Over the past few years, LaRon Williams has been steadily earning a reputation as one of the finest storytellers in the state of Michigan. His salient gift is his remarkable rapport with audiences of all kinds. Children and adults respond with equal enthusiasm to his warmth and vigor as he uses dialect, facial expressions and movement to breathe life into tales which transcend the boundaries of class and age.

Williams is motivated in part by the belief that the power and beauty of African culture should be shared, and that the lessons of struggle, perseverance, and survival of Africans in the Western Hemisphere are part of a legacy we all should recognize and own.

Ultimately, he believes that a narrow love of one's own culture is not enough; that we all have to take the time to tell each other our stories - with all the joy and frowns and pain and smiles that they bring. That "...we have to come to know and accept the ways in which we are different and become aware of an appreciate the ways in which we're alike, and that we have to use that knowledge not to ascribe hierarchy or to produce winners and losers, but to promote understanding and resolution."

LaRon Williams is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University. His background includes theater, visual art, film and video production, gymnastics, modern and traditional dance, vocal and instrumental music, child care, food service, and newspaper reporting. He has performed for audiences in theaters, churches, schools, and on radio and TV in several states on both sides of the Mississippi River.

What people are saying about LaRon Williams, storyteller:

"You're the best! ...Your performance was captivating, animated, and delightful ... You are a pleasure to work with!"

"You delight and inspire us. The children love hearing you."

"You have such a special way of being able to take people away from the present and actually make them a part of the story scene! The children were delighted...what a fine role model you are for them all."

"You made me feel proud to be an American ... not because of what American has been in the past - our history is both wonderful and terrible - but because of what we have the potential to become."

He uses stand-up props of his own design and many traditional instruments, including drums from Africa, bones from the U.S. and the old favorite - the jaw harp.

Songs, games, and many stories flow endlessly with no pauses.

LaRon has remarkable rapport with any type of audience. He gets everyone participating in his highly interactive stories and a warm feeling of community is evoked.

LaRon will travel nation-wide for most any type of event.