Presented by Heather Forest

This playful, interactive storytelling workshop offers beginning storytellers practical insights into the creative process, social relevance, and performing art of storytelling. Participants will experientially explore the basic instruments of storytelling: voice, body, imagination and metaphor. We will examine methods to sequence, remember, shape, and share a story with confidence and stage presence. Participants will consider ways to effectively overcome stage fright, develop age appropriate repertoire, rehearse, self-assess, and improve their telling over time.

8:00 AM - 12 PM

Location: Albany Room

BEGINNER TO INTERMEDIATE

Heather Forest, PhD, is an award-winning storyteller, author and musician. A pioneer in the American storytelling renaissance, she has appeared in theatres, schools, literature conferences, and major storytelling festivals throughout the United States and abroad since 1975. A modern-day bard, her dynamic fusion of original music, poetry, and the sung and spoken word brings multicultural folktales and poignant personal tales to life in the imagination of her listeners. She is a recipient of the Circle of Excellence Award presented by the National Storytelling Network for her performance skill and the 2021 Talking Leaves Award for her contributions to storytelling literature.

Presented by Elizabeth Ellis

In an interactive session, we will identify the five kinds of Courage needed by storytellers. With experiential opportunities, journaling and small group sharing, we will explore the development of deeper levels of Courage in order to be more effective at our craft.

8:30 AM - 12 PM

Location: Adirondack North (Theatre)

ADVANCED

From the Hans Christian Andersen Statue in New York’s Central Park to the Glistening Waters Festival in New Zealand, Elizabeth has captivated listeners everywhere she goes. She has taken storytelling to a variety of unexpected places, such as the amputee ward at Walter Reed Medical Center and into the work of Public Defenders and the United Way. She is a repeat favorite at the National Storytelling Festival and has been a Storyteller-in-Residence at the International Storytelling Center.

In 2013 the National Storytelling Network honored her with its Lifetime Achievement Award. This is “presented to individuals in the storytelling community who have demonstrated meritorious service to the National Storytelling Network and to the storytelling community at large. The individuals who are awarded are those who have expanded public awareness of the art of storytelling by the virtue of their preservation of traditional art forms or the significant originality of their body of work.”

Afternoon Intensives - Require separate ticket

Presented by Sarah Brady

There are stories we want to tell, stories we have to tell, and stories that steal our sleep if we do not tell. But what if the stories that fall into these categories are difficult—for us or our audiences? In this workshop, we’ll begin by experiencing the telling of a full-length story. Then we’ll use that story to help map out a pathway for walking with demanding stories from inception to performance while caring well for ourselves, followed by identifying and practicing strategies that invite even our most resistant audiences to consider stories they may not want to hear.

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM 

Location:  Albany Room

ALL LEVELS

Sarah Brady is a storyteller, teaching artist, and writer whose backgrounds in theatre and education influence her storytelling. She’s told stories in the US and UK, where she lived for three years. She tells historical, traditional, literary, and personal tales and was a New Voice Featured Teller at the 50th Annual National Storytelling Festival in 2022 and a Teller in Residence at the International Storytelling Center in 2024. Passionate about stories that help us see each other and the world around us, she specializes in finding the heart of each story she tells.

Presented by Luther “Anubis” D. Isler

Make beautiful art from broken shards. A Beautiful Mosaic from your Broken Mirror.  If “Music is the space between the notes” (Claude Debussy) then stories can be told between the quotes; between the poems; between the songs; and between the anecdotes. Storytellers will look into their metaphorical mirrors and make mini-stories from moments of pain, pride, and play using poetry, and string them together into a powerful piece of empowerment under one overarching theme. Storytellers will find a whole new dimension to their crafts beyond their wildest dreams.

1:30 PM - 5:30 PM

Location:  Warren

ALL LEVELS

Luther "Anubis" D. Isler, poetically known as The Artist Anubis, is a spoken word poet, published author, cultural curator, and community cultivator. Anubis founded Harlem Bomb Shelter, a spoken-word and literary arts organization that presents open mics, showcases, workshops, teen programs, and mentorship.

Anubis is a historic Harlem Writers Guild member and an AUDELCO Award Honoree. He has published an original anthology “My People Burn and Other Visions.” He is an accomplished Off-Broadway producer including “What Would You Do? A Poetry Play” in 2017 and just completed a run of his one-man show “BROKEN MIRROR: A Poetic Mosaic of a Broken Mind.”