Ferrum, VA, March 21, 2022 — Learn how to craft and tell a story from expert dramatist and Ferrum College Professor Emeritus Rex Stephenson of the Jack Tale Storytellers. Through observation, small group discussion, and hands-on exercises, participants will learn the basics of oral storytelling, then be invited to tell a story of their choice before a live audience.
On April 7 and May 5, the Jack Tale Storytellers will perform tales from the James Taylor Adams Collection of Southwest Virginia folklore archived at the Blue Ridge Institute and Museum (BRIM). Storytelling and opportunities for participants to share their own stories will continue on April 21 and May 19.
Open to all ages, this free two-workshop series will be offered at the Franklin County Public Library in Rocky Mount and then at the Westlake location. Though the second workshop will build on the first, participants may attend either or both. Registration is not required.
Workshop #1
Enjoy a performance by the Jack Tale Storytellers featuring a folktale from the James Taylor Adams Collection and learn how Ferrum College and the Blue Ridge Institute & Museum are preserving this treasure trove of Southwestern Virginia folklore. Learn how to choose, prepare and practice, at home, a story to tell at Workshop #2.
Workshop #2
Listen to storytelling led by Rex Stephenson. Then tell your own story in an informal and supportive setting.
Franklin County Public Library, Rocky Mount location
April 7 & 21, 6:30-8:00 p.m.
Franklin County Public Library, Westlake location
May 5 & 19, 2:00-3:30 p.m.
The Storytelling Workshop series is made possible through a Humanities Research for the Public Good grant from the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) and a partnership among Ferrum College, the Blue Ridge Institute & Museum, and Franklin County Public Library. Professor of English Tina Hanlon is the lead faculty member for the project “Preserving and Sharing Old and New Stories from the James Taylor Adams Collection and the Public,” funded by a CIC grant for 2022-23.
About the photograph by Dr. Tina Hanlon: The Jack Tale Storytellers—Kristina Stump ’97, Emily Blankenship-Tucker, Rachel Blankenship-Tucker, Professor Emeritus Rex Stephenson, and Professor Emerita Jody Brown—perform at the Blue Ridge Institute and Museum pavilion at Ferrum College for summer school children in June 2021.
