storytellers

Chris Smith PhD

Director, School Story Service

Chris, the Storysmith, is a storyteller, musician and author and was founding director of the Story Museum’s School Story Service. In 1994 Chris moved to Oxford and trained in performance storytelling with the internationally renowned storyteller, Ben Haggarty, and in therapeutic storytelling with Alida Gersie. Since then he has performed in festivals, museums, companies, prisons and many schools. Before becoming a storyteller Chris spent 15 years running charity and community projects in the Middle East, where he collected many of his stories.

Adam Guillain

Adam is an experienced primary teacher and education consultant, experienced in multicultural storytelling. He is particularly fond of Russian and West African stories and his performances include songs and music on the guitar or piano. Adam runs drama and creative writing workshops, as well as teaching insets. His books for children include the popular Bella Ballistica series. During 2006 he was writer-in-residence for the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre in Great Missenden.

Vergine Gulbenkian

Vergine began working on the craft of telling traditional tales in 1991 after studying drama. Her interest led her to research the rich Armenian oral tradition. In 1994 she made a documentary video with Richard Eayrs about the ashugh (epic singer) tradition in Armenia. In 1996 she wrote an MPhil thesis at Oxford about continuity in the craft of storytelling amongst diaspora Armenians. Vergine performs traditional tales and epics in venues that include the South Bank Centre, the Battersea Arts Centre, the British Museum, the Barbican Centre and extensively in museums, schools and storytelling clubs around Britain. She is well known for her grounded, direct and simple style of telling. Folk songs are an integral part of her performances. She has recently been combining science education with story, devising performances for the Pitt Rivers, Natural History, and History of Science Museums in Oxford.