Artists
Emily Hennessey & Sheema Mukherjee
Emily and Sheema have been fusing live storytelling and music for 10 years, specialising in Indian mythology with music that draws on both Indian classical and contemporary traditions.
With a style that is highly accessible and deeply engaging, they have toured a wide range of venues including British Museum, Soho Theatre, York Theatre Royal, Rich Mix, Northern Stage, Ancient Technology Centre, festivals such as Beyond the Border and Oxford Storytelling Festival.
Work and extensive travel in India have kindled in Emily a great love of Hindu mythology. Emily has travelled over 10,000 miles across India by train, bus, rattling rickshaw and rickety bicycle.
Emily came to storytelling while studying Drama & Theatre Studies at the University of Kent where she met storyteller Dr Vayu Naidu. Emily completed a storytelling apprenticeship with Vayu, and later trained with Ben Haggarty. She’s also had the privilege of training with Indian Pandvani performer, Ritu Verma.
SHEEMA MUKHERJEE absorbed North Indian classical music and the western tradition side-by-side, studying sitar and Indian classical music under the tutelage of her uncle, the late Pandit Nikhil Banerjee and then with the late Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. Brought up between Britain and India, she has a rich background to draw on in her own compositions and collaborations. Today she is an established sitar player and composer; a regular in Transglobal Underground playing sitar and electric bass; a key member in The Imagined Village project; a formidable collaborator with internationally renowned artists from many genres.
Sheema has collaborated with internationally renowned artists suchas Courtney Pine, Sir John Tavenor, Martin Carthy, Bobby Mcferrin, Boris Grebenshikov, Natacha Atlas, Noel Gallagher & Cornershop, Mercan Dede, the Bulgarian Folk singer Yanka Rupkina. She has toured the world widely and key performances include The World Music Festival (Chicago), Montreux Jazz Festival and the Olympia-Halle (Munich), supporting Jimmy Page and Robert Plant throughout their European tour (1998), the Olympics Arts Festival for Sydney 2000 and also makes regular appearances at WOMAD (UK) with her own ensembles.
nell phoenix
Nell is a full-time, London-based, performance storyteller working in the UK and globally with a repertoire that wildly ranges through folk, fairy, urban tales and mythology. She tells, and teaches storytelling skills, at the Royal Opera House, the British Museum, for the Crick Crack Club, local schools and far-flung festivals. She is passionate about storytelling as a modern performance art and runs the best story club night in London.
‘Phoenix is a mercurial and captivating performer’ - Dave Fargnoli
‘Phoenix is an amazing storyteller. Her voice is acrobatic, one moment a gutturally charming wolfish growl, the next sweet as sugar’
.’She picks through the syllables and pauses of her tale like a mountain goat skipping up a cliff face - confident, able and never close to putting a foot wrong. – londoncitynights
I found her performance stunning, full of wit and extraordinarily poetic.“ - Reinhold, Erzählbühne Berlin, Theater oN
Corinne Harragin
Corinne Harragin is a Storyteller, Performance Maker and Trainer. Finding pockets of enchanted forest within the hinterland of contemporary urban sprawl, Corinne tells stories that recentre marginalised voices and silenced histories, bringing fresh questions to ancient myths and folk tales for adult audiences.
Nick hennessey
Nick Hennessey is an internationally acclaimed storyteller, playwright, folk singer, song writer and musician. He has told stories for more than 25 years, performing at venues as varied as the Southbank Centre to the top of Skiddaw, Cumbrian village halls to the Royal Albert Hall. His performances are rich, dynamic and powerful.
Peter Chand & Kirsten Milliken
India and Scotland; two cultures rich in stories, folklore and history. Peter Chand and Kirsten Milliken have been wooing audiences in the Netherlands, Cyprus and the UK as they seamlessly blend dazzling stories from their respective cultures. Whether they’re dark, sensual stories for adults, or fun interactive tales for younger listeners, they joyfully invoke the misty mountain of the highlands and the fertile fields of the Punjab to bring audiences a unique and unforgettable experience.
“Loved the mix of Indian and Scottish…. spellbinding stories from great storytellers.” - audience, Scottish Storytelling Centre, Edinburgh.
JESSIE WILD
Jessie was told from a young age that she was in fact a changeling and it is when telling stories that she gets to cross the liminal space between the human world and the other places - and open it up for others!
She is a performance storyteller, with a passion for traditional Romany stories, folk and wonder tales from the British Isles and Eastern Europe.
Having trained as an actor and worked extensively in the profession and as a drama teacher, Jessie knows just how to engage and captivate an audience with her range of characters and expressive physicality.
Her storytelling has been described as “magical”, ”enchanting”, “mesmerising” and” captivating”.
Jessie believes that old stories are like spells and when you tell them to a live audience, magic happens.
MILLIE JACKDAW
Milly began her professional career with Purple Broccoli Theatre, touring performances for children on environmental themes. Driven by a love of nature and strong belief in the power of stories Milly honed her skills as a storyteller, writer and composer, touring storytelling shows throughout England and Wales incorporating, visual theatre, dance, music, puppetry and art. Milly is also involved in nature restoraton through Coetir Anian/Cambrian Wildwood.
Her happy place is telling stories in the wilds around a fire. Her current, arts council funded show Mochyn Myrddin/Merlin’s Pig debuted at Beyond the Border and Aberystwyth storytelling festivals in 2023 and has taken her from Oxford to Carmarthen, Dumfries and Bardsey Island where personal experiences on the land have informed the evolution of the show.
ASHLEY RAMSDEN & Kait Dron
Ashley Ramsden is the founder Of the School of Storytelling at Emerson College, the longest running centre of its kind. For the last 40 years, he has travelled the world performing and offering workshops.
He is a speaker of sacred poetry.
Kait is a dance artist and poet. She performs and holds workshops for all - dancers and aspiring dancers! Her work involves encounter with landscape and imagination asking what is it to be a being? To be earth animate? To be land articulate? She is interested in body as storyteller and poetics of movement. She will be in collaboration with storyteller Ashley Ramsden as a performer and hosting a creative workshop.
CHRIS PARK
Chris Park lives on an organic farm in the Vale of the White Horse, Oxfordshire. His work is wide and varied, from arts and crafts, ancient technologies, educational projects & eco-building to storytelling, folk music, mental health projects, apitherapy, and raising the awareness of the heritage of beekeeping. He is a practicing Druid of the Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids, being immersed and versed in the folklore and spiritual traditions rooted within these honeyed isles.
RAGABOND THEATER
Ragabond is a Greater Manchester based company, specialising in outdoor theatre, puppetry, music and storytelling. Their work aims to inspire people of all ages to rediscover the spirit of their youth—rekindling a sense of wonder, self-awareness, creativity, and curiosity.
Danielle Free
Danielle is a traditional oral storyteller devoted to uncovering the voices of lesser-known historical women, breathing life into their stories, and weaving them into the present. Her research and performances celebrate the courage and complexity of these figures, ensuring their legacies are no longer whispers but resounding echoes.
With an MA in Celtic Studies, Danielle’s fascination with oral tradition and Celtic history runs deep. Her dissertation on the representation of Celtic women laid the foundation for her first major show, 'The Conditions for Courage', which spotlights the bravery and resilience of women throughout history. While she adores whimsical myths and enchanting folktales, it is the voices of forgotten historical women that call to her most strongly, urging her to give them their place in the narrative once more.
She's an Assistant Writer for Spark Young Writers (Writing West Midlands) and is a prize winning writer - her short story, 'A Jacket Full of Pockets', won the 'Birmingham City University Future Writers presents Benjamin Zephaniah' competition. Danielle's flash fiction and poetry has also been published in various anthologies.
Amelia Ace Armande
Amelia Ace Armande (they/them) is magic, sparky, and secretly several goblins stacked on top of each other in a trenchcoat.
For the last five years they have been collecting LGBTQ+ folklore, wonder tales and mythology to share, and they have told with the Crick Crack Club, at Get A Word in Edgeways, Torriano Storynight, Green Gathering and Brighton Trans Pride.
They are a founder of Ropetackle Storytellers club, and a mentor for Step Up Spoken Word.
Christina Haggart
Drum keeper - body worker - advanced massage practitioner - storyteller - explorer of myths and living story - pranayama breathwork teacher - medicine drum circles - walking in both worlds - medicine wheels. Gardener - sometimes an Artist.
Anne Cross
For over a billion years fungi has been around, enabling & supporting growth & evolution of all life. Older than animals or plants, fungi make up a kingdom of life that is all their own.
Anne weaves mycelial stories of fungi with traditional tales, to entertain and to raise questions - what can these amazing life form teach us humans as we learn how to evolve and thrive?
Charlotte Mooney
Since 2015 Charlotte has been telling stories in theatres, clubs, on the street and around campfires about the bad press we give to crows, the heist of ancient stones and the most notorious forgotten highwayman there ever was. She is drawn to the place where mythology, folklore, history, science and the every day meet.
Also a circus performer and Artistic Director of leading contemporary circus company Ockham’s Razor, Charlotte has developed a highly physical style of telling.
She has toured nationally including The Lowry, Shoreditch Town Hall, York Theatre Royal, Warwick Arts Centre. She has directed autobiographical storytelling shows Strong Enough by Charmaine Childs and Oddly Moving’s Atlas and was part of the London edition of The Moth, Grand Slam - with two of her stories featuring on The Moth podcast.
Amanda Waring
Amanda Waring is a creative powerhouse - an award winning West End and Tv actress, poetic alchemist, storyteller, filmmaker and deeply gifted medicine woman.
She has been invited to read her powerful and soul stirring poetry at the United Nations and she has recently won a peace award for her contributions to unity and peace through the creative arts from Unity Earth.
Her powerful voice and heartfelt songs have reached audiences around the globe. She was even requested to sing for the Queen .
As a medicine woman she utilises music and poetry to bring comfort to those walking through life’s hardest moments, and her award- winning films and books have become tools of awakening - used internationally to inspire compassion, healing and sacred action.
Amanda’s heart-led activism, unwavering dedication to dignity and peace and devotion to raising the collective consciousness make her an inspirational and transformational creative leader of these times.
She will offer a unique curation of healing poetry, shamanic sound and storytelling journeys designed to release, restore and elevate emotional balance.
Let her medicine move you. Let her words awaken you. Let her frequency of love and compassion ripple.
Amanda works with clients to help deepen and awaken their spiritual and creative gifts, she also supports those who have gone through deep trauma to find their spark on inner healing. She runs her profound trainings on dignity and end of life care for governments and care settings . She runs retreats and poetic pilgrimage walks and please join her u tube channel and visit her website to find out more
Marcus Pibworth
Marcus Pibworth is a Herefordshire-based storyteller and father of two little girls, who delights in spinning tales that are playful, heartfelt, and full of wonder. With a voice that dances between joy and sorrow, his stories invite laughter, reflection, and sometimes a tear or two — always delivered with warmth, curiosity, and deep humanity.
Over years of listening and sharing, Marcus has woven a rich tapestry of stories drawn from myth, memory, and the everyday magic of life. He has honed his craft under the guidance of many seasoned mentors, most recently training with the renowned storyteller Jan Blake. His style blends traditional storytelling with a raw, personal edge that resonates deeply with audiences.
Marcus uses storytelling as a powerful tool for connection — helping people feel heard, seen, and more rooted in themselves, in community, and in the natural world. He leads workshops and gatherings, often held in wild, outdoor spaces, where real-life stories are shared in honest, open-hearted ways.
Marcus is the founder of Stories for Men and Mythic Fathers, where he uses story to explore masculinity, mental health, and emotional resilience. He’s also one half of the creative force behind The Rock Meadow Project, a community storytelling and nature-based initiative he runs with his wife, Maria.
Philip Kingslan John, Four of Swords
For the last twelve years, Four of Swords has been creating relentlessly visceral, vibrant and immersive theatre, film and education projects across the South West, such as their spooktastic presentation of "Frankenstein" at Great Fulford mansion, or a dark and demonic "Oedipus" at Beer Quarry Caves.
They complement large-scale public shows with community and education projects, such as ritual performances with a local cast for Exmouth Festival, and their Ambitious Performers Mummers Play of Saint Sidwela, created by neurodiverse adults and young adults (as featured at the Devon County Show and on the BBC!). Recently, they have been dabbling with more intimate puppetry and storytelling shows, such as the ghostly shadow-play "The Tale of Trista Heb Skovam" and their offering at this year's Oxford Storytelling Festival, "Whispers of Wōden".
They have performed internationally in Shanghai and Greece, and partnered with institutions such as English Heritage, National Trust, Exeter RAMM and Exeter, Edinburgh, Plymouth, Marjon and Cambridge Universities.