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storytelling
Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural pre ...
festival is an event that features local, regional and/or nationally known oral storytellers. Each storyteller will have a scheduled amount of time to share a story (or stories) with an audience. The featured storytellers are often professional performing artists, but semi-professional or amateur storytellers may also be included among the events.
A festival may be a single or multiple day event. Depending upon the venue, the festival schedule is organized around blocks of time for the storytellers to share their stories. The storytellers may rotate between smaller venues or the crowds may move from venue to venue. Often storytelling festivals will include an
open mic
An open mic or open mike (shortened from "open microphone") is a live show at a venue such as a coffeehouse, nightclub, comedy club, strip club, or pub, usually taking place at night, in which audience members may perform on stage whether the ...
event, sometimes referred to as "story swapping," where amateurs from the audience may share their own stories. Some festivals showcase the winners of storytelling contests such as the
Young Storyteller of the Year
Young Storyteller of the Year is an annual storytelling competition in the UK for people aged between 15 and 25, which has been running since 2005. There are a range of awards, including cash prizes and performance platforms at various storytellin ...
.
At some festivals (including the
National Storytelling Festival
The National Storytelling Festival is held the first full weekend of October in Jonesborough, Tennessee at the International Storytelling Center. The National Storytelling Festival was founded by Jimmy Neil Smith, a high school journalism teacher ...
(USA)), paper tickets are substituted by "swatches" of patterned cloth that are pinned on and worn by festival participants. These swatches of cloth have a different/unique pattern each year and various colors may be used to distinguish the level of participation.
List
See also
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Oral storytelling
Oral storytelling is an ancient and intimate tradition between the storyteller and their audience. The storyteller and the listeners are physically close, often seated together in a circular fashion. The intimacy and connection is deepened by t ...
- some history of festivals
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World Storytelling Day
World Storytelling Day is a global celebration of the art of oral storytelling. It is celebrated every year on the March equinox, on (or near) March 20. On World Storytelling Day, as many people as possible tell and listen to stories in as many la ...
- international storytelling day with small festivals
References
External links
Storytelling festivalsList of and links to storytelling festivals (USA and International)
The National Storytelling Network(
USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
)
Audio interviews and articles on How to run a storytelling festival. (
USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
)
Storytellers of Canada/Conteurs du CanadaEast Tennessee State Reading/Storytelling Program
Only university in US to offer an MA Reading/Storytelling program
Storytellers and Storytelling in India
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Arts festivals by type