ASHLAND, Ohio – Ashland Chautauqua proudly presents its 16th Annual event with the theme “200 Years of Progress” in celebration of Ashland’s Bicentennial. The five-day event will feature first-person portrayals of four historic figures and a local history performance which will all represent different eras from the past 200 years.
Beginning Tuesday, July 14 and continuing through Saturday, July 18, Ashland Chautauqua will present five evening performances on stage at the Guy C. Myers Memorial Band Shell in the City of Ashland’s picturesque Brookside Park along with numerous daytime “behind-the-scenes” programs held throughout Ashland County for youth, adults and seniors. All events are free and open to the public.
At Chautauqua, youth and adults witness history in its most compelling form – first person historical portrayals. Four trained scholar/actors assume the costume and character of a historical figure as they present exciting living history performances. Through a mixture of education and entertainment, Ashland Chautauqua 2015 hosts these nationally recruited scholar/actors to portray historic figures including Debra Conner as Civil War surgeon Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, John Dennis Anderson as local Pulitzer Prize-winning author and conservationist Louis Bromfield, Bill Young as President Woodrow Wilson and Deleasa Randall-Griffiths as women’s suffrage leader Carrie Chapman Catt.
In addition, theatre director Susan Amstutz will re-stage the local history presentation “Ashland Memories of World War II” which debuted in the first locally produced Chautauqua in 2003. The script was written by Dr. Deleasa Randall-Griffiths based on written materials and video interviews from the Veteran Committee of the Ashland County Historical Society. Local actors will portray 13 local men and women while telling their stories and describing their experiences during the war at home and abroad.
Ashland Chautauqua has developed a strong audience in and around Ashland County due to support from the Ohio Humanities Council and their production of the Ohio Chautauqua. The event continues to thrive with major underwriting from the OHC, Ohio Arts Council and the City of Ashland’s Parks & Recreation Department along with local support from individuals businesses and organizations. For this year’s special celebration, enrichments are made possible with a Bicentennial sponsorship from the Bob & Nancy Davis/J. Robert Tipton Family in memory of Ruth Tipton.
For more information or to donate to Ashland Chautauqua, visit www.ashlandchautauqua.org, follow the event at Facebook.com/AshlandChautauqua or contact the Ashland Area Convention & Visitors Bureau at 419-281-4584.