Shweta Bhatt, Laura Deal, Lynette Ford, Sammie James, Jenn Kamara, Bowen Lee, Misty Mator, Carol Moore, Jennifer Munro, Mo Reynolds, Cindy Rivka Marshall, Donna Washington, Kim Weitkamp, Megan Wells, and Cyndi Wish!
Eva Abram, Rachel Ann Harding, Roopa Mohan, Anne Rutherford, and Nancy Wang will be performing in a special virtual only concert, available to everyone who buys a ticket.
The 7 storytellers competing in the 2023 People’s Choice Storytelling Contest at the Women’s Storytelling Festival are: Lona Bartlett, Julie Bradshaw, Bette Lou Higgins, Robin Kitson, Teri Lott, Gwendolyn Napier, and Stacy Parish! Read about the contest and the storytellers here.
Bios of all the storytellers below.
Eva Abram
Eva Abram is a storyteller, public speaker and award-winning actress. Her storytelling grew out of an appreciation for the lessons of history and the desire to share lesser-known American history with a larger audience. In solo performances, she embodies historical characters, bringing history to life. Among others, her characters include: Shirley Chisholm – 1972 Presidential Candidate; Bessie Coleman – Aviation Pioneer; and Rosa Parks – Civil Rights Activist.
Her traditional tales and literary stories are told with masterful use of gesture and physical expression. She has delighted audiences from elementary age to adult, leaving them with a laugh, a gem of wisdom or something to ponder. Venues include schools, universities, business programs, community organizations, and festivals. She was selected by the National Storytelling Network as the recipient of the 2022 J.J. Reneaux Emerging Artist Award.
www.rainwaterstorytelling.com
Shweta Bhatt
Learning how to develop her own unique voice, Shweta Bhatt graduated Brown University with a B.A. in Economics and Anthropology. After graduating, she went on to spend six years as a financial consultant, building her skill for numbers and patterns. Through these experiences she learned that the most important skill shehas to offer is finding confidence in the person she knows herself to be. With the tools of writing and storytelling and a pop-culture flare, Shweta encourages students to find the power in being unique. Her role is not as an instructor of the “right way” but as a reminder that each student knows the perfect way to share themselves with each person they meet, not just in college but throughout life.
Laura Deal
Laura Deal tells traditional, original, and personal tales to children and adults. You can hear her stories on YouTube, the Story Story Podcast, the Apple Seed on BYU Radio, and her CD, The Diffendaffer Taffy Cafe and Other Stories. Laura is a Chautauqua Scholar through a grant from Humanities North Dakota. She has appeared on festival stages (in person and online) across the U.S., and has taught writing and creativity classes for over a decade. She’s the author of “The Newcomer’s Guide to the Invisible Realm: A Journey through Dreams, Metaphor, and Imagination,” and “Marbles: New and Collected Poems.”
www.lauradeal.com
firstchurchofmetaphor.com
Lyn Ford
Lynette (Lyn) Ford is an award-winning storyteller and writer, a certified laughter yoga teacher and an Ohio teaching artist. Her stories are rooted in the gifts of her Affrilachian family’s heritage. Lyn’s work has taken her to schools and conferences, to correctional facilities and women’s retreats, from her home in Ohio across the United States, to Australia and Ireland, and around the Zoomiverse to Germany, Singapore and South Korea. Lyn is a member of the National Association of Black Storytellers’ Circle of Elders, a great-grandma and a gargoyle collector.
Rachel Ann Harding
Rachel Ann Harding is a traditional storyteller who is passionate about sharing beautiful folk, myth, and traditional tales. In 2018 she was a featured storyteller for the Exchange Place at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, TN and in 2022 she received the Oracle Award for Regional Excellence. She is the creator and producer of the Story Story Podcast, which showcases traditional storytelling from around the world. Rachel Ann believes that fairytales are for all ages.
rachelannharding.com
storystorypodcast.com
Sammie James
Sammie James is a comedian, story teller, writer, actor, and voice actor from New Jersey. She produces the monthly shows “The Badass Trans Women of Comedy”, “The Waiting room”, and “You Matter”. She has performed comedy and stories all over the US; including past appearances at Broadway Comedy Club, Flappers Comedy Club, Good Good Comedy theater, Cinder Block Comedy Festival, Charm City Comedy Festival, Plano Comedy Festival, Queen City Comedy Festival, and Bechdal Test Fest, as well as all over the world through zoom shows. Sammie James is soon to be your favorite disabled, nerdy, butch trans woman in comedy. @sammiesamjames on all social media.
Jenn Kamara
DesignationJenn Kamara is a policy analyst by day and an absurdity magnet by night. She has performed on the stages of Story District and Risk! with stories that include the Worst Job and the Worst Date. Originally hailing from Long Island, Jenn struggles with pronouncing words like “coffee” and “water.”She earned her MPP from Pepperdine University and her BA in Africana Studies from Cornell University.
Bowen Lee
Bowen Lyam Lee divides her time between cities, forests, and the ocean around Monterey, CA. She has been a teacher, a writer, an illustrator, and now, she tells stories, incorporating storytelling into all aspects of teaching. She conducts workshops on storytelling to teach educational content in national and regional education conferences. She is a fifth generation Chinese American of Gold Rush ancestry. Her illustrious family of hard working immigrants are the core of her current work on a historical novel about Chinese Americans in California.
storyrex.com
Tai Chi Fusion Podcast
Misty Mator
Misty Mator has been a professional narrative performer for a decade. She captivates with timeless tales that teach history, celebrate culture, inspire creativity and promote moral values. Misty draws on her study of myths and her experience as a mother to educate, and amuse audiences of all ages. She is a member of the TELL: Pittsburgh Storytelling Series team, and has performed at Pittsburgh’s Alphabet Trails and Tales, the Ellwood City Storytelling Festival, the Beaver Tales Storytelling Festival, Better Said Than Done, Debut: Fusion of Storytelling and Play, Six Feet Apart Productions, amongst others.
www.storytellermistymator.com
Roopa Mohan
Roopa Mohan is a storyteller from Walnut Creek, CA. She trained at the Asian Art Museum, SF to tell stories to school groups and lead docent tours. She also enjoys sharing personal narratives from her childhood in India as well as her early immigrant experiences here.
Roopa serves on the Board of the Storytelling Association of CA and currently leads a project to bring stories to underserved schools. She is an active member of Asian American Storytellers in Unity, contributing to their ‘Storytopia’ on YouTube. Before retiring Roopa worked as a Domestic Violence Advocate and is passionate about women’s empowerment.
www.roopamohan.com
Carol Moore
Carol Moore is a storyteller and public speaking coach who performs true, personal stories. With a style that is comedic, conversational, and authentic, Carol has told with organizations such as Story District, The Story Collider, Six Feet Apart Productions, Speak-Up Storytelling, Tales and Ales, and more. She has performed at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, won the title of Moth StorySLAM Champion, and served as a speaker coach for TED speakers through TEDxTysons. She has also taken part in public speaking competitions with Toastmasters International.
www.carolnmoore.com
Jennifer Munro
Born in the heart of the industrial midlands in England, Jennifer learned the rules of engagement that have resulted
in a collection of original stories about rogues, rascals, and heroes. On moving to the USA, she’s been working as a
professional storyteller for more than twenty-five years, garnering numerous awards: National Storytelling
Network’s prestigious Circle of Excellence Award, winner in Storytelling World Magazine for her three recordings and
short story collection, Aunty Lily and other Delightfully Perverse Stories. She has been featured at major festivals
across the nation, most notably the National Storytelling Festival, TN, and the Timpanogos Festival, UT.
www.jennifermunro.net
Mo Reynolds
Mo Reynolds a storyteller based in Idaho. She travels around the west spinning stories and leading workshops about how to connect our own stories to well known (and less well known) folk and fairy tales. She was a part of the Women’s Storytelling Festival in 2021 and performed on the Exchange Place stage at the National Storytelling Festival in October 2022. She’ll be at Stone Soup Festival and the Kansas Storytelling Festival in 2023. When she isn’t telling stories that accidentally scare her children, she enjoys hiking and yoga and too much chocolate.
www.moreynolds.com
Cindy Rivka Marshall
Cindy Rivka Marshall tells personal stories and feminist versions of traditional tales. Noted for her “rich and enchanting voice,” she won awards from Parent’s Choice, Storytelling World and National Parenting Publications. Renowned folklorist Howard Schwartz says, “Cindy Rivka Marshall must be reckoned as one of the finest storytellers around.” Specializing in Jewish storytelling, she leads intergenerational, oral history and family education programs for congregations. Cindy is passionate about her work with high schools to create “Diversity Awareness Through Storytelling” programs – personal story sharing experiences to highlight marginalized groups.
www.cindymarshall.com
Anne Rutherford
Award-winning storyteller Anne Rutherford delights audiences nationwide with funny, moving performances that include tales of personal adventure, Pacific Northwest folklore and prize- winning tall tales. However, she is also five-time first place winner of the Northwest Folklife Liar’s Contest, so don’t believe everything she tells you. She is currently telling stories over the ether hither and yon, sometimes as herself, Sometimes as her alter ego the wild west adventurous Clementine Ryder, who is much more fun.
www.annerutherford.com
Nancy Wang
Nancy’s art career began in 1972 as a dancer, choreographer and teacher of modern dance under mentor Gloria Unti, SF Performing Arts Workshop, who taught her to embrace content and to create work that is meaningful and that reflects the burning issues of our time. In 1981, she began her partnership with Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo in Filipino traditional Kulintang music and dance. In 1987, they began storytelling as Eth-Noh-Tec, focusing on pan-Asian folktales and contemporary Asian American stories such as Red Altar: how her ancestors started the fishing industry in Monterey, CA in 1850 despite discrimination – now also a novel. She recently retired from her psychotherapy practice of 40+ years.
www.ethnohtec.org
Donna Washington
Donna Washington is an award-winning author, master storyteller, and multicultural folklorist who has been sharing stories for thirty-five years. Her amazing vocal pyrotechnics and dynamic physicality make her stories come alive and enthrall audiences from four to one hundred and four. She was the 2022 Coleen Salley Storytelling Award recipient. She co-founded the organization Artists Standing Strong Together. Her eleven storytelling CDs have won thirty awards. Boo Stew is her latest picture book. Donna loves folktales. She also shares personal narratives, literary tales, and stories of her own creation. She lives with her husband/manager, Dave in NC.
Instagram – dlwstoryteller
https://www.facebook.com/donnawashingtonstoryteller
Twitter – @dlwstoryteller
Kim Weitkamp
Award winning humorist, singer/songwriter, storyteller Kim Weitkamp, has entertained audiences around the world. Kim brings to the stage a perfect blend of comedic timing, approachable stories. and a velvet voice. A perfect evening for the ears and the soul. Kim’s shows are fully geared for adults but are safe for children.
“If we are talking rock and roll, Tina Turner was a national treasure; country has Dolly Parton and in the world of storytelling, we have Kim Weitkamp.”
-Steve Perry, Highway 89, Sirius XM
“A voice like warm honey…Kim studs her storytelling performances with bits of music Americana that match the sweet tones of her narratives.”
-The Oregonian
Megan Wells
Megan Wells is truly, madly, deeply in-love with Storytelling as an Artform. She has been touring as a performing for more than thirty years. She has garnered prestigious awards and has a vast repertoire of stories from myth, folklore, literary sources, personal autobiography and history. Add to that a baker’s dozen historical impersonations which she brings alive in full costume as if the past were speaking to the present in real time. Megan is a sought after coach for developing stories as well as developing oneself through life changes.
www.meganwells.com
Facebook: Megan Wells Tells
Cyndi Wish
Cyndi Wish (Kingston, New Jersey) was born in Virginia and grew up in New Jersey. At a young age she realized her inherent love of adventure, talent for packing, and general dislike of commitment. Cyndi has lived in Washington DC., Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, Chicago, upstate New York, Sydney, Adelaide, Cape Cod, North Dakota, the Boston area, New Bedford, Virginia again, Baltimore, and once again resides in New Jersey. Lots of moves lead to lots of stories. She holds a Master of Visual Arts degree, works in non-profit administration, and is currently lazily training to do the Chesapeake Bay Swim, but not for a few more years.
