More than 50 events will fill the programme at this year’s Yorkshire Festival of Story. There’ll be an interesting and vibrant variety of performances, discussions and masterclasses to pique your interest and spark new ideas. And to make sure it reaches a global audience and is accessible to all, it’s being held online.
The big question driving this year’s festival is “if once upon a time starts now, how do we get to happy ever after?” So, if you tune in, you can join in with conversations and watch performances that aim to provide creative answers to this question.
The Festival of Story’s online events
And what can you enjoy at this year’s festival? New York-based award-winning storyteller Laura Simms presents Rejoice Regardless. It’s a show using mythic tales to provide a means of recovering in these demanding times. Whilst African storyteller Sola Story explores the notion of ‘happy ever after’ through his telling of the Epic of Mil Baraka.
And in panel discussions Dame Marina Warner will investigate how fairy tales help us navigate a better future. Experts include fairy tale scholar Jack Zipes and Professor Cristina Bacchilega from the University of Hawai’i-Manoa.
The festival’s guest director is poet and children’s author Kevin Crossley-Holland, best known for the Arthur trilogy. He’ll be sharing news of his new book and will be joined by the book’s illustrator and former Children’s Laureate Chris Riddell OBE. Riddell will also be live drawing during the event.
And if younger audiences are looking for a magical tale, then the enchanting and interactive story, I Believe in Unicorns is sure to be a hit. It’s an intimate show, set in a library.
Elsewhere in the festival programme, there’s an audio book at bedtime with a new episode of The Odyssey each night. Artists who work to challenge preconceptions of migrants are brought together by journalist Navid Akhtar for a panel discussion on what ‘happy ever after’ looks like. There’s song with Thursday Folk Nights and Seasonal Stories by the Fire using scrolling silhouettes. And Dr. Angus Fletcher looks at the science behind some of our greatest literature.
About the festival
Last year, the festival reached audiences in Yorkshire and beyond, thanks to its online offerings. Creating a chance for rural communities, and those with disabilities and mental health challenges, an opportunity to access the arts and get involved. And this year will be no different with opportunities to interact through live Q&As and lively masterclasses. You’ll also be able to ‘join’ organisers and special guests live on the festival sofa.
The festival runs from Friday 12th to Sunday 28th November and it’s free to attend online. It does rely on public donations to reach those who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford it. So if you can contribute, please do.
If you like this, check out our other festival and online event suggestions!
When: 12th – 28th November 2021
Where: Online
£: Free
More info: yorkshirefestivalofstory.com
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