Storyteller Will Hornyak performs March 14

Join Will Hornyak on a storytelling journey 7 p.m. March 14 at the Tim Bruce Performing Arts Center on the La Conner School District campus. Hornyak will share the Celtic story of "Erin's Daughters: Ireland's Hag's, Heroines, Warriors, Saints & Sorceresses" with Celtic musicians Jan Peters and Dale Russ at his side. Celebrate with us for a little St. Patrick's Day fun. Presented by the Skagit River Poetry Foundation. Donations are appreciated at the door. The event is for mature audiences age 14 and older.

Storytelling comes in many forms, but oral storytelling wears a different costume altogether. It is intimate, visceral and brings you sharply to the present moment by capturing your imagination right before your eyes and ears. You cannot experience this by streaming Netflix, flipping through cable TV or even reading your favorite book. It is a true community experience – the oral storyteller lets the audience in on the secret for only the people in the room. An effective storyteller brings the audience on extraordinary journeys into worlds unknown – shaking up the senses. Seeing an oral storyteller live is a sensory voyage as the story erupts and pierces straight to the audience's imagination – then overflows onto the stage alongside the storyteller. It creates a reciprocal relationship between the orator and listeners.

Hornyak weaves a wide web of beautifully crafted stories from oral traditions around the world, from American tall tales and Native American myths to Mexican fables, Russian fairytales and beyond. He performs with a love for the music and rhythm of language and fully engages his audiences in bringing traditional and original stories to life. He often shares the stage with audience members with lively participatory stories.

Hornyak teaches storytelling at Marylhurst University and performs at festivals, schools, theaters, pubs and churches throughout the United States. He has been a featured performer at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee and at numerous regional festivals. He was named Artist of the Year Young Audiences of Oregon and Southwest Washington. He lives in Oregon not far from the Willamette River, where he loves to paddle his canoe.

For over 30 years, Hornyak has seen stories move others and watched stories help to heal, educate and inspire – including in courtrooms, board rooms and beyond. He explains, "Stories creep under and over the walls that divide us. Stories ground us in our common experiences and celebrate our unique styles as well. The more stories we have, the more ideas we have for meeting the twisting plots and myriad characters in our own lives."

Stories help us understand the pains and joys of the human condition. Expert storytellers like Hornyak guide us in understanding how stories help us navigate our own life journey and through the act of oral storytelling even bring us joy – which is the true art of the story.

Location: 305 North Sixth Street, La Conner 98257.

Learn more at: willhornyak.net. For musicians Jan Peters and Dale Russ: jansongsproductions.com.

Show information: [email protected], 360-840-1452.

Cora Thomas is the assistant director of the Skagit River Poetry Foundation.