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Michael Parent's Hometown: Lewiston, ME
Michael Parent's Email: michaelparent@maine.rr.com
Michael Parent grew up in a French-Canadian family in Lewiston, Maine. In 1977, after a seven-year career as a high school English teacher, Michael embarked on a new career as a storyteller, singer, jugglerhoning skills that he had either acquired or developed during his teaching career. As the years passed, Michael began inserting more and more French-Canadian songs and stories into his perfomances. He experimented with various mixtures of French and English and gained flexibility in gearing the French material to the level of fluency of his audiences.
It was clear that the French and French-Canadian stories and songs would be part of Michael\'s life and work in some form. Since 1981, Michael has offered bilingual or exclusively French programs as an adjunct to his regular programs. Michael\'s French program serves not only to re-awaken French-Canadians to their varied and enriching cultural roots, but also serves as a cultural bridge between the French-Canadians and other cultures, especially those whose people share similar immigrant and assimilation experiences. So one might say that within our American \"melting pot\" consciousness, one individual\'s cultural connection serves as a bridge for us all.
Listed below are some samples of performances by Michael Parent:
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