by CARMEN SIERING Gladys DeVane, 81, is a storyteller, scriptwriter, and actor. She first learned stagecraft competing in oratorical contests as a child and acting in plays in high school and college. “My aunt worked with me on dramatic readings—storytelling in the form of monologues,” DeVane says. “By 15 I was giving recitals all over [Oklahoma City]. I wanted to be an actress, but my mom was very practical. She said I needed to major in something that would put food on the table.” DeVane grew up on a farm in Texas, raised by her maternal grandparents. “My mom sent me to live with my grandmother when I still just months old,” she says.