JONESBOROUGH, Tenn. — Large white tents will once again transform historic downtown Jonesborough into a stage for the imagination as the National Storytelling Festival returns Oct. 3–5 for its 52nd year.
Recognized as America’s premier storytelling event, the Festival draws visitors from across the country and around the globe to the Storytelling Capital of the World. Since 1973, audiences have gathered in Tennessee’s oldest town to be inspired and entertained by folktales, fables, myths, legends, and personal stories told by master storytellers.
Following last year’s hiatus due to the local impact of Hurricane Helene, the Festival is back in 2025 with more than two dozen featured tellers. Beloved favorites include Donald Davis, renowned for carrying on his Appalachian family tradition; Dovie Thompson, a Native American folklorist; Sheila Arnold, a living-history performer and Mt. Vernon Research Fellow; and humorist Bil Lepp, a five-time champion of the West Virginia Liar’s Contest.
This year also spotlights the Legacy Series guest of honor, Retired Major General John Borling— author, poet, and decorated fighter pilot who survived six and a half years as a prisoner of war in Hanoi. During captivity, he composed poems of humor, hope, and resilience entirely in his mind, sharing them with fellow prisoners through tap code. His remarkable story is captured in Taps on the Walls: Poems from the Hanoi Hilton. Festival-goers will have two opportunities to hear him speak.
“I think my job is to make people think a lot, laugh a bit, and maybe shed a tear or two,” Borling said. “The essence of storytelling is reaching in and touching the inner being of people.”
Festival traditions continue with the ever-popular Ghost Stories concerts, set under the stars at Mill Springs Park on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Listeners can gather for a spine-tingling evening of eerie folktales, chilling legends, and haunted history told by some of the nation’s top storytellers.
A portion of the Festival will be offered FREE via livestream. On Friday, Oct. 3, audiences everywhere can tune in to watch performances from the Family Tent which kicks off at 10 am and ends with a wraps up with a featured teller showcase at 7:30 pm. Details are available at storytellingcenter.net/festival/virtual-festival.
Festival passes are on sale now, including weekend passes, day passes, and single-event tickets. To purchase or learn more, visit storytellingcenter.net.
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