Storytellers.

David Holt

Every young man dreams of a life of adventure. In 1968, David Holt found his life’s journey in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains. With a passion to become an old-time banjo player, David traveled to remote mountain communities like Kingdom Come, Kentucky and Sodom Laurel, North Carolina searching for the best traditional musicians. Holt found hundreds of old-time mountaineers with a wealth of folk music, stories and wisdom. There was banjoist Wade Mainer, ballad singer Dellie Norton, singing coal miner Nimrod Workman, and 122 year-old washboard player Susie Brunson. Holt learned to play not only banjos, but many unusual instruments like the mouth bow, the bottleneck slide guitar and even the paper bag.

Sheila Kay Adams

Sheila Kay Adams comes from a small mountain community in Madison County, North Carolina. For seven generation her family has maintained the tradition of passing down the English, Scottish and Irish ballads that came over with her ancestors in the mid 1700’s. Sheila learned these ballads from her older relatives, primarily from her great-aunt, Dellie Chandler Norton and cousin, Cas Wallin. In performance, Sheila sings the traditional Appalachian ballads in the same style in which they were handed down to her – the same intensity, the same profound feeling for the ballad and in a powerful, strong voice. Audiences love to hear Sheila tell stories about her childhood and the community in which she grew up.

Anndrena Belcher

“The truth of my own story lies on the road between inner city Chicago and the hollers of my eastern Kentucky home!” Anndrena’s oral history performances integrate folktales, song, dance and poetry. The performances are woven tightly and presented in a style which reflects both her eastern Kentucky coal field roots, and urban-Appalachian migration experience. She has been described as “...a Minnie Pearl with track shoes,” and “...a rocket-powered raconteur” who delivers a performance which comes across “like a cannonball compared to some [other] performer’s water pistol.” Author and historian Studs Terkel calls her “...a national treasure.”

Jim Lloyd

Jim Lloyd, former Vice Mayor and barber of Rural Retreat Va., is a fourth generation musician of Southwest Virginia who continues to entertain and teach fans across this nation and abroad. He is one of the most sought after guitar accompanists and has won many awards at festivals on instruments ranging from autoharp to banjo. Jim’s music and storytelling has been documented by the Smithsonian Institution as well as several commercial labels. Lloyd’s Barber Shop has become an institution for swapping tunes, songs and stories which helps keep alive the culture of Virginia’s Southern Appalachian Highlands.

Joan & Mack Swift

Joan and Mack Swift met while attending Emory and Henry College in Virginia. Drawn together by their mutual good looks, interest in the dramatic arts and passion for teaching, they married, raised two amazing children, and pursued careers in public education. After 35 years of teaching they decided to try something different. Combining their styles and talents, they formed the Tales in Tandem storytelling team. They have performed for audiences of all ages. By combining their teaching experiences with their dramatic skills and artistry, Joan and Mack create imaginative and unforgettable presentations in storytelling.