Free workshops extend learning and fun of Chautauqua Week

Staff Report
·4 min read
A downpour hit Ashland just prior to the perfomance by John Anderson portraying Ernest Hemingwayon the opening night of Ashland Chautauqua "In Times of War" at Guy C. Myers Memorial Band Shell on Tuesday, July 13, 2021. The event started a bit late and the audience were given seats on the stage. TOM E. PUSKAR/TIMES-GAZETTE.COM
A downpour hit Ashland just prior to the perfomance by John Anderson portraying Ernest Hemingwayon the opening night of Ashland Chautauqua "In Times of War" at Guy C. Myers Memorial Band Shell on Tuesday, July 13, 2021. The event started a bit late and the audience were given seats on the stage. TOM E. PUSKAR/TIMES-GAZETTE.COM

Ashland Chautauqua’s visiting scholars are known for their evening performances at the Myers Memorial Band Shell at Brookside Park, but they also offer free workshops — for youth and for adults — during the first four days of the Chautauqua week event, according to a news release from the Ashland Chamber of Commerce.

More: If you're ready for summer fun, check out the entertainment offerings in Ashland County

Ashland Chautauqua begins this year on Tuesday, July 12 and finishes on Saturday, July 16. All events are free and open to the public.

This year’s theme is The Famous & Infamous. The scholars and characters being presented (in order of nightly appearance) are Leslie Goddard as Lizzie Borden, Darrick Johnson as Malcolm X, Dianne Moran as Mary Surratt, Susan Marie Frontczak as Marie Curie, and Elsa Wolff as Annie Oakley. Details for the week’s events are available at www.ashlandchautauqua.org.

On Tuesday, July 12 there will be one adult workshop titled “Malcolm X: Considering a Complex Individual." It will be conducted by Darrick Johnson, who will portray Malcolm X on Wednesday evening. The workshop will be at 1 p.m. at the Ashland County Council on Aging, 240 E. 3rd St., Ashland.

Three workshops will be held on Wednesday, July 13. The first is an adult program at 10:30 a.m. at the Golden Center in the Loudonville Public Library, 122 E. Main St., Loudonville. It is titled “Great Civil War Literature” and will be led by Dianne Moran, who will portray Mary Surratt on Thursday evening. At 1 p.m. Wednesday, scholar Elsa Wolff will present a “History of the Wild West Show” as an adult workshop at Mill Run Place, 1715 Richard Drive, Ashland.

The evening portrayal of Annie Oakley will be at Saturday evening’s finale to the Chautauqua week. The third workshop of the day is for youth and it will start at 2:30 p.m. at the Ashland Public Library, 224 Claremont Ave., Ashland. It is titled “You Be The Jury: The Lizzie Borden Trial.” Leslie Goddard will lead the program. She will portray Lizzie Borden on Tuesday, the evening before the workshop.

Thursday, July 14 will offer two adult Chautauqua workshops

Thursday, July 14 includes two adult workshops in the afternoon. The Ashland Public Library will host the first workshop at 2:30 p.m. about the potential obstacles that could have blocked Marie Curie’s path to the laboratory titled “What Almost Stopped Her." It will be presented by Susan Marie Frontczak, who will be portraying Marie Curie on Friday evening. At 4 p.m. Leslie Goddard will present the second adult workshop at the Ashland County Senior Citizen Center, 615 W. 10th St., Ashland. It will explore “Women Who Kill: Why are we so fascinated with female murderers?”

Ashland Chautauqua workshops conclude on Friday, July 15 with three youth programs. At 10 a.m. Susan Marie Frontczak will lead a hands-on youth workshop about “Young Scientists Practice Chemistry and Physics” at the YMCA Youth Camp at the Myers Memorial Band Shell, 209 Parkside Drive, Ashland. The rain site location is the Ashland YMCA, 207 Miller St., Ashland.

At 1 p.m. Dianne Moran will present “Living Every Day in the Civil War," a youth workshop at the Salvation Army Kroc Center, 527 E. Liberty St., Ashland. The final workshop is at 2:30 p.m., at the Ashland Public Library. “Singing & Storytelling" will be led by Elsa Wolff, who is known as the Guitar Lady.

Coffee with the Scholars will take place in the Community Room at the Ashland Board of Realtors

In addition to the workshops, Coffee with the Scholars will be held at 8:30 a.m. on the mornings of July 14-16 in the Community Room at the Ashland Board of Realtors, 107 E. Main St., Ashland. This is a great opportunity to meet and have informal conversations with this year’s Chautauqua scholars.

Complete information for the Ashland Chautauqua events can be obtained at

www.ashlandchautauqua.org or by calling 419-281-4584. All event locations are accessible.

Ashland Chautauqua is supported by Ohio Humanities, the Ohio Arts Council, the City of Ashland’s Parks & Recreation Department, Explore Ashland, local businesses and organizations, and individuals. Donations to continue this free programming are always welcome; see www.ashlandchautauqua.org/support for more information.

This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Ashland Chautauqua hosts workshops