Ohio Chautauqua highlights historical figures, innovations

COLUMBUS – Historical costumes and monologues that capture the personalities of 1920s greats, such as Babe Ruth and Henry Ford, are highlights of Ohio Chautauqua 2005, July 19 through 23, in Columbus, with evening events to be held on The Ohio State University campus.

Ohio Chautauqua, a blend of living history and entertainment, is presented by Ohio State's Institute for Collaborative Research and Public Humanities and the Ohio Humanities Council, and is free and open to the public.

"Chautauqua is a balance of education and entertainment that gives members of the audience and participants in workshops a window into the past," said Rick Livingston, the associate director of the Institute. "The event is a great way for Ohio State to offer the Columbus community family-friendly activities and performances that let people explore history in an unusual and revealing way.

"Each Ohio Chautauqua scholar will also be facilitating adult and youth-focused workshops, which were created to give more insight into the characters and 1920s time period," he said.

All monologue performances are at 7:30 p.m. under a large tent located on the lawn north of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive. Free parking will be available nearby.

During Ohio Chautauqua, scholars present monologues based on the lives, ideas and writings of historical figures. The event, themed "The Roaring Twenties", also features portrayals of Zelda Fitzgerald, Zora Neale Hurston, and John Dillinger.

Historical ballparks, and the baseball players who helped make them famous, are the focus of one adult workshop. "Field of Dreams", which also explores the differences and similarities between new and older athletic facilities, will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday (7/20) at the Worthington Senior Center, 777 High St.

Children interested in learning story-telling techniques, including body language, voice tone, and ways of incorporating sensory elements, may attend the "A Story of 1,000 Words" workshop. The program will be held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday (7/19) in room 100 Stillman Hall, 1947 College Road, and at 10 a.m. on Friday (7/22) at the Arlington Children's Center, 1033 Old Henderson Road.

Each nightly performance under the tent will have an ASL interpreter. General questions about access or other requests for accommodations should be directed to Elizabeth Lantz at lantz.38@osu.edu. For more information on Ohio Chautauqua 2005, visit
http://www.ohiohumanities.org/chaut/chaut.htm

*Editors note: Images are available for publication. Contact Andrea Slesinski, (614) 247-8347 or slesinski.1@osu.edu

Tuesday, July 19

•A Story of 1,000 Words (Youth Workshop), 10 a.m., room 100 Stillman Hall, 1947 College Road, OSU campus. Participants will learn storytelling techniques by concentrating on body language, voice tone, and ways of incorporating sensory elements such as smell, taste, and sound.

•Singing Buckeyes, 6:45 p.m., under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive The barbershop quartet will perform.

•Henry Ford Portrayed by Hank Fincken, 7:30 p.m., under the bigtop tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive. Fincken will present a monologue based on the life, ideas, and writings of Ford.

Wednesday, July 20

•The Automobile: A Driving Force in America (Youth Workshop), 10 a.m., Arlington Children's Center, 1033 Old Henderson Road. The workshop will explore the history of the automobile and how it changed the lives of Americans.

•Crayon Enlargements of Life: Stories in the Folk Tradition (Youth Workshop), 10 a.m., room 100 Stillman Hall, 1947 College Road, and 1 p.m., Columbus Metropolitan Library Northside Branch, 1423 N. High St. Participants will learn stories that Zora Neale Hurston collected for her book "Mules and Men."

•Fields of Dreams (Adult Workshop), 1:30 p.m., Worthington Senior Center, 777 High St. Historical ballparks, and the baseball players who helped make them famous, are the focus of this workshop. It will also explore the differences and similarities between the new and older athletic facilities.

•Saltines of Swing, 6:45 p.m., under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive.

•Zelda Fitzgerald Portrayed by Debra Conner, 7:30 p.m., under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive. Conner will present a monologue based on the life, ideas, and writings of Fitzgerald.

Thursday, July 21

•Our Early Ballgames (Youth Program), 10 a.m., Ohio Union, 1739 N. High St. Children have been playing ball games for more than 300 years. During this workshop, participants will learn how to play some of those historical games as well as explore the development of professional sports.

•The Art of the 1920s: Melting Clocks and Square Oranges (Youth Workshop), 1 p.m., Columbus Metropolitan Library Northside Branch, 1423 N. High St. Children will create mini-masterpieces and explore the differences between Cubism and Surrealism, styles that influenced Zelda Fitzgerald's paintings.

•The Automobile: A Driving Force in America (Youth Workshop), 2 p.m., Center of Science and Industry (COSI), 333 W. Broad St. The workshop will explore the history of the automobile and how it changed the lives of Americans.

•Vocalist and pianist Susan Covey, 6:45 p.m. under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive

•John Dillinger Portrayed by Jeremy Meier, 7:30 p.m., under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive. Meier will present a monologue based on the life, ideas, and writings of John Dillinger.

Friday, July 22

•A Story of 1,000 Words (Youth Workshop), 10 a.m., Arlington Children's Center, 1033 Old Henderson Road. Participants will learn storytelling techniques, such as body language, voice tone, and ways of incorporating sensory elements like smell, taste, and sound.

•The Crack-Up (Adult Workshop), 1:30 p.m., Worthington Senior Center, 777 High St. The workshop will explore the final years of the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald and the way his literary reputation was rescued after his death.

•Ragtime pianist Stephen Thomas, 6:45 p.m. under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive

•Zora Neale Hurston Portrayed by Dorothy Mains Prince, 7:30 p.m., under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive. Prince will present a monologue based on the life, ideas, and writings of Zora Neale Hurston.

Saturday, July 23

•Singing Buckeyes, 6:45 p.m. under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive. The barbershop quartet will perform.

•Babe Ruth Portrayed by Gene Worthington, 7:30 p.m., under the large tent located on the north lawn of the Drake Union, 1849 Cannon Drive. Worthington will present a monologue based on the life, ideas, and writings of Babe Ruth.