Members of the Flatwater Tales Storytelling Festival team gather in this year’s festival t-shirts. They are, from left, seated, Pat Postma, Matt Tucker, Liz Tucker, Becky Dodson, and Ram Uppuluri. From left, standing, are Vanessa Spratling, Martha Hobson, Kay Brookshire, Charles Crowe, Judy Wilson, Ray Smith, Sue Byrne, and Mark Watson. (Photo by Linde Mills)
Volunteers from civic, charitable, and business organizations throughout the community are planning to welcome three renowned storytellers to Oak Ridge for the June 7 and 8 Flatwater Tales Storytelling Festival at the Historic Grove Theater.
Members of the three Oak Ridge Rotary Clubs are taking lead roles in the Flatwater Tales team planning the festival, which originated in 2018 as a community project led by Emily and Charlie Jernigan, Pat Postma, and Martha and David Hobson.
This year, Sue Byrne and Martha Hobson are co-chairing the Flatwater Executive Committee. Others on the Executive Committee are Lydia Birk, treasurer; Charles Crowe, leading the revenue team; Becky Dodson, heading the promotion team; and Pat Postma, secretary who is also on the performances team with Liz Tucker and Matt Tucker.
The storytellers coming to Flatwater Tales are Charlotte Blake Alston, Josh Goforth, and Bil Lepp.
“Each uses the power of storytelling to entertain and educate audiences, with hilarious, exaggerated tales, or with true stories that shed light on cultures and historic events,” a press release said.
Alston brings traditional and contemporary stories from African and African American oral and cultural tradition to her national and international audiences.
Goforth plays nearly 20 instruments, inspired in middle school to focus on the musical heritage and stories of his native Madison County, North Carolina.
Lepp, a veteran of the festival and a five-time champion of the West Virginia Liar’s Contest, has been described as “a side-splittingly funny man,” the press release said.
All three storytellers will perform at 7 p.m. Friday, June 7, and at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, June 8, at the Historic Grove Theater. Lovers of storytelling can attend all three shows and hear different tales at each one. Tickets to each event are $15 for adults and $5 for children ages 5 to 17.
Tickets may be purchased at the Flatwater Tales website at https://flatwatertales.com. Tickets for these three shows may also be purchased with cash or check at Calamity’s Coffee, 219 Jackson Square, Oak Ridge.
Alston will be the featured presenter at 7 p.m. June 7, telling the inspiring story of the Six-Triple-Eight, the first all-Black Women’s Army Corps battalion in Europe during World War II.
Goforth will be the featured storyteller and musician at 2 p.m. June 8, entertaining with foot-stomping music and stories that come from his Appalachian roots.
Lepp will be featured at 7 p.m. June 8, presenting stories of adventure and mayhem involving his friend “Skeeter,” and telling his story, “John Hendrix, Prophet of Oak Ridge,” with a new twist to the story’s end.
Other Flatwater Tales team members are Kay Brookshire, Laura Carrington, Jim Dodson, Julie Forkner, Emily Jernigan, Charlie Jernigan, Carol King, Scott Lane, Mike Morris, Pat Row, Ray Smith, Vanessa Spratling, Ram Uppuluri, Kesha Waters, Mark Watson, and Judy Wilson. The team includes members of Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary, the noon Rotary Club of Oak Ridge, and Sunset Rotary.
The storytellers will also offer free, 35-minute shows the mornings of June 7 and 8 at the Oak Ridge Senior Center and Oak Ridge Public Library. Those interested in attending must sign up for free tickets on the festival’s website because of limited seating.
Goforth will offer a “Taste of the Tales” and jam with the Senior Center’s guitar group at 11 a.m. Friday, June 7.
Lepp will offer a taste of his witty tales at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 8, at the Senior Center, where adults 18 and older are welcome.
Alston will present a short program for children 5 and older and their families at 10:30 a.m. June 8 at the Public Library.
The Flatwater Tales Storytelling Festival is sponsored by CNS-Y-12, Pinnacle Financial Partners, the Tennessee Arts Commission, Glasswing Creative Marketing, Explore Oak Ridge, and the three Rotary Clubs in Oak Ridge. For more information, see the festival website at https://flatwatertales.com.
More information will be added as it becomes available.
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