Rico Rodriguez

Rico Rodriguez is a teacher, storyteller, a percussionist and a workshop designer and facilitator. He was also a Youth Counsellor for at-risk youth with the Toronto District School Board.

As a storyteller he tells folktales, fairytales, fables and legends from the rich and diverse Latino and Hispanic cultures and also from the around the world. He writes and tells stories about his life and his family and writes and tells fictional tales as well. He also specializes in adaptations of folktales to reflect contemporary life. He tells stories in Spanish, English and in Spanglish.

Listeners have said that his easy style and his masterful use of humour, even in the most painful of situations, draws audiences young and old.

He has performed in schools, daycares, theatres, public libraries, festivals, pubs and conferences throughout Canada and the U.S. He has been heard on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s (CBC) radio on National Public Radio in the U.S. and seen on MuchMusic.

He has designed and facilitated storytelling workshops on storytelling and on the use of the art of storytelling for Community Agencies, Health Promotion Agencies, Day Cares, Schools and Universities.

He has also designed workshops on the uses of storytelling in Cross Cultural Counselling for guidance counsellors, social workers and other support professionals in schools.

He was a Board member of the Storytellers Schools of Toronto from 1995 to 1998and has been a mainstay of “Listen Up! The Toronto Storytelling Festival held annually. He also was Assistant Director of the 19th and 20th Toronto Storytelling Festivals.