upcoming events
If you'd like to be on Dolores' e-mail list for a reminder about upcoming
story performances, send your e-mail address to doloreshydock@gmail.com
All of the events below are open to the public.


JUNE 2025
Tuesday, June 3: Every Picture Tells a Story -- The storytelling of Norman Rockwell. 5:30 - 6:30 p.m., Jacksonville Public Library,
200 Pelham Road South, Jacksonville, AL. Free. Sponsored by the library and the Alabama Humanities Alliance.
Norman Rockwell didn't just paint pictures; every picture told a story. In this presentation, storyteller Dolores Hydock shares surprising stories from Rockwell's life and career, and describes the creative process that Rockwell used to craft his one-image stories.
Friday, June 13: Story Souvenirs. 10:30 - 11:30 a.m., North Shelby Library, 5521 Cahaba Valley Road, Hoover, AL. Free. Sponsored by the library.
Sometimes the best souvenir you bring home from a trip is a story. Here's a collection of stories from the cobblestones of Prague, a winter day in Paris, a London bus stop, and some pre-trip advice.
Tuesday, June 24: Story Souvenirs. 2 - 3 p.m., Anniston Public Library, 108 East 10th Street, Anniston, AL. Free.
Sometimes the best souvenir you bring home from a trip is a story. Here's a collection of stories from the cobblestones of Prague, a winter day in Paris, a London bus stop, and some pre-trip advice.
JULY 2025
Tuesday, July 15 - Saturday, July 19: Teller-in-Residence, International Storytelling Center, Jonesborough, TN. Different stories every day from 2 - 3 p.m. For more information about this 26-week-long series of storytelling, visit the "Storytelling Live" page of the International Storytelling Center, or click here.
Wednesday, July 23: Shelf Life - The backstory of two key people in the making of the modern public library.
11 a.m. - noon. Bessemer Public Library, 400 19th Street North, Bessemer, AL. Free.
The surprising life stories of two people who helped shape the future of the modern public library: Melvil Dewey, father of the Dewey Decimal Classification System, and Andrew Carnegie, sometimes called the Patron Saint of Public Libraries. Their stories include the
contributions they made, the compulsions that drove their decisions, and the kudos and criticisms they received along the way.
Tuesday, July 29: Pedaling Hard on the Cycle of Life. Anniston Public Library, 108 East 10th Street, Anniston, AL. Free.
What goes around comes around, one thing leads to another, and everything old is new again. Join the jolly gang at the Anniston Library for some funny, affectionate, and mostly true stories about the cycle of life that keeps us all pedaling as hard as we can.
AUGUST 2025
Friday, August 8: Fools for Love ~ Fads and Fancies from Regency England. 10:30 - 11:30 a.m., Gardendale Civic Center, 857 Main Street, Gardendale, AL. Free. Sponsored by the Gardendale Public Library and the Alabama Humanities Alliance.
True, tender, and sometimes shocking stories of Cupid's mischief. Royal scandal (true), passionate artist (true), and human frailty (unfortunately, also true) meet in these stories of what happens when Cupid's arrows fly.
SEPTEMBER 2025
Tuesday, September 16: Lessons Learned in Unexpected Places. 2 - 3 p.m., Anniston Public Library, 108 East 10th Street, Anniston, AL. Free.
Not all lessons are learned at school. Come celebrate "back-to-school" season with stories about life lessons learned in unusual and unexpected places.
OCTOBER 2025
Thursday, October 16: Stories at the NEW Irondale Library. More info coming soon!
Thursday, October 23: Stories. 10:30 - 11:30 a.m., Vestavia Hills Library in the Forest, 1221 Montgomery Highway, Vestavia Hills, AL. Fund-raiser for the Friends of the library. Ticket info TBA.
Wednesday, October 29: Stories. Noon - 1 p.m., B. B. Comer Memorial Library, 314 N. Broadway Avenue, Sylacauga, AL. Free. Part of the Adult Brown Bag Speaker Series.
NOVEMBER 2025
Friday, November 7: Putting Down New Roots ~ A journey through Ellis Island. 10:30 - 11:30 a.m., Gardendale Civic Center, 857 Main Street, Gardendale, AL. Free. Sponsored by the Gardendale Public Library and the Alabama Humanities Alliance.
This story puts a human face to the experience of early 20th-century European immigration to America as hopeful immigrants passed through Ellis Island on their way to a new life in the new world. The story then follows one Polish-American family as it settles into "American" life during the 1920s and 1930s. Stories of the small neighborhood grocery store they ran during the Depression, their family life, their troubles and joys, and snapshots of their daily life create a personal portrait of what it was like to "put down new roots" in unfamiliar soil.
Saturday, November 29: 'Twas the Night Before Christmas and Evergreen. Christmas stories with the Brevard Symphony Orchestra. Ticket info TBA.
DECEMBER 2025
Tuesday, December 2: Christmas stories. 2 - 3 p.m., Anniston Public Library, 108 East 10th Street, Anniston, AL. Free.
Friday, December 5: Jingle All the Way ~ Songs, Stories, and Sing-alongs, with Dolores Hydock and Bobby Horton. 6:30 - 8:30 p.m., Homewood Public Library Auditorium, 1721 Oxmoor Road, Homewood, AL. Ticket info TBA.
Sunday, December 7: No Humbug! The story behind the creation of "A Christmas Carol." 2 - 3 p.m., Blount County Museum, 22- 2nd Avenue East, Oneonta, AL. More info TBA!
The surprising and little-known backstory of how Dickens was inspired to write his “little Carol,” and what happened to the story – and to Christmas – once "A Christmas Carol" made its way into the world.
Wednesday, December 10: Christmas stories. 11 a.m. - noon, Trussville Public Library, 201 Parkway Drive, Trussville, AL. Free.
Thursday, December 11: No Humbug! The story behind the creation of "A Christmas Carol." 12:30 - 1:30 p.m., Cherokee County Public Library, 310 Mary Street, Centre, AL. Free.
Saturday, December 13: No Humbug! The story behind the creation of "A Christmas Carol." Part of the annual "It's a Dickens Christmas, Y'All!" celebration in Tuscumbia, AL. More info TBA.
Sunday, December 21: Christmas Stories. 10 - 11 a.m., Independent Presbyterian Church, Highland Hall, 3116 Highland Avenue South, Birmingham, AL. Free and all are welcome to attend.
Sunday, December 21: Christmas Stories. 2 - 3 p.m., Albert L. Scott Library, 100 9th Street NW, Alabaster, AL. Free.
FEBRUARY 2026
Sunday, February 22: Soup and Stories for the Soul annual event. 12:15 - 2 p.m., Vestavia Hills Methodist Church, 2061 Kentucky Avenue, Vestavia Hills, AL. Fund-raiser for the church food pantry. Stories and details TBA.
APRIL 2026
Friday - Saturday, April 17-18. Sounds of the Mountains Storytelling Festival, Camp Bethel, VA. Ticket info TBA.
Friday, April 24: Annual spring story concert, 6:45 - 8:15 p.m., Homewood Public Library Auditorium, 1721 Oxmoor Road, Homewood, AL. Details and ticket info TBA.