"Thunderstorm Rolling In" by Marlys Farn-Guillette
Downeast Storytellers
Leland Faulkner performing at EAC, 2025
Every culture—indeed every person and family—has unique stories. These narratives honor and represent both historic events and personal experiences. Downeast Maine, with its traditions of fishing, farming, and woodcutting as well as numerous writers, artists, and educators, is home to authentic remembrances and tall tales alike. That’s why the Literary Arts Program created our Downeast Storytellers project three years ago and has seen it become a focal point of the EAC’s programming.
Downeast Storytellers is a community-driven, five-month-long initiative that celebrates and amplifies an appreciation of the art of storytelling within our local communities.
Our vision is to foster cultural exchange, inclusivity, connection, and a sense of history by bringing together diverse storytellers to share their individual narratives.
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Our five-event format features professional storytellers from both Native and non-Native communities. Some of these storytellers also offer innovative performance-based workshops for interested members of the public.
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These professional storytelling presentations are bracketed by competitive StorySlams or other local storytelling events. At the StorySlam, local amateur storytellers present a short personal story and a panel of volunteer judges select the three best stories of the night. The winning storytellers are awarded a total of $300 in cash prizes.
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Downeast Storytellers is a collaborative venture among the Eastport Arts Center, the Sipiyak Museum at Pleasant Point, and The Quoddy Tides.
"Stories bond us. We have a lot more in common than we have differences and stories give us a way to know one another.”
—Dwayne Tomah, Director, Sipayik Museum