Twice Upon a Time

Telling together since 2000, Twice Upon a Time Storytellers utilize the ancient art of storytelling to explore the complex and challenging issues facing us in our modern society.

Through the experience of listening to and sharing stories, we can find connections in our families, schools, workplaces, and communities. Storytelling opens us up to understanding the bonds we share with others around our wonderful globe. Discover this new world with Dallas storytellers Gene and Peggy Helmick-Richardson.

Suitable for adults and teens.

Prior to joining Gene on the professional storytelling stage, Peggy was an award-winning reporter and freelance writer. She has a B.S. in biology and a master’s degree in journalism. Currently, Peggy serves as secretary for the Dallas Storytelling Guild and Tejas Storytelling Association, both 501(c)3s. Over the years, Peggy has produced a number of story concerts including Sacred Tales for the Texas Storytelling Festival and Ghost Tales at the Bath House. As a freelance writer for over 30 years, she was a regular contributor to the Allen Image magazine, edited the 2008 Healing Storytelling Alliance journal Diving in the Moon, and contributed chapters to Team Up! Tell in Tandem! (Ed. Jonathan Hammer Wright) and Engaging Community Through Storytelling (Eds. Sherry Norfolk and Jane Stenson). Peggy can also be heard sharing stories of Dallas history at Dallas Heritage Village at Old City Park.

In 2016, Peggy received the John Henry Faulk Award from the Tejas Storytelling Association, given "to a person who has made a significant contribution to the art of storytelling in the Southwest."

After earning his Ph.D. in entomology, Gene took a 10-year career detour into historical museum reenactment. At the Georgia Agrirama and Homeplace 1850 at the Land Between the Lakes, he honed his skills as a storyteller and historical agricultural/folklife interpreter. After a brief return to the field of entomology, Gene could not resist the siren's call of storytelling. In 1999, he was appointed to the board of the Tejas Storytelling Association and served as president in 2002. Gene currently serves as a member-at-large on the board of the non-profit Dallas Storytelling Guild. He also volunteered as site director for the Texas Storytelling Festival for over 15 years. In addition to telling stories as a member of Twice Upon a Time Storytellers, he can sometimes be heard spinning tales and sharing history at Dallas Heritage Village's 1870 Gano Farmhouse, in the heart of downtown Dallas.

Gene is the 2015 recipient of the John Henry Faulk Award from the Tejas Storytelling Association given "to a person who has made a significant contribution to the art of storytelling in the Southwest."

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

HIGHLAND PARK HARVEY R. "BUM" BRIGHT LIBRARY, 4700 Drexel Drive, Dallas, United States