Director of Communications
amanda.murphy@tn.gov
615-741-9010
Senior Communications Manager
jill.kilgore@tn.gov
615-927-1320
Communications Manager
Alli.Lapps@tn.gov
JONESBOROUGH, Tenn. – The International Storytelling Center’s celebrated teller-in-residence series, Storytelling Live! continues its season with a lineup filled with famous storytellers 2 p.m. Tuesdays to Saturdays now through October at the Mary B. Martin Storytelling Hall.
The program features 26 of America’s best-loved storytellers.
Ed Stivender starts off the month with performances June 27-July 1. Stivender has toured the world since 1981 presenting his one-man shows in Austria, Ireland, New Zealand, Indonesia, and in festivals across the U.S. Known for his delightful mixture of whimsy, wit and wisdom, he invites his audience into an interactive dance of the imagination. Stivender, an NSN ORACLE Circle of Excellence award recipient, is an award-winning Philadelphia Mummer.
Award-winning storyteller Joe Herrington performs July 4-8. A novelist, cowboy poet and Western storyteller, Herrington has been billed across the American West as the “Prairie Sage.” Herrington’s poems and stories are homespun and told in the Western tradition of honor, courage and rugged characters. He has been a finalist for multiple Academy of Western Artists awards and been recognized among the top Western storytellers/poets in the country.
Dan Keding is the featured storyteller July 11-15. An internationally-acclaimed storyteller, musician, and author, Keding is known for his telling of world folktales, personal narratives of his Chicago boyhood, ghost stories and superbly crafted original pieces. He has performed across the world, including festivals in England, Ireland and Canada. A recording artist and author, Keding’s numerous awards include two Anne Izard Storytelling Choice awards and the NSN ORACLE Circle of Excellence award.
Storytelling Live! welcomes Ingrid Nixon July 18-22. Nixon is a world-traveled storyteller whose exploration nail-biters, tall tales, traditional and personal stories whisk listeners of all ages away on journeys of the imagination. Known for her voices, gestures, and animated facial expressions that bring characters to life, her creative approaches to traditional tales make her ancient stories relevant to modern audiences.
Judith Black rounds out the month July 25-29. Black has been a creator and teller of tales for over thirty years. Retellings of history from new perspectives, tickling familial dysfunction, ironic explorations of aging, and stories that address our warming world are all fodder for her tales. Black has been featured on stages around the world, including the Montreal Comedy Festival, the Smithsonian Institution, the Art Museum of Cape Town and NPR. She is a recipient of the NSN ORACLE Circle of Excellence award.
For tickets and more information, call 800-952-8392 ext. 222 or 423-913-1276.
The premier sponsor of Storytelling Live! is the Heart & Soul program of Mountain States. Additional program funding comes from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Tennessee Arts Commission, the East Tennessee Foundation, Eastman Credit Union, the Niswonger Foundation, Citi and Food City.
Media sponsors include News 5-WCYB, FOX Tri-Cities, Tri-Cities CW, Johnson City Press, Kingsport Times-News, Herald & Tribune, Cumulus Media, and Foster Signs.
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Director of Communications
amanda.murphy@tn.gov
615-741-9010
Senior Communications Manager
jill.kilgore@tn.gov
615-927-1320
Communications Manager
Alli.Lapps@tn.gov