Nebraska StoryArts celebrates a decade of Moonshell Storytelling Festival on Sept. 10, 2011, at Mahoney State Park. Four outstanding national and regional storytellers will take part in a daylong celebration to preserve the art of storytelling. The festival will offer storytelling concerts geared toward families with special events for adults and will conclude with ghost stories in the evening.

Back by popular demand, the festival will feature workshops and a story swap during which you can tell your own story. The Moonshell Storytelling Festival begins at 10 a.m. and concludes with ghost stories at 8:15 p.m. The main stage is located at the Activity Center. At 4:30 p.m., you can tell your own story during the Story Swap, hosted by members of the Omaha Organization for the Purpose of Storytelling-Nebraska (OOPS).

The Moonshell Storytelling Festival gets its name from the tiny round shells, called Moonshells, which were once found by Native Americans fishing in and crossing what we now call the Platte River. Because of the shells, the Native American nations called the river "The Moonshell." Nebraska StoryArts chose that as the name for this festival to honor the site and its heritage.

View photos from the 2009 Moonshell Festival