The 35th Scottish International Storytelling Festival’s packed programme of over 130 events, taking place in Edinburgh and across Scotland, kicks off Friday 18 October thanks to support from Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government’s Festivals EXPO Fund.
Since it began in 1989, the festival has been building bridges between cultures, artists and audiences through the power of storytelling. This year, to mark its 35th year, which coincides with 35 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the festival has invited international storytellers from the Storytelling Arena in Berlin to join them, and share stories and films from their divided and reunified city.
Other international guests also invited to perform this year include Jeeva Raghunath who will be sharing stories from the folk lands of India, and Irish guest storyteller and broadcaster Nuala Hayes who founded the Dublin Storytelling Festival. Nuala will be joined by Irish musician Aoife Granville for two events celebrating the life of storyteller, seanchaì and author Peig Sayers who lived most of her life on The Great Blasket Island off the coast of south-west Kerry. They will also be entertaining audiences with Stories and Songs from Ireland at the Aberdeen & Beyond Storytelling Festival (22 Oct); in Edinburgh as part of the main programme (23 Oct); and as guests at the Wild Goose Festival in Dumfries (18-25 Oct); thanks to support from Culture Ireland.
Unmissable Gaelic highlights this festival include, the premiere of Cath Gailbheach nan Eòin The Desperate Battle of the Birds told by Scottish storyteller James MacDonald Reid in English and Gaelic throughout. This classic Gaelic folk tale will be shared in the traditional manner by James but with a contemporary twist, as it will be intertwined with live electric cello music by Scottish-Korean musician Ryan Williams. Plus, experimental folk duo Burd Ellen will premiere their new multi-media performance Òran Mhòir which explores the Gaelic lore of the intertidal zone and mixes costume, film, folk song, electronic sounds and field recordings, with stories told by Eileen Budd from Angus. Eileen will also be in Angus as part of the festival’s Go Local programme in November, for a weekend of crafts from the glens, Halloween history and folklore, and fireside ghost tales at Balintore Castle
Other events not to miss include The Dream of Al-Andalus, told by Sef Townsend and Inés Álvarez Villaand accompanied by flamenco guitarist Danielo Olivera and Moroccan musician Omar Afif. Al-Andalus was a vibrant era of cultural diversity in mediaeval Spain, where the interplay of Muslim, Christian and Jewish cultures sparked an artistic and intellectual renaissance. These cultures are fully represented by this group of artists who aim to evoke Al-Andalus, not as a relic of the past, but as an inspiration for a more tolerant future.
The Festival’s opening weekend also coincides with the October school holidays and there are plenty of family friendly events for children this year including; face painting, crafts, storytelling and songs presented by the Beltane Fire Society for Samhuinn; the premiere of a new sensory version of the traditional tale The Bouncy Billy Goats Gruff, suited to children with additional needs, their families and friends with storyteller Ailie Finlay and artist Kate Leiper; A Jaunt Round Auld Reekie with the Ceilidh Crew n’ Co performed with stories, music, comedy and puppetry; and a retelling of an ancient border ballad in Into the Woods: In the Footsteps of Thomas the Rhymer narrated by celebrated actor Julia Munrow and with music composed by multi-instrumentalist John Sampson and played by Pete Baynes.
This year there is also a great selection of Edinburgh 900 events to look forward to, including a visit to St Catherine’s ‘Oily Well’ in Gracemount, known for its healing properties with storyteller Jane Mather, and an opportunity to join storytellers Jan Bee Brown and Beverley Casebow at the National Library’s exhibition Renaissance: Scotland and Europe, 1460-1630 to hear true and traditional tales of Stars, Secrets and Sea Monsters. In addition, Edinburgh will celebrate 20 years since its designation as the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature, with a conference from 22-25 October, which aims to bring together all the subsequent cities of literature in the network, and connect them to writers and literary organisations in the city.
Global Lab returns with four online workshops exploring intangible cultural heritage; present day Gaza through the voices of children and young people; stories from India; and Scotland as a slaver nation. In addition, the festival’s in person workshop programme kicks off in week one with Emotional Literacy with Storytelling with Peter Chand, adult ADHD through the lens of folktales with Jacqueline Harris in Slowing Down to the Speed of Light which is also part of the Festival’s latest podcast series Another Story; and how stories can break down inhibitions, build cooperation and celebrate difference in Telling Across the Divide with storyteller Sef Townsend.
The Scottish International Storytelling Festival runs from Friday, 18 October to Thursday 31 October. Tickets to family events cost just £5 per ticket. For those planning on attending multiple events, the Festival Supporter Pass offers discounted tickets to many live festival events, online and at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, as well as a discount at the Scottish Storytelling Centre’s bookshop, Haggis Box Café and an invitation to the Festival launch event.