Local Talent and Guild member Mike Tomson in the evening lineup

I have been out telling with Mike for fundraisers and at our guild events.  Listening to Mike is always a treat. 

MIKE TOMSON 

We welcome back to our stage, Mike Tomson. Mike has experience teaching, presenting, coaching, and telling in a number of venues. He  captivates his audiences with life stories and indigenous lore. Raised in an oral island tradition, he remembers histories; carved in the rafters and shared in the fire light. Mike knows the power that words have, to shape our perceptions and our experiences. Through navigation, he was taught that we stay still, and that our stories pull everything in the world to us. Mike invites us to travel in our imagination, knowing that whatever we believe in becomes a part of us. He also reminds us that stories nourish our souls.  Journey with him to places far and near, past and present.  

Contact him at: theconstructionanswer@gmail.com

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Kirk Waller in our evening show

We are fortunate to have Kirk Waller in the evening program.

KIRK WALLER

Kirk Waller has had a lifelong love of story, literature, and the performing arts. He fuses them together – spoken word, rhythm, and movement to create an unforgettable storytelling experience for the audience. He has been awarded the J.J. Reneaux Emerging Artist Grant by the National Storytelling Network. His latest CD But Why? Stories, Music, Songs was awarded Parent’s Choice Foundation GOLD designation. Kirk has told his stories at festivals, schools, libraries, churches, and special events in the San Francisco Bay Area and across the nation including at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee. 
Contact him at: tellin@kirkwaller.com

Bill Ratner for the evening program

I am looking forward to seeing Bill Ratner at the festival. 

BILL RATNER

Bill Ratner is a nine-time winner of The Moth Story Slams and two-time winner of Best of Hollywood Fringe Festival Extension for Solo Performance and a published author. He has appeared on stage at the National Storytelling Festival, Portland Storytelling Festival, Timpanogos Storytelling Conference, and his spoken word performances can be heard on National Public Radio stations. Bill is one of Hollywood’s premier voiceover artist for movie trailers, computer games, and documentary narrations for Discovery, History, Smithsonian, and others. He is the voice of “Flint” on G.I. Joe: All-American Hero. bill@billratner.com

Two Oracle Award winners at this years festival, Mary McGrath will be there.

We are fortunate enough to have Mary McGrath in the evening program.

MARY MCGRATH

Mary McGrath was presented the Oracle Award from the National Storytelling Network for the Pacific Region in July 2018.  For the past forty years, she has told stories in schools, libraries, museums and has performed with the Sacramento Symphony, at the Crocker Art Museum and at festivals in Canada, Ireland, and Scandinavia. She has produced festivals for UNICEF and Project Heifer. In her travels, she collects performance videos of tellers particularly in Ireland. Currently she is working on translating the stories of Peig Sayers, the Queen of Irish Storytelling.

Contact her at: storytellermcgrath@yahoo.com

Joan Stockbridge steps up not once but twice for the festival

Joan Stockbridge will be presenting the Storytelling workshop after lunch and be one of our featured tellers in the evening program.

JOAN STOCKBRIDGE

Joan Stockbridge founded the Foothill Storytelling Guild in 2002 to bring together people interested in storytelling. It is that group that launched the first Auburn Winter Storytelling Festival in 2016, continued the festival in 2017 and 2018 and now in 2019. In addition, she collaborates with Placer County’s Colla Voce to integrate choral music and spoken word.

She is the Oracle Award winner of the National Storytelling Network for the Pacific Region in 2016. The award is based on leadership and service to the community. For seventeen years, she has volunteered to work with women who are at risk and are in substance abuse recovery.

Angela James for the evening program

Angela James will be one of our featured tellers in the evening.

Angela James

Angela James is a Sacramento poet and storyteller who is a true performance artist, weaving music, movement, and storytelling into a fusion presentation that appeals to all audiences. She is a certified multi-disciplined teaching artist with the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission.  A judge for the Poetry Out Loud competition she has worked to introduce poetry and storytelling in after-school programs. Her work has been published in Sacramento City College’s literary magazine and incorporated into her storytelling. Contact her at: fenixdrumanddance@yahoo.com