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Please join us for Do Tell! An Event to Benefit the Evanston Dance Ensemble. Hear true stories from the lives of our storytellers … true stories, yes, although perhaps sprinkled with the embellishments, exaggerations, and creative reconstruction of lapsed memories that we all use every day.

Our storytellers range in experience from first-timers to long-time professionals and all will draw you in as they engage in this age-old practice of sharing, entertaining, and community building.

The Evanston Dance Ensemble’s mission is to create inventive performances and programs of the highest quality, to nurture the power and artistry of talented young dancers, and to reflect the diversity of our community by fostering inclusivity, collaboration, and creative expression.

 

Date/Time: Saturday, September 9, 2023, 8 pm

Location: Studio5

Tickets

 

2023 Do Tell! Host and Storytellers

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Host: Scott Whitehair is an international storyteller, instructor, and producer from Chicago, IL. He is the producer of This Much Is True, one of Chicago’s longest running storytelling series, the creator of Story Lab Chicago, which has put over 800 first-time performers on stage since 2011, and director of Do Not Submit, a grassroots network of open mics across the city with the goal of connecting people through personal narrative. He tells stories anywhere someone will listen, which has included Steppenwolf Theater, The Green Mill, The National Storytelling Festival’s Exchange Place, and on NPR and The Risk Podcast.. Scott teaches a perpetually sold out monthly class, and assists corporations, non-profits, and individuals in finding their voices. In 2015, he taught a weeklong intensive at All Hallows College in Dublin and in 2014 was the featured instructor at Hong Kong Story Worthy Week, headlined by David Sedaris.

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Kevin Biolsi is a statistician by trade but has managed to avoid the glamorous, fast-paced, and ultimately self-destructive lifestyle so often associated with that profession. He started telling stories in front of audiences in 2016 and found it to be even more exhilarating than a new release of Microsoft Excel. He is co-host of Story Vroom Vroom in Evanston and the Andersonville Do No Submit open mic storytelling show.

Kevin sat on the board of the Evanston Dance Ensemble for ten years, serving as board president for four of those years. He and his wife Carol have lived in Evanston since 1993 and have shared their home at various times with their daughters Lauren and Megan (both former EDE dancers), dogs, cats, rabbits, and a guinea pig.

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LiamB

Liam Bird joined the City of Evanston as the Manager of Organizational Performance and Equity. He has 15 years of experience in diversity, equity, and inclusion, with a focus on education and government. He previously served as a founding member of the first equity office for Chicago Public Schools, the fourth largest school district in the U.S., where he was promoted to Director of Racial Equity Initiatives. He founded LRFB Equity Consulting LLC to support organizers in institutionalizing equity-based practices.

Liam earned a Master’s in Public Policy and Administration from Northwestern University and is a doctoral student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the Education Policy, Organization, and Leadership program with a focus on Diversity and Equity. Liam is an accomplished public speaker, author, strategist, and policy and budgeting champion for the most impacted communities. His life’s work is focused on disrupting racism and systems of oppression through liberatory design and inclusion.

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DickelleF

Dickelle Fonda. When asked, “Who ARE you?”, Dickelle answers: Human … woman …life partner to Jevoid…mother to Seth, Larry, and Jersey…sister of many women friends … lover of other animals and nature … companion to a Siberian husky pack.

When asked, “What do you DO?”, Dickelle answers: Psychotherapy via private practice … anti-war and social justice activism … community organizing … beach running … lake kayaking … woods hiking … living a healthy lifestyle at 74.

The story Dickelle will be sharing is at the instersection of who she is and what she does.

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KeithR

Dr. Keith A. Robinson, a native of Gary, IN, holds a B.A. in Secondary English Education from Ball State University, a Master’s in Education Administration and Supervision from Roosevelt University, and a doctorate in Educational Leadership from National Louis University. With over two decades of experience in education, Keith taught English at various schools in Indiana and Illinois before transitioning to high school administration.

His career in administration began as the Dean of Students at Niles West High School, and later, he served as the Assistant Principal of Operations at Niles North High School, overseeing day-to-day school functions. Currently, Keith is the Associate Principal of Educational Services at Evanston Township High School.

Throughout his life, Keith has been dedicated to education and service, particularly focusing on social justice, equity, and access. He has actively participated in various organizations, such as Foundation65, FAN (Family Action Network), and several professional education groups. Keith is also involved in the Alumni Board at Ball State University and serves as a Trustee for the Village of Skokie.

Apart from his professional achievements, Keith is a “Dance Dad”, who has never missed his daughter’s dance performances. He shares his life with his wife, Sharon, a pediatrician, and they have two teenage daughters, Taryn and Kari, who are passionate about dance. Taryn is attending Duke University while continuing her passion for dance, and Kari is a rising junior at ETHS, also pursuing her love for dance.

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EnidS

Enid Smith was named after a town in Oklahoma. She has spent most of her life telling stories through dance as a performer, teacher, and choreographer. She has also worked as a shoe salesperson, a waiter, a Bud Light girl, an artist’s model, a massage therapist, and a box office ticket sales person. Even though she is a loud and social person, she is nervous to be making her live storytelling debut at Do Tell. Enid is an advocate for slow food and low-waste living. You can find her working the farmer’s market on Saturday mornings and drinking good wine on her back porch at night. She is a mother and a wife and is grateful that her family puts up with her tendency to overschedule herself and forget to be home.

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Photo by Bradford Rogne Photography

Victoria Zielinski is an actor, producer, educator, and comedian. After graduating from Northwestern, she practiced law, did commercial voiceover work, and performed onstage at The Court, Northlight, and Goodman theatres as well as The Practical Theatre Company in Chicago. In 1991, she moved to Los Angeles, where she worked as a television producer and teacher, continuing to perform comedy with the PTC. Now, after three decades in Southern California, she’s back in Evanston, enjoying the change of seasons, her family, and continued fun onstage with her Practical Theatre friends.

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