CARRABASSETT VALLEY — Storyteller Michael Parent will perform in the Begin Family Room of the Carrabassett Valley Public Library and Community Center at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27.

Raconteurs are entertainers who tell stories with skill, music and wit. It’s a word derived from the French verb raconter, meaning “to tell.”

Parent, of Portland, is Maine’s Franco-American raconteur. He began his career in 1977, when he combined his professional teaching experience with his talents for singing and storytelling. His Franco-American heritage provided him with the knowledge of songs and stories he learned growing up in Lewiston, where he was surrounded by family who were both French and English.

“The stories are sprinkled with humor and very sing-able songs, because I provide sheets with words to encourage and invite the audience to sing along, which they usually do,” said Parent.

He was a teacher for seven years before he began his career as a storyteller, singer, writer and workshop leader in the tradition of a raconteur. He affirmed his French connection to stories he told by listening to oral history interviews with his family and friends, coupled with visits to Quebec and France.

Franco-Americans enjoy a rich history of storytelling handed down through generations of raconteurs. Parent revives this custom by conducting workshops and educational entertainment with a focus on storytelling. French raconteurs learned their storytelling talents from ancestors who carried their skills to New France from the medieval times.

“Telling stories is an entertaining way of sharing the Franco-American culture and teaching it to others,” he said.

Parent created an award-winning audio tape titled “Sundays at Grandma’s,” and a one-man show titled “Grandpa’s Birthday,” based on stories he collected from his family and members of the Franco-American community.

Parent has been featured at hundreds of schools and libraries, the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee, as well as international events in France, Austria, Ireland, England, Poland, Brazil, Costa Rica and New Zealand. He also leads storytelling, storywriting and performance workshops, and is known for his teaching abilities and a knack for creating a supportive workshop environment. He is a 1999 recipient of the National Storytelling Network’s Circle of Excellence Award.