āStory Stateā shines spotlight on new era of Mississippi storytellers
Contact: Sam Kealhoefer
STARKVILLE, Miss.āĻć½¶Ö±²„ās Department of Communication is hosting a statewide virtual event bringing together more than a dozen storytellers aimed to help the next generation find their place in the genealogy of Mississippi writers.
The Feb. 25 event āStory State: Fostering Innovative Storytellingā gathers storytellers of different genres to share their experiences and offer advice. The event is free and open to the public and will be broadcast at 1 p.m. from .Ģż
Story State seeks to honor Mississippiās artistic heritage as the birthplace of the blues and home to famous writers and artists, as well as demonstrate how new creators have transformed the face of storytelling.
āEveryone knows about Faulkner, Welty, Elvis and Robert Johnson, but there are a whole lot of other great storytellers in Mississippi,ā said Josh Foreman, an instructor in the communication department and chair of this yearās Story State planning committee.
Leading this yearās slate of storytellers is Anna Wolfe, a Mississippi Today reporter and top investigative journalist. Wolfe has spent more than five years reporting on poverty and economic justice in the Magnolia State and has received national recognition for her work. She will give participants a behind-the-scenes look at her experience reporting on the stateās ārestitution centersāāwhat she terms ādebtorsā prisons.ā
In addition to Wolfe, other speakers and topics include:
āDuwayne Burnside, Mississippi Blues singer, discussion and performance of Hill Country blues.
āDavid Garraway, Ļć½¶Ö±²„Television Center director, creative and engaging video storytelling.
āJonathan Harris, Northern Gulf Institute outreach coordinator, and Tonya Hays, award-winning playwright and Ļć½¶Ö±²„assistant professor of communication, their original play focusing on the subject of climate change and its potential impacts on the Gulf Coast region.
āZach Lancaster, a core crew member for HGTVās āHome Town,ā will talk about the television production.Ģż
ĢżāRick Looser, nationally known public relations professional, overturning stereotypes through his Mississippi Believe It! campaign.Ģż
āFrancine Reynolds, artistic director at New Stage Theatre in Jackson, what makes Mississippi history a perfect subject for theatre.
āBenjamin Saulsberry, tour coordinator at the Emmett Till Interpretive Center in Sumner, how the Emmett Till Memorial Commission is working to create racial harmony.
āSteve Soltis, senior adviser with MAS Leadership Communication and former communication executive for the Coca-Cola Company and UPS, roundtable discussion on the storytelling side of marketing. Soltis will be joined by Paul Summers, winemaker at Knightās Gambit Vineyards in Charlottesville, Virginia; Benjamin West, Europe brand director at Veuve Clicquot; andĀ Derek Irby and Jean Mohammadi-Aragh Irby, founders of Mayhew Junction Brewery.
āRyan Starrett, author of āDallas Tough: Historic Tales of Grit, Audacity and Defiance,ā stories of the dead.Ģż
āMichael Williams, writer, director and cinematographer, the creative process of video production.
Additionally, the communication department has invited undergraduate students from universities and colleges around the state to submit original nonfiction writing, podcasts and short documentary films as part of a Story State Storytelling Competition. Three of these submissions will receive Master Storyteller awards during the event.
Part of MSUās College of Arts and Sciences, the Department of Communication is online at .
Ļć½¶Ö±²„is Mississippiās leading university, available online at .