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• True Storytelling Workshops with Briane Nasimok

  • When
    Saturday, January 24, 2026
  •  
    1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
  • Location
    Tranzac 292 Brunswick

  True Storytelling Workshops.

  Briane Nasimok leads a three-week course, focusing on creating and performing short personal stories. The course runs Saturday January 10, 24 and 31 from 1 - 4 pm.

  Limited space available. $60.

  
  

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• Wild Wonder

  • Start
    Tuesday, January 27, 2026
  •  
  • End
    Tuesday, March 03, 2026
  • Schedule
    6 sessions
  • Location
    Frankland Community Centre, 816 Logan Ave, Toronto (Logan and Danforth)
  • Spaces left
    6

  Register

  Join this IN-PERSON Class!

  Renew your sense of wild wonder. Wrap yourself in story as winds howl, stars glitter and snow crunches underfoot in the old growth forest of imagination. Elements of air, fire, water and earth are within and all around us. They are in story characters human and non human. Grounded, reliable ones; flighty, unpredictable ones; fiery characters who inflame situations; and watery ones who can quench conflict. Through playfully deep exercises involving gentle movement, writing, and drawing, we'll experience these elements in stories. For experienced and developing storytellers. Bring a story to work with.

  
  

  Instructor: Dawne McFarlane

  My Scottish grandfather was a storyteller, and my Celtic ancestors spoke Gaelic. I’m actively engaged with global storytelling communities and deeply committed to honouring tradition bearers. I’ve been a performing artist and storytelling teacher for more than 30 years, across Canada and internationally, in person and online. I served as Artistic Director of the Toronto Storytelling Festival in 2019, 2020, and 2021 and have been a longtime member of Storytelling Toronto. I’m a member of Storytellers of Canada–Conteurs du Canada and work in partnership with Earth Story Tellers. With Georgiana Keable I co-authored Fairytales, Families and Forests 

  https://www.hawthornpress.com/books/storytelling/fairytales-families-forests/ 

  For more information, visit www.dawnemcfarlane.ca

  
  

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• True Storytelling Workshops with Briane Nasimok

  • When
    Saturday, January 31, 2026
  •  
    1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
  • Location
    Tranzac 292 Brunswick

  True Storytelling Workshops.

  Briane Nasimok leads a three-week course, focusing on creating and performing short personal stories. The course runs Saturday January 10, 24 and 31 from 1 - 4 pm.

  Limited space available. $60.

  
  

  Show details
• Storytelling 1: ONLINE First Steps with Lynn Torrie

  • Start
    Sunday, February 01, 2026
  •  
  • End
    Sunday, March 08, 2026
  •  
  • Schedule
    6 sessions
  • Location
    ONLINE

  Register

  Storytelling 1: ONLINE – First Steps with Lynn Torrie (12+ hours)

  Feb 1 - Mar 1 | 2:00–4:00 pm
  Mar 8 | 2:00–5:00 pm

  Note: The final class runs longer to give time for each student to tell their story in front of the group. The exact end time will vary depending on the number of students and the stories chosen.

  Are you curious about storytelling? Would you like to learn from the comfort of your own home? This beginners’ course will help you discover the basics of what makes an engaging tale and how to tell one without notes! We’ll use folktales as a starting point to learn principles you can apply to any other story. You will discover your strengths as you work in partners and small groups. Every class, you will tell a story and receive supportive feedback. Each week, you will learn about a new aspect of storytelling through lecture, discussion, and hands-on experience. By the final class, you will be telling your story to the whole group.

  Lynn Torrie is a patient and experienced instructor who knows how to make an online class fun. A professional storyteller herself, she has told stories to audiences of all ages, from toddlers to seniors, sharing her passion for folktales and stories from Canadian history.

  
  

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• Story Slam

  • When
    Saturday, February 28, 2026
  •  
    7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    The Palmerston Public Library Theatre 560 Palmerston Avenue, Toronto, ON M6G 2P7

  
  

  StorytellingToronto is proud to announce the 2026 STORY SLAM presented in partnership with Tales Toronto. This event is part of Storytelling Toronto’s new STORYPILLARS SERIES leading up to the Toronto International Storytelling Festival May 7-10, 2026.

  WHAT’S A STORY SLAM?

  A story slam is a live storytelling event where a selected group of tellers share a story (6-7 minutes) on a specific theme. The story is shared from memory (no notes!) and a panel of judges will provide feedback and share their impressions of the story. Finally, the audience, by secret ballot, will join the judges in voting to determine a pair of lucky winners. (But after a fun evening of storytelling, everyone’s a winner!)

  2026 STORY SLAM THEME: “Whoops!” Bad ideas make great stories. Do you have a story about a challenge, mistake, or something downright embarrassing? We want to hear it! 

  This event invites storytellers to submit their story for consideration to be part of a fun evening of storytelling where the audience will vote on two lucky winners via anonymous ballots. 

  SUBMIT YOUR STORY

  
  

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• STORYTELLING II: Next Steps with Ruth Danziger

  • Start
    Tuesday, March 10, 2026
  •  
  • End
    Tuesday, April 14, 2026
  •  
  • Schedule
    6 sessions
  • Location
    Frankland Community Centre, 816 Logan Ave, Toronto (Logan and Danforth)
  • Spaces left
    11

  Register

  STORYTELLING II: NEXT steps to storytelling

  with ruth danziger

  If you’ve already taken a beginner’s storytelling course*, and would like to widen your repertoire, develop your confidence, and have more opportunities for telling, Storytelling II: Next Steps is for you. You choose a personal or traditional story you want to work on and have the opportunity to hone your storytelling skills through practices including visualizing, sensory imagination, story mapping, role playing and connecting with voice. Each participant will have a chance to tell their story and receive constructive feedback.  

  
   PRE-REQUISITE: Storytelling I: First Steps Into the Art of Storytelling OR equivalent experience

  
  

  Ruth Danziger is a storyteller and multi-disciplinary artist. In addition to her varied work as a storyteller, she has edited two collections of stories and is a founding member of the improvisational voice collective, Hathorah. Ruth brings the breadth of her skills and background to her teaching approach. She enjoys working with others and is committed to the art and practice of storytelling and to the ways we can support each other to grow as storytellers.
  

  
  

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• Storypillar Series: Fiction

  • When
    Saturday, March 21, 2026
  •  
    7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    The Palmerston Public Library Theatre

  

  Theme: Wisdom Tales - Life Lessons in Stories

  StorytellingToronto is proud to announce TALES OF WISDOM: FICTION at the Palmerston Public Library Theatre on Saturday March 21. This event is part of Storytelling Toronto’s new STORYPILLARS SERIES leading up to the Toronto International Storytelling Festival May 7-10, 2026.

  WHAT IS THIS EVENT?

  TALES OF WISDOM is a storytelling concert featuring a collection of tellers sharing FICTION stories (traditional or folk) that impart a lasting life lesson. 

  The tellers at the event are selected via lottery determined prior to the event. 

  HOW TO GET INVOLVED?

  Do you think about “The Tortoise & The Hare” when driving on the 401? Does “The Emperor's New Clothes” come to mind when you read about politics? Then you might have a folk or traditional story that offers an important pearl of wisdom that we’d love to hear. 

  We are looking for storytellers to share an 8-10 minute FICTION STORY that they feel imparts an important life lesson. If you would like to be considered as a teller for this event, we ask that you please complete this Lottery Submission Form.

  HOW THE LOTTERY WORKS

  6 Tellers will be drawn by LOTTERY which will consist of TWO separate draws.

  PRIORITY LOTTERY: 3 spots will be drawn from a Lottery of Equity-Seeking Artists. Those not drawn will be automatically entered into the SECONDARY LOTTERY consisting of the remainder of the submissions. 

  ABOUT THE PRIORITY LOTTERY: We are committed to building an inclusive, accessible and diverse storytelling community by ensuring opportunities for Equity-seeking tellers. Equity-Seeking refers to an artist who self-identifies as traditionally underrepresented and under-resourced in performing arts and festival settings. For example, an equity seeking artist may identify as an Indigenous artist, artist of colour, transgender artist, artist with a disability or new Canadian artist. 

  Submission Deadline: February 15, 2026

  Selected Tellers will be notified: February 16, 2026

  SUBMIT YOUR STORY PROPOSAL

  
  

  
  

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• Storypillar Series: Non Fiction

  • When
    Saturday, April 25, 2026
  •  
    7:00 PM - 9:30 PM
  • Location
    The Palmerston Public Library Theatre

  
  

  Theme: Wisdom Tales - Life Lessons in Stories

  StorytellingToronto is proud to announce TALES OF WISDOM: NON-FICTION at the Palmerston Public Library Theatre on Saturday April 25. This event is part of Storytelling Toronto’s new STORYPILLARS SERIES leading up to the Toronto International Storytelling Festival May 7-10, 2026.

  WHAT IS THIS EVENT?

  TALES OF WISDOM is a storytelling concert featuring a collection of tellers sharing NON-FICTION stories that impart a lasting life lesson. 

  The tellers at the event are selected via lottery determined prior to the event. 

  HOW TO GET INVOLVED?

  Did junior high embarrassment manifest to adult wisdom? Did heartbreak heal you with personal insight? Bottom line - do you have a true story that has stuck with you your whole life? Then you might have a true WISDOM TALE that we are aching to hear.

  We are looking for storytellers to share an 8-10 minute NONFICTION STORY that they feel imparts an important life lesson. If you would like to be considered as a teller for this event, we ask that you please complete this Lottery Submission Form.

  HOW THE LOTTERY WORKS

  6 Tellers will be drawn by LOTTERY which will consist of TWO separate draws.

  PRIORITY LOTTERY: 3 spots will be drawn from a Lottery of Equity-Seeking Artists. Those not drawn will be automatically entered into the SECONDARY LOTTERY consisting of the remainder of the submissions. 

  ABOUT THE PRIORITY LOTTERY: We are committed to building an inclusive, accessible and diverse storytelling community by ensuring opportunities for Equity-seeking tellers. Equity-Seeking refers to an artist who self-identifies as traditionally underrepresented and under-resourced in performing arts and festival settings. For example, an equity seeking artist may identify as an Indigenous artist, artist of colour, transgender artist, artist with a disability or new Canadian artist. 

  Submission Deadline: February 15, 2026

  Selected Tellers will be notified: February 16, 2026

  SUBMIT YOUR STORY PROPOSAL

  
  

  
  

  
  

  Show details