Jennifer Cayley

My passion for storytelling is based in my belief that narrative is hard wired into the human animal and that all of us need the accumulated wisdom that has been stored up in oral literature over countless generations. In my telling and in my workshops I aim for a simple human connection; one that is immediate, unplugged, filled with possibility and in its simplicity challenges and supports, the listener/learner, to build a very particular, individual creative response to the storytelling experience.

I have been a storyteller for nearly two decades, telling in community venues and at festivals locally, across the country in the USA and most recently in Wales. I have told regularly at Rasputin’s Café and appeared each year at the Ottawa Storytellers concert series at the Fourth Stage. Arts education and administration are the day jobs.

My repertoire includes epic material, traditional folk and fairy tales, literary material and autobiographical material. Like many serious tellers it is the traditional material that is the backbone, the shape maker, the inspiration out of which all the work grows.

Working with childen and young people is a big part of my practice and I enjoy all age groups from primary on up. I am on the roster of MASC (www.masconline.ca), and Prologue to the Performing Arts in Toronto (www.prologue.org) Sample programs can be found on their websites. I am also on Ontario Arts Council, Artists in Education roster. (www.arts.on.ca)

Availability: As a full-time storyteller I have no on-going restrictions on availability

to contact Jennifer directly email jcayley(at)magma.ca or call 613-256-0353