Capital Storytelling

Sacramento Storytellers Guild Program (Monthly Hybrid Event!)
2026-01-17 14:00 - 15:30, 2025-12-20 14:00 - 15:30, 2025-11-15 14:00 - 15:30, 2025-10-18 14:00 - 15:30, 2025-09-20 14:00 - 15:30, 2025-08-16 14:00 - 15:30, 2025-07-19 14:00 - 15:30, 2025-06-21 14:00 - 15:30 (America/Los_Angeles)
The Sacramento Storytellers Guild hosts a monthly storytelling program with 6 storytellers and 2 poets each event! The event is hybrid: in person at the Sacramento Poetry Center with a Zoom audience as well! For more info, visit their website: https://sacramentostorytellersguild.org/
Zoom for each month is here: https://zoom.us/j/91354356933
Meeting ID: 913 5435 6933
If you’d like to sign up to share a story or poem, email storyteller@sacramentostorytellersguild.org
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Do Tell! (in-person storytelling open-mic)
2026-01-13 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-12-09 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-11-11 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-10-14 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-09-09 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-08-12 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-07-08 18:00 - 20:00
Come join us at LogOff Brewing for our monthly in-person true storytelling open mic event, Do Tell! At the event, you’ll hear personal stories told by regular folks just like you. In fact, we invite you and anyone else who is interested, to put their name in our hat for a chance to tell us all a story. You can find the guidelines below. Come out to just listen or come tell a story! Food and beverages are for sell at the venue.
Second Tuesday of each month (check our calendar for dates!)
LogOff Brewing
3054 Sunrise Blvd Suite J
Rancho Cordova, CA 95742

Guidelines for Your “Do Tell” Open Mic Story

Tell us a TRUE story about something you did or experienced: Fiction is wonderful, but we want to hear about events from your life and things that you have personally experienced! Lectures, rants, listicles, guided meditations, singalongs, sermons, and elevator pitches ALL have their place, but this isn’t it.
Try to keep it under 8 minutes: We’ll give you a gentle one minute warning at 7 minutes; please wrap it up by 8 min so that there’s time for everyone else’s stories.
Leave your notes and phones behind: We find that the best personal stories are often those that are told without notes. So please don’t read your story to us – just tell it to us! (And we won’t judge you if you mix up the timeline or forget a part!)
Be respectful: We want everyone to feel welcome and respected, so please do not use stereotypes, slurs, racial epithets, or derogatory language about any group. Also, please do not use accents and dialects from cultures that are not your own. If you are unsure about something in your story, ask the host.
Aim for an R rating (or less): We know y’all have some crazy stories (and we wanna hear ‘em), but let’s try to keep them R-rated or under. And please read the room; if there are kids present consider giving a content warning to parents. Sometimes opting for euphemisms instead of coarse language will do the trick… And finally, please give a content warning before your story if you think it could cause anyone fear or anxiety.

To put your name in the hat, show up a little early and find the host! The host will then draw names from the hat and those people will be invited on stage to share their 8-mins-or-less story with the crowd!
Still have questions? Email John Aubert at johnaubert@capitalstorytelling.com!

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Oral Storytelling 101 Class (VIRTUAL) Fall 2025
2025-12-08 17:30 - 19:30, 2025-12-01 17:30 - 19:30, 2025-11-24 17:30 - 19:30, 2025-11-17 17:30 - 19:30
This 4-week virtual class trains you to tell real-life stories orally. In the first week of this class participants learn how to identify stories from their own life and how to find their focus and voice. In weeks 2 and 3 participants continue to hone their skills as they share their own stories in front of the class and receive feedback. On week 4, participants share their final story in front of the group. The class is offered via Zoom. Limited to 10 participants.
MORE INFO

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True Personal Storytelling for Beginners
2025-11-04 18:00 - 20:00 | LogOff Brewing, 3054 Sunrise Blvd Suite J, Rancho Cordova, CA, 95742, United States
Storytelling promotes empathy, compassion, and community, and… it’s just plain fun! You’re invited to join us for a 2-hr workshop designed to take a memorable moment from your life and craft it into a solid first draft of a story you could tell friends, family, or even strangers. Anyone and everyone is welcome to bring their ideas.
Facilitator: John Aubert
In addition to teaching geography at American River College for 25 years, John has taken the stage at fifteen Moth Story Slams (winning twice!) and has also been a featured storyteller on live stages across Northern California and on several popular storytelling podcasts. In 2022, he completed Capital Storytelling’s Story Ambassador program, and he is now an assistant events producer, as well as a storytelling instructor and coach.
Location: LogOff Brewing
3054 Sunrise Blvd, Suite J
Rancho Cordova, CA 95742
*Note: you can pre-enroll here or you may also show up at the door and pay!
Please bring writing materials (physical or digital), and please come early to get settled and to order food and drink (if desired).
BUY TICKET
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Immigrant Stories 2025: resistance, liberation, and joy
2025-10-28 18:00 - 20:00 | Sacramento State University, 6000 J St, Sacramento, CA, 95819, United States
GET TICKETS

Join us on October 28th at 6 PM in the University Union Building on the campus of Sacramento State for our 4th annual Immigrant Stories, an event amplifying the lived experiences of our immigrant community members. Five storytellers will take the stage to share their true personal stories on the theme of this year: Resistance, Liberation, and Joy. This event is hosted in partnership with the Dreamer Resource Center of Sacramento State. It is sponsored by SMUD and funded by grants from the California Arts Council and California Humanities for All.
This year we are hosting the event both in-person and online. The event is free but please note: Attendees must get tickets (for both in-person and online).
We have space for 220 attendees in our auditorium at Sacramento State and we would love for you join us there. If you are not able to join us in person, join us online (via Zoom). For both in-person and virtual tickets, click the button below. You’ll be directed to our Eventbrite page where you should click “Get Tickets” and then you can choose whether you’d like to order “in-person” or “virtual” tickets.
For security purposes, we are sharing the location information and our virtual link with only our ticket holders. Once you get your tickets, you will receive information a few days before the event about the auditorium location and/or a link to join us virtually! If you have questions, email us at info@capitalstorytelling.com. Join us in solidarity to witness and uplift our immigrant community’s stories.

**Admission is FREE but you must order tickets beforehand.

GET TICKETS

Date: October 28th
Time: 6:00 – 8:00 PM PT
Location: University Union Building on the campus of Sacramento State AND VIRTUAL. To receive the exact room location OR to get a link to the virtual event, you must order a ticket and enter an email address. Information will be sent to ticket holders’ email addresses.

ASL Interpretation will be provided. AI generated captioning will be provided (and available to view on your handheld device or phone!) The venue is wheelchair accessible. If you need accommodations or have questions, please contact Lisa Cantrell at lisa@capitalstorytelling.com so that we can work with you to make this event as accessible as possible.
Captioning will be available in English, Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin, Tagalog (Filipino), Hmong, Korean, Russian, and Vietnamese. Audio dubbing will be available in Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin, and Vietnamese. If you’d like to view the captions, be sure to bring your phone so you can scan our QR code to get access. You’ll be able to read the captions on your own phone. If you want to LISTEN to audio dubbing/translation, be sure to bring your own headphones so that you can listen through your phone!
Masks will be provided and encouraged for our community.
The event will be held on the first floor of the University Union on the campus of Sac State, 6000 J Street, Sacramento. See map and info below for details on location and parking (and click the map to enlarge it). The University Union is highlighted in Yellow on the map. Parking is in purple. If you have questions, email us at info@capitalstorytelling.com or call the Dreamer Resource Center at (916) 278-7734. You may also call Capital Storytelling at 1-(209)-425-2951.

Meet the Storytellers

Coralia Alvarado Lopez (she/her/ella) Storyteller Coralia is a Salvadoran born raised in the San Franciso Bay Area, poet, and storyteller whose work uplifts and celebrates the immigrant experience. She is the creator of Stories de Mi Gente, a bilingual storytelling project dedicated to reclaiming the narratives of Latino and immigrant communities with honor, pride, y corazón! Her calling as a storyteller began after a deep meditation revealed a truth she had carried for years, she had never been empowered to own her immigrant story. In that moment, Coralia understood the power of voice: how silence can wound, and how storytelling can heal. Trần Mai Xanh (he/they) Storyteller Trần Mai Xanh (he/they) is a second-generation Queer, Trans, and Non-binary Vietnamese-American who wears multiple hats as a multimedia artist, focusing on storytelling through photography, DJing, filmmaking, and stand-up comedy. He is from San José, CA, and currently resides in Sacramento, where he is known as Compost King, a facilitator of composting, gardening, and a sustainability group called Compost Kin. Zai (she/her) Storyteller Zai is a writer, teacher, and filmmaker based in Sacramento, California. After teaching in three different countries and earning a PhD in French literature, she turned toward the creative pursuits closest to her heart: filmmaking, writing, and storytelling. She discovered the art of live storytelling during the final year of her PhD and immediately felt at home on stage. Since then, she has performed regularly at platforms such as DoTell at Capital Storytelling and The Moth. Her work seeks to create spaces where people from all walks of life feel empowered to share their stories—spaces where, beyond social and political divides, genuine human connection takes center stage. Jenni Hernandez (she/her/ella) Storyteller Jenni is currently a graduate student at Sacramento State studying Higher Education Leadership and Policy. Her work at the Dreamer Resource Center has helped her find her "why" and it deeply motivates her to change higher education institutions to be more equitable for undocumented students. As a Mexican immigrant brought to the United States at the age of one, she considered herself a bridge between many different cultures and is rooted in her community. Diana Cazandra Rangel (she/her/ella) Storyteller Diana Cazandra Rangel is a first-generation Chicana from South Sacramento and the daughter of a single immigrant mother. As the firstborn and a U.S. citizen, she embraced every opportunity her status provided, driven by her family’s consejos y ganas. Diana earned her B.A. in Ethnic Studies from Sacramento State and is now pursuing her M.A. in Chicana/o Latina/o Studies at Cal State LA, where she focuses on women in politics, jotería theory, and filmmaking. She currently works for the Secretary of State in Downtown Los Angeles. Through her academic and professional work and many firsts, Diana strives to pave the way for future generations.

Questions and Answers!
Do I have to get tickets for the event beforehand? Yes. This year for security reasons we are requiring all guests to order their ticket before the event (both in-person and virtual attendees). The event is FREE but you should go to our Eventbrite page (by clicking on the button above) to get a ticket.
How do I attend virtually? If you’d like to attend virtually, click the button above to go to our Eventbrite page. You can then click “Get Tickets” and then you will have the option to order virtual tickets. You will then receive an email with the link to get into our virtually streamed Zoom event to watch the event online.
I want to attend in person. Can I just show up on the night of the event? The short answer is “not really.” We will be sending the exact auditorium location only to those who are ticket holders (so you’ll need to order a free ticket before hand and enter your email address so that we can send you an email to tell you know where to go for the event!). If you show up to the University Union on the night of the event you will likely see where the event is (we’ll have sign up to direct you), BUT if you do not have a ticket, we will still ask that you go to our Eventbrite page and get a ticket before you enter the auditorium. We are doing this so that we can maintain security of the event given the current political climate. We recommend getting that ticket before you arrive so that you can enter the auditorium easily and quickly and also so that you can be sure that we have a seat for you! We have limited space in the auditorium (220 seats).
Where is the event located? The event will be in one of the auditoriums inside of the the University Union on the campus of Sac State (Sacramento State University is located at 6000 J Street, Sacramento CA). We will share details about the exact room a few days prior to the event with those who have ordered a ticket for the in-person event. To see where the University Union is, you can check out the campus map below! The University Union is highlighted in yellow on the map. You can also put “University Union” into your phone’s GPS application and your phone should also direct you to the building!
Where do I park? There is a parking structure right next to the University Union (see map for purple highlighted parking structures). We suggest that you park in Parking Structure 2. You will need to pay for parking. You can do that by paying at one of the kiosks in the parking structure OR by using the QR code on the campus map to pay by phone. If you are using the QR code and your smart phone to pay, use the parking code 5115. (You will be prompted for this code when paying with your phone.)

To enlarge the map, double click on it. You can also find an interactive campus map here. On the interactive map you can type in the name of the building to find it and navigate.

Thank you to our partners and our sponsors for this event.

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Podcasting 101 Summer 2025
2025-08-25 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-08-18 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-08-11 18:00 - 20:00, 2025-08-04 18:00 - 20:00
This 4-week online virtual class trains you in the art of podcast production. Participants will learn how to create podcasts using readily available devices (computers, smart phones, or audio recorders), how to use audio editing software, and how to publish podcast episodes through various online platforms- all with one-on-one instruction from experienced radio and podcast producers.
COST: $295 Scholarships available, click here to apply (or email capitalstorytelling@gmail.com to inquire)
**Early bird registration $270 by July 8.
Instructors: Lisa Cantrell and Victoria Boston
Class dates: Tuesdays Februrary 6, 13, 20 and 27 @ 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM (note your time zone)
Enrollment also includes 2 hours of one-on-one assistance from the instructor to support the creation of projects. Participants must have access to a computer.
ENROLL
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Facilitating Storytelling Workshops - training for leaders, educators, and change-makers
2025-08-14 09:00 - 14:30, 2025-08-07 09:00 - 14:30 | Zoom
Gain training in leading storytelling workshops. This 2-day class trains individuals to lead storytelling workshops in their places of work, communities, schools, and organizations.
August 7 and 14 @ 9 AM – 2:30 PM PT / 12 PM – 5:30 PM ET (VIRTUAL)
COST: $475

ENROLL

Storytelling has the power to change our communities and transform the lives of those around us. Creating spaces for people to share and listen to one another’s stories can open up routes to inter-group dialogue, community building, and ultimately social change. Capital Storytelling has spent years developing methods to open people up and help them find and share their stories. We are now offering training for community members (leaders, educators, and change makers) to give them methods for facilitating storytelling workshops. In this intensive 2-full-days class, Executive Director and founder of Capital Storytelling, Dr. Lisa Cantrell, will lead you through methods for facilitating storytelling workshops based on those we use at Capital Storytelling (and that we have used in private as well as corporate workshops). She’ll also share insights gained over the years to help you create a brave and compassionate space for story sharing.
During the class, you will receive instructions along with reflective exercises and out-side-of-class-assignments to push you in your own growth to become a workshop facilitator. By the end of the two sessions, you will have tools for setting up and leading your own story circle or workshop, including an informational packet with storytelling prompts, workshop instructions, worksheets, and a slide deck that you can modify and use for your own workshops/story circles.

What will participants do on each day?
On Day 1, participants will watch a demonstration of a 60 minute storytelling workshop. They will then get step-by-step guidance on the individual components of the workshop (along with explanations on why and how for each component). On this day, participants will get training in the use of storytelling prompts and methods developed at Capital Storytelling for drawing out authentic personal stories from workshop participants. The group will practice using the prompts and activities together and will discuss ways to engage their audiences. Participants will be provided with worksheets and a slide deck to use in their own workshops. They will then be given “homework” for the week that includes reflective questions and an assignment to practice what they have learned thus far in a small group setting before the following class session.
On Day 2, participants will reconvene to discuss the assignments from the previous week. They will then get in-depth instruction on how to lead their own workshop participants in active listening and ways to create compassionate and brave spaces for connection among their workshop participants. Participants will also receive supportive “scripts” to help them as they develop their own style of leading. The class will end with discussion and final tips on how to create storytelling spaces in their own communities.

About the instructor for this training course:

Dr. Lisa Cantrell is a psychologist, a tenured professor at Sacramento State University, and the executive director of Capital Storytelling. She holds a PhD in Developmental Psychology from Indiana University and has produced stories for NPR. Dr. Cantrell has spent over a decade researching and training others on the power of storytelling, and she has developed storytelling curriculum for use with educators, physicians, researchers, and activists. She regularly consults for businesses, non-profits, and government agencies across the U.S. You can find out more at her website: https://lisamcantrell.com/
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Oral Storytelling 101 Class (VIRTUAL) Spring 2025
2025-06-29 14:00 - 16:00, 2025-06-22 14:00 - 16:00, 2025-06-15 14:00 - 16:00
