The Annual International Storytelling Event

WHAT is Tellabration?^TM It's a mammoth storytelling event - and that's no Tall Tale! It's a storytelling phenomenon, made up of dozens of storytelling happenings all over the world. It is, as Tellabration's originator, J.G.Pinkerton, once envisaged, like a night of a thousand stars - each star a story. Imagine thousands of listeners and tellers, worldwide, coming together in spirit, and approximately in "real time", to celebrate the joy of story. Young, old and middle-aged, they gather in every imaginable venue: theatres, outdoor plazas, libraries, living rooms, community halls, colleges, museums, coffee houses, national parks, barns, historic sites, back yards - and - yes! - all around the world.

WHEN is Tellabration?^TM There are 38 Tellabration^TM venues in Connecticut in 2007. Dates range from November 3 to November 26. To see when and where each is taking place, go to the list of venues

HOW did Tellabration!^TM begin? It began right here in Connecticut, when Connecticut storytelller and CSC member, J. G. Pinkerton, conceived the idea as a way to re-introduce grown-ups to the pleasures of storytelling as entertainment. On Friday, November 18, 1988, the Connecticut Storytelling Center sponsored six Tellabrations in the state, produced by regional Connecticut Story-Sharing groups, with J. G. as statewide producer. Tellabration's success in Connecticut led some other states to follow suit the next year, and in 1990, Tellabration expanded nationwide under the umbrella of NAPPS, the organization which eventually became the National Storytelling Network.

Tellabration!^TM WORLDWIDE... In 1995, for the first time, there was a Tellabration! in Japan, brought there by Japanese storyteller Masako Sueyoshi, who had been a part of Tellabration! when she lived in Connecticut for several years. By 1997, there were Tellabration! events on every continent but Antarctica.

visit the National Tellabration!^TM website (worldwide site listing, producer information and resources, and more.)

GO TO THE LIST OF CONNECTICUT VENUES