Scott Lee Meyers

In true storytelling tradition Athena Hawks of Voices of Youth - Moab investigates what's in a name - specifically the Utah State Park "Dead Horse Point", a place of gorgeous vistas of the Colorado River and where dead things still run free.

Of all the youth radio pieces I've listened to so far this is probably the most impressive for several reasons.

For one, it's nice to listen to a piece that breaks away from the conventional personal essay that seems to be so popular on the youth radio airwaves. Historical investigation reports like "The Legend of Dead Horse Point" are not produced enough in my opinion. It would be nice to hear other genres like this explored more often (where's the radio drama, suspense, sitcom, poetry, comedy?).

It also appeals to the very kid-like passion of asking "why?". The curious nature of toddlers often leads to two questions; "are we there yet?" and "why?". There is great storytelling opportunities when we ask "why" a place is named-so. There is great intrigue in a place named "Dead Horse Point" and Athena escorts that intrigue into a wonderfully produced piece of radio.

Yet the most impressive thing about the piece is the fact that it's fearless! The piece features a sort of personified inner-diaglogue of the horses involved in the story (this kind of reminded me of the Houyhnhnms in Gulliver's Travels). For one, this is a tough task to convey to the listener. Athena cues it up well with a sort of introductory horse neigh and by tweaking the echo of the audio. I thought it was a very risky component to the storytelling that goes on here, but does it ever work! It's really very brave of Athena! Major kudos for pulling it off.

Just as Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" seems to have been taylor-made for the Wizard of Oz, the soundtrack to this piece, the Rolling Stones' Wild Horses, similarly aligns itself with the plot. It doesn't get any better.

I'd tell you more about what lies behind the name and the plot and all but that would really take away from the joy of listening to this. Besides, Athena, her Grandpa, and the Park Ranger do a much better job of telling the story than I ever could. Athena offers a confident moral of the story that unveils the beauty of history and asking "why?".