CANCELED.
The Northlands Storytelling Network, a community of storytellers and story listeners in the upper Midwest, will celebrate its annual gathering on April 24-26, 2020, at the Pyle Center, 702 Langdon Street, Madison Wisconsin. The Conference offers daytime professional development sessions for teachers, librarians, and storytellers at all levels and evening performances for the general public. All sessions and concerts, with the exception of the open mic, are presented and performed by experienced, professional storytellers from all over the country.
During the day, attendees will have the opportunity to take part in a variety of workshops and discussions on the practice and applications of storytelling, listen to 30- and 60-minute theme-based performances, tell stories in an informal setting, and attend peer review sessions to work on stories they are developing. All of the daytime sessions are included in the registration fee.
Public concerts will be held Friday and Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon. The concerts are appropriate for audience members 14 and up. On Friday evening, a Story Slam with the theme of “falling” will be held at 7:15 PM. A ghost story concert will begin at 8:30 PM. Saturday’s main concert is scheduled for 7:15 PM. An open mic concert (10-minute story limit) will begin at 9:00 PM. Sunday’s main concert will begin at noon. The ghost story and main concerts have a suggested general public admission donation of $10. The Story Slam has a suggested general public admission donation of $5. The open mic concert is free.
The Conference’s 2020 featured teller is Kim Weitkamp. Kim travels fulltime performing at festivals and theaters around the continent, telling stories and presenting keynote talks. She has been described as having “a voice like warm honey, impeccable comedic timing, and the ability to consistently write fresh, new material.” Kim will present a 4-hour master class and a 90-minute workshop during the Conference. She will also be performing at the Friday ghost story and Saturday main concerts.
Plans are currently in the works for family storytelling concerts at area libraries and assemblies at local schools. If you would be interested in hosting a concert or assembly, see the list of available tellers at http://northlands.net/confabulation/confabulation-outreach/ or contact Sue Searing at SueSearingStoryteller@gmail.com or (217) 417-3591.
The Conference details, including registration, meals, lodging, and session schedule, are available under The Conference 2020 tab at http://www.northlands.net