STORYTELLING

Photo by Harvey Koplo

Nationally acclaimed musicians and storytellers Sparky and Rhonda Rucker have wowed audiences throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe with humor, witticism, and wonderful songs and stories. Sparky and Rhonda perform at festivals, schools, libraries, and historical sites for audiences of all ages.

Sparky and Rhonda each tell "solo" tales, but they also tell stories together (in tandem), always adding life and humor to the characters in their Brer Rabbit tales, Appalachian yarns, High John the Conqueror stories, preacher tales, and family stories. They also tell true stories about the Civil War and the settlement of the American West.

Sparky is a natural storyteller, having grown up hearing his father, uncles, and other family members endlessly telling tales. His storytelling is featured on Tall Tales of the Blue Ridge: Stories from the Heart of Appalachia, a video produced by the Eastern National Park & Monument Association in 1992. He has appeared at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee, the Festival of Storytelling on Martha’s Vineyard, Motlow State Community College’s Storytelling Festival, and the Texas Storytelling Festival. In 2000, he contributed to More Ready-To-Tell Tales, an anthology of stories from many of the nation’s best professional storytellers. He also contributed to another anthology, The August House Book of Scary Stories: Spooky Tales for Telling Out Loud. Sparky has been presented with the "Life Membership Award" by the National Association of Black Storytellers.

Sparky and Rhonda have been tellers-in-residence at the International Storytelling Center in Jonesborough, Tennessee. Together, they wrote a chapter for the storytelling book Team Up! Tell In Tandem! They have also taught storytelling classes at music camps, and they have been featured performers at festivals and conferences throughout the nation. Sparky and Rhonda's CD "Done Told the Truth, Goodbye!", features their storytelling.

FOR BOOKINGS, CONTACT SPARKY AND RHONDA RUCKER