Hannah Harvey storyteller | speaker | ethnographer
Hannah’s energetic style brings humorous, compelling, contemporary Appalachian stories to audiences of all ages.
Born and raised in southern Appalachia, Hannah has delivered award-winning performances and workshops at festivals and universities in the U.S., U.K., and Morocco. Her energetic style brings to life humorous and compelling stories of contemporary Virginia coal miners; life growing up in Appalachia; her grandfather’s childhood in the Cove, VA; and folktales connected with the region’s Scottish heritage. Critics have called her work “very funny” (Theatre Guide London) and “deeply moving” (Classical Voice of North Carolina).
Hannah earned her Ph.D. in Performance Studies / Communication Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill. She has taught storytelling and cultural performance at UNC and at Kennesaw State University, where she developed and directed the KSU Tellers storytelling company. She currently teaches in the Storytelling Master’s Program at East Tennessee State University, and is managing editor of Storytelling, Self, Society journal.
“Hannah is a wonderful wordsmith, an energetic and articulate teller, with a remarkable insight into the souls of her characters.”
— Storytelling Festival of Carolina
