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Welcome to the Calabash Experience:The Art of African Diaspora Storytelling

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Interactive Storytelling Experiences

 Storytelling with Music and Songs
Promoting Literacy Through Black Narratives
Cultural Enrichment for Schools, Festivals, and Events

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Bringing African traditions to life through engaging workshops,

live performances,

and virtual programs.

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Perfect for:

  • Black History Month

  • Juneteenth & Kwanzaa Events

  • Schools, Libraries, & Nonprofits

  • Festivals & Community Celebrations

​​Ignite imagination, preserve culture, and inspire connection through the power of storytelling.

Celebrating  Folktales, Culture, and Community

LaShaunda Craddock (aka Kemi) is a mother, a wife, an educator, an artist, a traditionalist, an arts/culture/education ambassador, and a visionary.  To develop her craft, she has spent the last 20 years traveling, studying, and sitting at the “foot of elders” so that she could be immersed in the wisdom of tradition, culture, and the beauty of life's lessons.
 
Through her story telling, Kemi shares the greatness she sees in our culture and community and uses that energy to encourage, inspire, and invoke positive energy on all levels. Believing in the healing power of culture, she emphasizes that we possess the tools for our development, resistance, sustenance, and progress. Those tools are in our words, our stories, our families, and in our personal medicines.
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Kemi calls her  story-telling  "story-try"--an infusion of  life, love, culture, tradition, rhythm and song. With her, stories become a powerful means of connecting people, exploring the vast resources of our internal power, and developing positive  self narratives.

Recent Festivals /Storytelling  Residencies
 

  • National Association of Black Storytellers Conference featured teller

  • Alexandria Library Workshop Series: The Calabash Experience

 

  • Family Development Workshop Series Oak Grove Bellemeade Elementary School 

 

  •  Peter Paul Development Center  Senior Celebration of Black History 

 

  • Ezibu Muntu African Dance Theater 50 Anniversary Celebration 

 

  •  Charlottesville Festival of Tales

References
Branding Coach
Veteran Storyteller
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Services offered 

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  • General Storytelling and Cultural Arts

  • Education and Youth Engagement

  • Festivals and Events

  • Music and Interactive Storytelling

  • Digital Content and Online Programs

  • Community and Cultural Programs

  • Book Promo

  • MC/Public Speaking

  • Song Writing

  • Voice Overs

  • ​Virtual Celebrations

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