TELLICO COMMUNITY PLAYHOUSE  |  Studio 212 Programs

Storytelling Initiative

The 2026 Appalachian Storytelling-Cycle

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Mountain Music & Makers

Saturday, September 26, 2026  |  7:00–9:00 PM

Patricia Smith Theatre at Tellico Community Playhouse

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In the mountains, the porch was the stage before there was ever a stage. Neighbors gathered at dusk with a banjo, a fiddle, and a story worth telling — and the voice, always the voice, doing the work of every instrument at once. The music wasn't rehearsed. The story wasn't polished. But when a good teller opened his mouth, the whole hollow leaned in to listen.

Mountain Music & Makers is the fourth gathering of our 2026 Appalachian Storytelling-Cycle. We'll turn our attention to the storyteller's oldest instrument — the human voice — and discover how pitch, pace, pause, tone, and emphasis can turn a story every one of us knows by heart into something entirely new.

This September, we're bringing two master storytellers to the big screen: Bil Lepp, a five-time winner of the West Virginia State Liars' Contest and a regular at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, and Grammy-nominated Diane Ferlatte, who has told stories in all fifty states and on six continents. You'll watch each of them work in a completely different register — Lepp's deadpan restraint and Ferlatte's full-hearted animation — and see, in real time, what it means to play the voice like an instrument.

Come with a children's story in mind. In July, we asked you to rediscover a favorite childhood tale — "The Three Bears," "The Little Red Hen," "Jack and the Beanstalk," or whatever one has always lived in your heart — and to come ready to tell it aloud. This is that night. You'll share your rediscovered story in a small circle of friendly listeners, and the strongest tellers from each circle will be invited to share with the full room at our Open Mic. This is your chance to shine.

Expect an evening of playful vocal warm-ups, master-class watching, and small-circle storytelling. No writing this time. Just voice.

No stage fright required. No experience necessary. Just bring a favorite children's story, a willingness to play with your voice, and a memory of the tale that first made you love being read to.

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The Details

Date: Saturday, September 26, 2026

Time: 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Location: Patricia Smith Theatre, Tellico Community Playhouse

Cost: Free — but please sign up so we know you're coming

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Sign Up

Ready to find your voice? Fill out the form below and click Submit. We'll send you a confirmation with everything you need to know.

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✦ Save the Date: Haints & Hollers — our Halloween Scary Story Circle and season finale — Saturday, October 31, 2026 ✦

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