfolds in magical ways to offer solace and joy. A folksong and folktale take on new meaning when an intergenerational family story surfaces after the death of Heather’s sister. Their collaboration debuted at the Toronto Storytelling Festival in 2022 and continues as stories about Janet’s mother and Heather’s father, both born in Scotland, enter the concert to reveal more about the healing nature of family legacies.

Renowned local musician Scottie Irving brings a special touch with his accordion accompaniment.

About the Storytellers

Janet LeRoy is a storyteller, writer and workshop facilitator. She has performed in storytelling festivals in Edmonton, Toronto, Wakefield, and Ottawa. She has told in the Speaking Out Series at the NAC, in Story Stage, 1001 Friday Nights, senior centres, adult education centres, and leads Story Time at the Wakefield Library. While a support group facilitator with Bereaved Families, Janet shared and listened to many heart-felt stories. Her story Gift for the Grieving was published in Today’s Parent Magazine and Storytelling as Process Work was published in the book Empowering Whole-Being Health. Janet believes the power of story can help heal what is broken.

Heather Whaley is a teller of traditional, family, personal memoir, spoken word, and recitation, specializing in marrying songs and ballads with story themes. Her Scottish, Irish, British, and Italian parents and grandparents left a legacy of arm flapping vibrant voices, and musical influences! Heather’s solo pieces A Load off My Chest, For the Love of Johnny, True Tall Tales from a Thunder Bay Girl, and others have been performed on several national and international stages and in house concerts. Her passion for preserving stories and voices includes work with Storytellers of Canada’s StorySave Program, producer and host of SC-Radio-CC, and facilitates their Member Memorial Hour at the Annual Conference.

About the Musician

Scottie Irving is an Ottawa-based musician who specializes in keyboard performance (piano, synthesizer, accordion) and composition. Scottie is best known as a member of The PepTides, an independent Canadian pop band with electro, jazz, and soul influences. The band has toured Ontario, Québec, Atlantic Canada, performed at RBC Bluesfest and the Ottawa International Jazz Festival, written an original soundtrack for Stuart McLean’s anthology Revenge of the Vinyl Cafe, and played live on national CBC Radio. Scottie’s theatre composition and performance credits include Heartlines (GCTC, 2022), Deluge (with Skeleton Key Theatre, NAC, 2021), and Swan River (with Skeleton Key Theatre, Ottawa International Children’s Festival, 2018). Scottie is a proud fifth-generation Scottish Canadian and played in the Spencerville Legion Pipe Band for five years.