A month has passed since we hosted the Women’s Storytelling Festival, a first of its kind with a line-up exclusively of women, including hosts, emcees, and storytellers.
The festival, was held in the City of Fairfax, Virginia, prior to restrictions on public gatherings due to COVID-19. While we had a smaller audience than anticipated, they were enthusiastic. Those who came, had many wonderful things to say about the performances and about the festival going forward, giving people one last gathering before we all closed our doors.
The festival kicked off on Friday, March 13. Sarah Snyder hosted the evening’s showcase show at The Auld Shebeen. Storytellers Stephanie Garibaldi, Arthuretta Holmes-Martin, Miriam Nadel, Shawna Renee, and Diana Veiga did a great job representing the storytellers of Better Said Than Done and the greater DC area. On Saturday, our four featured storytellers – Sheila Arnold, Megan Hicks, Jessica Robinson, and Donna Washington – each performed in solos sessions and paired sessions, and, finally, all four shared the stage for the finale, all at under the Colonial-style roof of The Old Town Hall. At lunch, there was a story swap – hosted by Miriam Nadel – at The Old Town Hall, as well as two showcase shows at The Auld Shebeen. Hosted by Catherine Calvin, the lunch shows included wonderful stories by Fanny Crawford, Jane Dorfman, Meghann Shutt, and Sarah Snyder.
To mitigate the fact that many people couldn’t attend, Better Said Than Done shared the 9 hours of video from the festival with anyone who purchased a ticket, whether or not they made it to the event.
We would like to, again, acknowledge the sponsors of the 2020 Women’s Storytelling Festival: City of Fairfax, Storytellers Channel, VASA – Virginia Storytelling Alliance, and Voices in the Glen.
We extend a special thank to our show hosts and emcees: Catherine Calvin, Miriam Nadel, Giselle Ruzany, and Sarah Snyder.
We would also like to share our appreciation for those who volunteered their time to ensure the festival ran smoothly – Nick Baskerville, Barbara Fornoff, David Foxworth, Bonnie Gardner, Ellie Klein, and Kate Moran – and to our Festival Committee who helped plan the event: Sheila Arnold, City of Fairfax Representative Megan DuBois, Miriam Nadel, Bart Robinson, Jessica Robinson, Jack Scheer, Mary Supley, Bill Weech, Zach Wilks, and Cyndi Wish.
Finally, we thank all who attended the festival and our regular audience. We look forward to many more Women’s Storytelling Festivals! Look for information, including a call for storytellers, volunteer opportunities, and sponsorship details, for next year.
