Festival des Arts du Récit

The Festival des Arts du Récit: nearly forty years dedicated to living storytelling

Born in 1987 under the name "Écoute et Conte", the Festival des Arts du Récit is one of the oldest and most important European events dedicated to the arts of storytelling and orality. Created on the initiative of committed librarians — Katy Feinstein and Irène Sagatichian — and MJC directors — Jean-Claude Carras and Henri Touati — the festival was born from a shared ambition: to promote the art of storytelling with a dual requirement of artistic excellence and popular education.

The first edition, in 1987, already spanned six towns in the Grenoble urban area. Since then, the festival has continued to grow, each year investing about sixty venues throughout the Isère department: theaters, libraries, museums, parks and gardens, bars, community centers, and schools.

A festival rooted in a territory, open to the world

The Festival des Arts du Récit stands out for its exceptional territorial presence. By investing in dozens of towns in Isère, it brings living storytelling closer to audiences, including in rural areas or priority neighborhoods. This widespread reach is made possible by a dense network of cultural partners, local authorities, and committed volunteers.

A program between tradition and modernity

The festival's program finely balances traditional repertoires — Irish legends, Martinique myths, Quebec tales, stories from the world's oral heritage — and the most innovative contemporary forms: musical theater, dance, immersive fiction, "storytelling machines," slam, video, and digital creations. The festival hosts storytellers from all backgrounds, from established artists to emerging talents, and offers various formats: large shows, intimate recitals, storytelling brunches, storytelling happy hours, round tables, and narrative walks.

The Centre des Arts du Récit: the festival's driving force

The festival is supported by the Centre des Arts du Récit, recognized since 2000 as a conventioned stage by the Ministry of Culture, then labeled as a national conventioned stage "Art and Creation" in 2014. Located since September 2025 at the Théâtre Prémol in Grenoble, the Center is the only platform dedicated to the arts of storytelling in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and the second in France.

Throughout the year, the Center develops five complementary missions: support for artistic creation, programming and dissemination (season and festival), cultural outreach to audiences, training for amateurs and professionals, and documentation and research on the arts of orality. It thus actively contributes to the professionalization of storytellers and the recognition of storytelling as a full-fledged artistic discipline.

A commitment to all audiences

True to its popular education mission, the festival offers a program adapted to all ages, from infants to adults, with shows specifically designed for toddlers (0-6 years), children, teenagers, and families. Artistic and cultural education activities are conducted in schools and with audiences far from culture, making the festival a true tool for cultural democratization.