Meet the storytellers

Sid Hausman

Sid Hausman of Tesuque, NM writes songs of folk and Western Americana, and is a strong varied instrumentalist, playing banjo, 12-string guitar, baritone ukulele, harmonica and bones. He tours throughout the US doing concerts and workshops.

This troubadour has also performed four times at the Edinburgh International Folk Festival in Scotland. Sid has written and illustrated two children's books with companion CD's, titled One Bullfrog and Cactus Critter Bash. Sid's songs and stories reflect his experience with Native Americans, the influence of Hispanic culture and the rural environment of the Southwest. A BMI writer, he is also a member of the Western Music Association. Sid's latest CD with Liz Masterson and Washtub Jerry is Colorado Belle.

Dovie Thomason

As a narrative voice and teller of traditional stories from her Lakota and Kiowa Apache relations, Dovie has been featured in documentaries about Native People and storytelling for the BBC, NPR, and PBS, including The Call of Story and the Emmy-winning Mystic Voices . When she adds stories from her own life and her people s experience, the result is a contemporary vision of the rich cultures of the First Nations of North America told with elegance, wit and passion. She is a favorite voice at major storytelling festivals throughout North America and abroad. As a member of the National Storytelling Network, she is an honoree in NSN s Circle of Excellence, receiving their prestigious Oracle Award in 2007.

Eth-No-Tec

Founded in 1982 by Nancy Wang and Robert Kikuchi-Yngojo, Eth-Noh-Tec produces and performs contemporary presentations of traditional folktales from the many countries and cultures of Asia through storytelling, theater, dance, and music. Presenting six workshops and six storytelling programs 200-300 times nationwide yearly, Eth-Noh-Tec reaches over 250,000 cross-generational and cross-cultural audience members yearly. Eth-Noh-Tec also creates original plays and events, including “Takashi’s Dream,” “Salon! You’re On!,” “Orcas StoryFest,” “Slam Bam Story Jam,” and “Nu Wa Rising.”

Eth-Noh-Tec has performed at venues including at the Smithsonian; Kennedy Center; National Storytelling Festival; and at President Obama’s Inaugural Celebration. Eth-Noh-Tec has received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, San Francisco Grants for the Arts, San Francisco Arts Commission, Zellerbach Family Fund, Walter & Elise Haas Fund, and William and Flora Hewlett Foundation among others. Eth-Noh-Tec’s awards include the 2008 Circle of Excellence Award from the National Storytelling Network.

Lyn Ford

Fourth-generation storyteller Lynette Ford shares "Home-Fried Tales" rooted in her family's multicultural African American storytelling traditions. Lyn's programs are enhanced with rhythm and rhyme, history and mystery, humor and heart.

Lyn is an Ohio teaching artist who has facilitated workshops for literacy, early childhood education, storytelling, and diversity events across the country. Lyn has also provided opening and closing activities for storytelling conferences and various types of retreats.

Lyn calls her stories "Home-Fried Tales" to honor her father, who was a terrible cook (the only things he consistently made well were home-fried potatoes and barbecued ribs doused with Lyn's mother's special sauce), and the best storyteller she ever heard. Lyn learned to "stir up, season, and simmer" her folktale adaptations and original stories while sitting knee-to-knee with elders who passed on their own special gifts from the oral tradition.

Syd Lieberman

Syd Lieberman tells poignant and hilarious personal stories, identifies with Sean Connery, and navigates the mad world of Edgar Allan Poe as easily as he wanders the foolish streets of Chelm. Syd’s work has garnered awards from the American Library Association, Parent’s choice, and Storytelling World. He has taught storytelling at the Kennedy Center and Disney World, and received commissions from major institutions, including NASA, the Smithsonian Institution, Historic Philadelphia, and the Van Andel Museum Center. Syd is part of the National Storytelling Network’s Circle of Excellence.

Scott & Johanna Hongell-Darsee

Scott and Johanna Hongell-Darsee give performances of music and storytelling. Their performances are based on Medieval Ballads, Myths and Legends. They have a unique style of performing, blending music, movement, theater and words to portray stories that have traveled through time and over continents. Johanna has also translated a number of Scandinavian Medieval ballads into English that are now part of their repertoire.

In 2005 they were included in the New Mexico Humanities Roster of Scholars.

Ramona King

Ramona King makes storytelling a warm community event. She places a story blanket before her audience, connecting story with an intimate personal experience. The audience is invited to experience a mother's love as she sings a call for people to gather and listen. It was a storytelling routine her mother used to tell stories to her and her siblings before naptime. It was a routine that helped four children survive a tumultuous family breakup that eventually led to a life in fostercare. Her personal stories are often woven into metaphors of folktales and challenging journeys.

Steven Plá

Steven Plá has been telling stories from around the world for over 30 years. A lifetime student of mythology, folklore, languages, history, and literature, Steven has been featured on radio programs both in English and Spanish, and has performed in many libraries and schools in New
Mexico as well as at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, and many other venues. He has been an official Storyteller for the NM State Library’s Summer Reading Program, and performed all over the state, gypsying around to villages and small towns in his 1951 Chevy. He even got put up in a Hogan one night.  Steven was for many years the school librarian on Zuni Pueblo, and was beloved for his storytelling and enrichment work with Zuni children.  Steven believes that storytelling is a bridge to understanding between cultures, and can be an important way to contribute to peace by promoting an appreciation of the traditional values, and of valuing the differences, of all the world’s peoples.

Liz Mangual and Bob Kanegis

The Tales & Trails Storytellers, listen for stories, tell stories, and live a storied life. Their audiences include "Everyone Older than Yesterday but Younger than Tomorrow." During the school year they offer storytelling assemblies, residencies, and family storytelling and legacy workshops . Each summer they hit the Story Trail telling in libraries and camps. This year's tour took them from Alaska to Cape Cod.

Liz weaves together folktales, seasoned with flavors of her Borinqueňa roots, and sprinkled with observations about people and places encountered along the way. She reminds us that the language of the heart is universal. Her stories speak volumes in that language.

Bob's storytelling embodies and promotes the spirit of Ubuntu and his background as an environmental educator. "It's all connected. I am who I am because of who we all are together."