The Storytellers

2009 Programme

Orange Apples
Chris Bennett and Sara Scott have over ten years experience of working through the arts to provide performances, workshops, projects and training for groups of all ages and abilities.Many schools and other organisations in the southern area know Chris as a storyteller and performance poet. Sara is well known as a trainer and workshop leader within health, education and community training organisations. Chris and Sara have worked together in street theatre for many years at festivals, art centres and community events as well as in schools. Chris and Sara can work individually or together as Orange Apples.
E-mail: orangeapples@btinternet.com
Tel:02380553154

Pippa Brindley
Pippa Brindley has a background in storytelling and creative arts, working as a freelance Educator with families and children across Dorset. She works as Learning and Outreach Officer at Dorset County Museum, where one of her projects is running drop-in family days on Saturdays with arts and crafts activities.

Michael & Wendy Dacre- Raventales
Michael & Wendy Dacre are storytellers and puppeteers, telling a wide variety of tales, myths and legends in a lively, literary style. Their repertoire includes improvised storywalks, lessons in lying and over 400 stories performed in zoos, prisons, castles, hilltops and festivals for many years. This year they bring us a family of Giants!
Tel: 01837 82719
E-mail dacre@raventales.co.uk

Madeleine Grantham
A storyteller who performs traditional folk tales, myths and epics. Performing for both children and adult audiences, in formal and informal settings. A workshop facilitator for storymaking and storytelling skills. A drama teacher with learning disability adults.
Tel: 01202 470975
Mobile: 07757 259205
Email: madeleine.grantham@ntlworld.com

Ben Haggarty
Ben is internationally respected for his playful and lively performances, and for his knowledge of stories and diverse narrative traditions. He has a working repertoire of over 250 folk tales, wonder tales, epics and myths, which he tells to all kinds of audiences, in all kinds of venues ranging from caves to concert halls. He has a particular passion for East European Wonder tales and for Bronze Age and early Iron Age Epic.Ben performs solo, with other storytellers, with musicians and with artists from other disciplines.
Email: ben@crickcrackclub.com

Tim Laycock
Tim is a founder member of the Hambledon Hopstep Band, and plays concertina and melodeon. He also performs with the New Scorpion Band, and can often be found working in schools and community venues in Dorset and the South West, telling traditional stories and playing and singing folk music.
Tel: 01305 267682

Adrian Beckingham, The Man From Story Mountain
Adrian has travelled throughout the centuries and across the millenia, gathering these treasures from storytellers in cultures around every corner of the Earth. Today he uses storytelling, art, dance, and exhibitions working in schools, youth clubs, hospitals, theatres, festivals, libraries, prisons and castles, opening locked doors and showing people the brilliance of their new horizons.
E-mail: inspire@themanfromstorymountain.org.uk
"Adrian is a very accomplished storyteller. He does great work at opening closed hearts." Francis Firebrace, Aboriginal Elder of the Yorta Yorta people, Lightening Ridge, Australia.

PuppetCraft
PuppetCraft is one of Britain`s most acclaimed touring puppet troupes, presenting a wide range of shows and workshops to a spectrum of audiences, from children to families, and to adults. It is noted for a combination of beautifully crafted puppets with specially composed music. The content of shows extends from traditional folklore of different countries, to original modern tales. The company varies from 2 to 12 performers, makers, musicians. See Team behind the puppets. Touring throughout the Southwest, nationally and internationally.
Tel: +44(0)1803 867778
E-mail: enquiry@PuppetCraft.co.uk

Graham Rogers
Graham is a professional storyteller specialising in performances for children of four to eleven years of age. He has over thirty different storytelling projects. Storytelling for schools, museums, libraries and many other venues.
E-mail: stories@grahamrogers.co.uk

Treehouse Theatre
Treehouse Theatre specialise in performances that invite the audience to get involved.The driving force behind their work is the wish to see people surprise themselves with their own creativity in a world where people are often convinced that being creative is best left to someone else. They allow people to experience not just passive entertainment but inclusion in an interactive performance that becomes unique because they were there, and perhaps even a part of the team.
E-mail:treehouse.theatre@virgin.net

Tony Horitz

Pete Courtney

Kala The Arts A Hampshire based South Asian dance and music company. A team of highly experienced international and professional artists bring work on various Hindu stories such as the story of Goddess Durga. The Kala the Arts team work creatively on the various epic stories.
Tel: (01256 346699
Email: admin@kalathearts.co.uk

Sea Legs Puppet Theatre
Founded in 2001 by Rob Ashman, Sea Legs is a high quality small touring puppet theatre specialising in bringing fairytales to life. Sea Legs Puppet Theatre performs at children’s and family events nationwide. Usually performances take place at schools, theatres and children’s parties but can be anywhere there is a suitable event and venue.

Noah Messomo is a musician, composer, storyteller and qualified teacher from Cameroon. He brings vibrant hands-on music workshops and performances to Schools, Arts Centres, Corporate and Community clients and Higher Education. The exotic sounds of his beautifully crafted instruments, e.g. balafon, drums, ancient harp evoke the soul and spirit of Africa in all its moods – from the mystery of the savannah to the immensity of the desert and the exuberance of the rainforest.