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2018 A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

RN&R ARtowN Guide

06.28.18

A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

Messages welcome to Artown Guide 2018

from the

uly is a great month to live in or even just visit the Truckee Meadows. And most locals know why. But if you’re new to town, just visiting, or perhaps reading this from Sacramento, you may not, so I’ll explain. Every year during the month of July, Reno celebrates the arts with a massive series of events called Artown. And by massive, I mean hundreds of events. There are theater productions, hands-on workshops, film screenings, art exhibitions and live music performances. In this guide, you can find a sneak peek at just a few of them. On page 4, we have a story from regular RN&R contributor Matt Bieker, who spoke with the organizers of the Mayor’s Pride Party—a celebration of the local LGBTQ community that was inspired by a similar shindig held annually in San Francisco. Andrea Heerdt contributed two stories for this guide, a Q&A with Stephanie Kendziorski, the designer of this year’s official Artown poster, on page 16; and a story about a Gold Star family that turned to art for solace. Now, Joseph and Tina Drakulich make paper cranes from decommissioned military uniforms. That story is on page 19. A lot of Artown events take place outside, but Destination Dance takes things a step further by pairing a walking tour with a dance performance. Ruben Kimmelman spoke with the dancers and choreographers behind this event, which will take attendees to destinations like the Downtown Reno Library and old post office. That’s on page 15.

Some Artown events give people the opportunity to participate. This year, one chance to do get involved will be with beginning improv workshops with Reno Improv. The group hosts weekly meetups called “the Playground.” Writer Holly Hutchings went to one. You can read about her experience over on page 9. And on page 21, you can read a story about a very different kind of performance art. I caught up with five young people who participate in Great Basin Young Chautauqua to learn more about what drew them to this art that’s part acting and part scholarship. Music is also a huge part of Artown—with tons of concerts and shows taking place in venues across town. One of the big performances this year will Deva Mahal—R&B and soul vocalist and daughter of famed blues musician Taj Mahal. RN&R contributor Tim Lenard caught up with her for an interview you can read on page 6. Every year, RN&R does its own bit of celebrating the arts with the Rollin’ on the River concert series. These are free concerts held in Wingfield Park in downtown Reno every Friday evening. You can read more about the bands and artists playing these shows on page 11. See you on the town this July!

art

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You can learn more about Artown events by visiting renoisartown. com. Learn more about the Rollin’ on the River concert series by visiting RN&R’s Facebook page.

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Pride

of place

Artown and the LGBtQ community come together for the second annual Pride Party

very July, Reno’s artistic community celebrates its identity and history with Artown—a month-long event that inspires street parties, live performances and other cultural offerings every evening throughout the month. July also holds a special significance to Reno’s LGBTQ community, as the month when queer community leaders organize events like the annual Pride Parade. This year, these two with both the important cultural celebraoffices of Mayor tions will overlap with the by Matt Bieker Schieve and Sen. second annual Mayor’s Catherine Cortez Pride Party. Masto retaining liaisons at “It’s tradition for the meetings. Mayor to have a presence at “As an alliance, we have been able to Pride,” said Sean Savoy, Founder and do things like attend the University of Nevada Director of Northern Nevada LGBTQ Leadership Diversity Summit and pick representatives from Alliance (NALA) and interim chair of the Reno leadership, or we’ve been able to do panels for the Human Rights Commission. “In San Francisco, Washoe Dems,” said Savoy. “ We’ve been able to the culmination of the Pride Parade is a special do some other fun things like create the Mayor’s mayor’s Pride Party.” Pride party.” In his role as an unofficial LGBTQ liaison for Last year’s party was held at Faces NV, Mayor Hillary Schieve’s office, Savoy was part of an extension of another bar also called Faces a group that went with her to the Pride Parade in in Sacramento. Co-owner Cody Koch was San Francisco three years ago on the invitation of approached by Savoy and felt the timing of the then-mayor, the late Ed Lee. After witnessing the San Francisco Pride traditions, Savoy and Schieve party would serendipitously align with the bar’s grand opening. decided to organize their own party to follow Faces was chosen as the venue as a way to Reno’s Pride Parade in the spirit of charity. highlight and promote queer ownership in the Ticket sales from last year’s event benefitted business sector, but Koch believes the bar’s LGBTQ outreach organizations like Our Center identity is secondary to its mission of making and NALA, which Savoy created two years ago everyone feel welcome. to unify what he saw as a formidable, if at times “I do consider it a gay bar, but at the same time a little unorganized, array of queer leaders and we do welcome everybody,” Koch said. “One groups in Reno. of the things that I really try to pride myself on “I had spoken with several of the LGBT leadis being safe, creating a safe environment inside ers in the community, and I felt that there was a when people walk through the doors, and that need for greater cooperation and coordination— Learn more about they’re able to be themselves whether they’re and primarily communication—between the the Mayor’s Pride Party, which gay, straight, bisexual, transgender, questioning— various LGBT organizations and allied groups,” takes places at whatever it might be.” Savoy said. “And there are many, all doing Faces NV, 239 W. Last year’s attendees were treated to perforspecialized work in their particular niche.” Second St., on mances from the Sierra Nevada Ballet, as well as NALA encompasses groups like Our Center, July 28: https:// appetizers and a specialty drink menu provided bit.ly/2yuokjg. as well as outreach organizations from companies like Wells Fargo and the Reno Police Department. by Faces. This year, however, Koch is working to up the ante with similar entertainment and Individuals are also represented under NALA, RN&R ARtowN Guide 06.28.18 A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

celebrity appearances from the likes of Michelle Visage from the iconic TV show RuPaul’s Drag Race. Faces NV also serves as the home for the Silver Dollar Court, one of the oldest drag societies in America, and plans to host drag queens and shows as part of the party. The night isn’t just limited to festivities, though. The mayor’s presence, said Koch, is appreciated as a political affirmation of the queer community in Reno, with part of the new Pride tradition including Mayor Schieve’s distribution of the Rainbow “R” awards, recognizing outstanding achievement in, or contribution to, LGBTQ affairs. “I don’t like to get too political myself, but it really does show it doesn’t matter what race or sexual preference you have, when you look at the bigger picture,” Koch said. “Our mayor is accepting of everyone.” To many, Pride is rooted in the remembrance of the persecution suffered by members of the queer community and reaffirms the need to strive for equal protection of human rights. It has evolved into a celebration of individuality and personal identity, and events like the Mayor’s Pride Party serve as an invitation from the LGBTQ community to the rest of society. “The Mayor’s Pride Party is almost a way to kind of reach outside of the LGBTQ community and say, ‘Oh, gosh, if the mayor can go, then, sure, I’ll go,” said Savoy. “So you have people coming in and saying, ‘I had no idea this bar existed. Oh, my god, these people are amazing; I had no idea that there were drag queens in Reno. I had no idea that there were people who have done so much for our community.’” Ω

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Living soul

Soul and R&B singer deva Mahal performs for Artown by Tim Lenard

eva Mahal grew up in Hawaii and New Zealand before moving to New York. She’s the daughter of legendary blues musician Taj Mahal. Her debut album Run Deep was released in March, and she kicks off her West Coast tour with a performance in Reno as part of the Artown Headliner Series. You’ve been performing music since you were 5 years old. What was it like to grow up in a house surrounded by such amazing musicians? It was very wild. For me, it’s normal. It was just the way that I grew up, but it was definitely not boring. You’ve talked about music being a way to cope with being treated like you don’t belong. Can you elaborate about what kind of challenges you faced and how you were able to overcome them with music? I grew up in a very multicultural place in Hawaii. In that wealth of multiculturalism, Polynesian, Pacific Island diaspora, and also Asian and South East Asian, there weren’t a lot of African Americans. I was one of very few. I used to laugh that we all knew each other. Also, I was raised in a very alternative way, and so I didn’t really fit in, even though I wanted to. I was really different, and kids, unfortunately, can be really cruel, especially if people are unfamiliar with who you are and where you come from. They tend to judge you without getting to know who you are. Kids are always afraid of things that look different. As a result of that, I experienced a lot of racism growing up. I was also black. So, I was bigger and taller than everyone else. I was picked on a lot about my size, my hair and my skin color. And music helped you get through that? Yeah, music is something that brings people together despite their differences. I discovered at a young age that was the one place where the walls and the barriers would come down. Especially in Hawaii, there’s such a strong culture of music and also creativity and ingenuity, so it’s the place where everybody could relate. When I got involved in music in my community, I found other people that were experiencing a lot of the things that I was experiencing but from a different perspective. … Music saved me. I had an amazing choir teacher and theater teacher, and I would perform in a lot of singing competitions when I was younger. I used to be terrified to do it, but I would do it anyway, because I loved it so much. You’ve done some amazing collaborations with bands like TV on the Radio, the Dap Kings and Fat Freddy’s Drop. Are there any particularly memorable experiences you’ve had working with those bands? I grew up in part in New Zealand, as well. Save for a short stint at university, I went from Hawaii to New Zealand. When I moved

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to New Zealand, I started making music with my brother, and he was involved in the community. He kind of set it up for me to get involved, which was really cool. It’s not a big place so once you’re in the music community and you start doing things, people notice. I built my own band, started playing out and hanging out with the guys from Freddy’s. They asked me to record on one of their songs called “Wandering Eye,” which was a really successful track. Then they took me on tour, and that was amazing because it was like touring with family. I’ve been on a couple of different tours now, and you can feel the difference between touring with family and touring with people hired to do a job. In Maori they call it whānau or, in Hawaiian, they call it ohana. It’s a family vibe. It was a pretty spectacular experience to have that be my first international touring experience. They were also really established in their market, so the shows were all really amazing. The people that came to the shows were really cool and opened up my mind to what I could do once when I was ready to launch out from New Zealand. And you met the Dap Kings when you moved to New York? I met Binky from the Dap Kings because I was hanging out with Jaleel Bunton from TV on the Radio. He and I were friends because of living in Williamsburg and just knowing a lot of the same people. Me and Jaleel would play together, and he was like, “You gotta meet Binky.” He took me to this Curtis Mayfield birthday party at Lincoln Center, and that night I met Binky. From that day on, me and Binky have become friends, and we’ve played in lots of gigs in the neighborhood. Then we started writing songs together. So, I’ve written with Jaleel, and I’ve written with Binky. It was really fucking cool, actually. They’re amazing, and they’re so humble and sweet. They’re just good people. Was it ever overwhelming for you or did you just fit right in with that kind of environment? It’s not overwhelming. If you’re asking if I felt intimidated by them in any way, not really. But that’s probably because I’ve been surrounded by people who make music my whole life, so it doesn’t feel foreign. Also, as a woman, I’ve been making music in a male-dominated field for a long time, and it doesn’t serve you to be intimidated by people. They’re just people, you know. And when other people meet you, they want to be seen on a regular level. You’ve been performing for a long time but Run Deep is your first solo album. What made you decide to take the plunge into a solo career? I actually started developing my solo career in New Zealand. I put out a live album that I produced ages ago. Then I moved to New York and started working with another female singer-songwriter. It was a really beautiful collaboration, and when that was no longer, I just had to do what I had to do. There was no place in my mind

that I was going to stop. People have been harassing me for years, saying you need to go out under your own name. So, finally the time had come. I didn’t have allegiances to anyone else, except myself. I was like, “All right, let me commit to it.” It must have been exciting when Elton John featured Run Deep on his show. Can you describe what that felt like? It started even further back. When RuPaul came to one of my shows in California, I was like, ‘holy shit.’ I still can’t believe that he even mentions my name. Then I met this guy, Jeff Young, who’s a DJ in the UK, and he said, “Elton would really love your album.” The next thing I know, he’s playing me on his radio show multiple times, and I was just like [laughs]. I can willingly admit that it feels really surreal. It feels like an out of body experience because this person is a fucking legit legend.

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That was all Binky’s idea. We did that together. He was like, “This is going to be perfect.” Then I was like, “Oh, my god, you know why this is going to be even more perfect?” It was right at the height of … the #metoo issue. I was really feeling the need to call out all of these people in the audience that participate in the suppression of the female voice and continue to oppress women in communities throughout the U.S. and the world. I was basically up there giving them all the middle finger, so it was really fucking cool. It’s definitely the perfect song to send that kind of message. It’s also continual. Your time is gonna come, you know. We’re still not there yet, but we are coming for that equality for everybody. We’re fighting for it. This world is so crazy, and I’m so angry all the time, because the simple concept of equal rights and justice for all seems to be something that’s really hard for a lot of people to understand. Ω DEvA MAHAL will perform at the Robert Z. Hawkins Amphitheater at Bartley Ranch on July 26 as part of the Artown Headliner Series. Learn more at: https://bit.ly/2ltNwC8

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play Getting awkward with Reno improv by Holly HutcHings

ost of us dread giving a toast at a wedding or delivering a presentation at work. I get it. When it comes time for me to talk in front of a group, whether it’s a hundred or a handful, my brain freezes up hard. Just last week, I ran into a friend unexpectedly, and he introduced me to three other people. All their eyes fell on me, and societal norms reminded me that I should say something, anything, in response. But I had nothing—except sudden tunnel vision. The impromptu meetup had given me no prep time—which writers love—and left me feeling severely socially awkward. Speaking in front of an audience gets palms sweating and hearts racing like nothing else. Really. A study from Chapman University found that public speaking is this country’s biggest phobia—above heights, needles or clowns. Clowns! A group in Reno aims to help people be less scared of speaking up and unafraid to share their ideas. “The Playground” is a beginner improv class put on weekly by Reno Improv. Like the name suggests, it’s supposed to be a fun place for people to jump in, play games and revert to the childlike mentality of “anything is possible.” I’ve needed to get comfortable with vulnerability for a while now, so getting the assignment to cover an improv group pushed me hard in that direction. And I recently attended a Saturday night Playground meetup. After the dozen or so participants arrived, we formed a circle to start warm-up activities aimed at making us think quickly and shake our concerns about looking or feeling stupid. The first game was called “Zombie.” Its purpose was to loosen us up and get us into a sillier state of mind. We formed a circle, and one player was placed in the center, as the designated zombie. That person would sludge around, making their way toward someone in the circle to tag and “infect” them. The way

to deflect the creeper was “We become experts at to call out another’s name saying ‘no,’” Craig said. Regulars and newbies come before getting tagged. “Our openness to other ideas together Saturday nights at Naturally, at first, I goes away, and we want to Reno Improv for drop-in workhoped my body language— find solutions.” shops. photo/holly hutchings hands in pockets, eyes An improv scene can start making no contact—would with a prompt from a director ensure that the undead or the audience, or it can didn’t head in my direction. begin with one of the actors But after a few minutes, the anticipation simply starting to talk. And the focus or topic of getting infected by the zombie gave of a scene can be just about anything. Players me an anxious excitement. Similar games go on stage without the safety net of a script followed, and I could feel my awkwardness and have to adapt to whatever happens—and being chipped away. the goal is to keep a scene going for as long Reno Improv owner Ben Craig said the as it’s working. Playground is a place for people to develop Aurora Boles started in improv because the skill of feeling silly in front of others she had terrible social anxiety. She was in a safe environment. Craig’s been doing looking for a kind of exposure therapy to improv almost 15 years. He started because, move past it. She still performs after seven as a teacher, he wanted to feel more at ease in years and even teaches some classes. She also front of students. He caught the bug. He took handles administrative and marketing tasks classes with Second City—the famed Chicago for the Reno Improv. improve group—in the ’90s and worked more “Seeing people succeed and break through recently with Empire Improv here in town that fear is so amazingly gratifying,” she said. before starting Reno Improv. “To experience that and see the look of joy on According to Craig, a successful improv their face when they get a laugh or try somescene requires its participants to say “yes” to thing and take a risk, whether they succeed the unexpected, and that’s something adults or fail they’re better on the other side. It’s so can struggle with. beautiful.” A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

In daily life, it seems like the goal of most people is to build up defenses to fortify their feelings. Being vulnerable is scary and at the Playground, they know it is not an easy thing to drop those defenses and step on stage not knowing much. “This art form requires a lot of trust,” Boles said. “This is not a place where meanness or negativity is welcome. The first step is to develop trust where we can all relax and let our guard down. And that requires us to be really kind to each other. Any racism, sexism, anything against any groups of people or individuals breaks down that trust.” It was easy for me to trust this small group because it felt like everyone from newbie to expert was stepping into that “gonna feel dumb” space, too. Yet, they did it. They stepped into the uncertainty and said “Yes,” acted like zombies, and whatever else was asked. And it was fun. Ω Reno ImpRov will offer a special, beginner-friendly improv workshop as a part of Artown on July 21. Learn more at https://bit.ly/2IhvlIC. The group also offers weekly drop-in workshops Saturday nights from 6:30-8 p.m. More information can be found on the website: renoimprov.com

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Here at the Reno News & Review, we love music. It’s not like a job requirement or anything—just a happy happenstance that we’re all enthusiasts for good tunes. Every year, we celebrate good music with our Rollin’ on the River concert series. These free concerts take place every Friday in July at the Wingfield Park Amphitheater on the river. All of the concerts start at 5:30 p.m. You can learn more about them on the RN&R’s Facebook page: www. facebook.com/RenoNewsReview.

G rac e Haye s Grace Hayes is a poet, comedian, model and singer songwriter who released her first album at 16 years old. When she’s not writing, performing or recording music, she teaches music lessons. Hayes’s Rollin’ on the River Concert series performance is on July 20.

Let it roll bands playing this year’s Rollin’ on the River concert series.

serena ryder Canadian mezzo-soprano Serena Ryder gained the attention of an international audience with with her 2007 song, “Weak in the Knees” in 2007. The artist will play the July 27 Rollin’ on the River concert. How do you describe your music? Music for me is everything so this is a really hard question to answer, but if I had to answer this, I’d say music was my way to be in the world in the most genuine way. It’s everything to me. It’s my way of putting all my feelings into something that is concrete and relatable. Something that is timeless.

How do you describe your music? My music/songwriting is satirical, poppy, jazzy and encouraging in the most self-deprecating of ways. You have to laugh at yourself. Does it fall into a specific genre? How important are genre distinctions in 2018? I think most music nowadays, including mine, transcends generic borders.

Does it fall into a specific genre? How important are genre distinctions in 2018?

Serena Ryder will play the July 27 Rollin’ on the River concert.

I think that the essence of my music crosses over most genres. I’ve been influenced by jazz, country, folk, soul, rock, and I believe that my music encompasses all of these genres in one

Musician(s) with whom you’d most like to collaborate? There’s a multitude of artists I love and admire, but I’ve been loving and admiring Hobo Johnson more than anyone lately.

Musician(s) with whom you’d most like to collaborate?

What comes to mind when you hear the word “Reno”?

I would love to collaborate with Sigrid. She blows my mind. I would also like to do some writing with a Charlotte Day Wilson.

Reno is home. Reno is sand and sneezing. Reno is my emotionally distant boyfriend that remembers my birthday, sometimes. What’s your favorite river?

What comes to mind when you hear the word “Reno”?

I wish I could say Truckee, but after living in Greenwich, London, for a while, I have to say Thames. It’s the only river you can drink and chew at the same time.

The first thing that comes to mind is my next show there, which is July 27, at Rollin’ on The River What’s your favorite river? Let’s go with the Truckee River. Favorite song with “river” in its title?

Favorite song with “river” in its title?

Joni Mitchell’s “River.”

M.I.A’s “Pickle Down River.”

Favorite concert ever?

My fav concert ever was Kendrick Lamar at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.

I saw Vulfpeck at the Fillmore last year. It was unreal. Worst concert ever? Probably one of my own. Now that I think about it, I accidentally threw a candy cane into someone’s eye from the stage at a Christmas show. He was fine.

Grace Hayes’s Rollin’ on the River Concert series performance is on July 20.

Worst concert ever? My worst concert ever was one I played last month. I was terrible. “Let it roll” continued on page 12

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“Let it roll” continued from page 11

Vag u e c h o i r The members of Vague Choir have been playing in Reno together—and separately for many years. The group plays rock music with a punk-like intensity. Vague Choir performs during the July 27 Rollin’ on the River concert.

The Scott Pemperton Band will play Rollin’ on the River on July 13.

How do you describe your music? Rock music that goes from a murmur to a meltdown— or, from butterflies to dragons in the blink of an eye. Does it fall into a specific genre? How important are genre distinctions in 2018? It’s just rock. In the past you might have called it indie, college or alternative rock. Genres can be helpful in a broad sense, but none of us have ever been in a band that is easily described. Musician(s) with whom you’d most like to collaborate?

Vague Choir performs during the July 27 Rollin’ on the River concert.

Marcus: I’d like to collaborate with my brothers, Mike and Matt. We’ve never really played together because of different skill levels and differences in musical tastes. Mark: We’ve talked about getting a local string section to play on our next record so that sounds pretty exciting. Jason: There are too many to list. What comes to mind when you hear the word “Reno”? Home. We love Reno and all of the outdoor opportunities in the surrounding areas, not to mention the club scene for when we want to be indoors. Cheaper real estate for all would be nice, though. (That’s really the first thing Mark thought of!) What’s your favorite river? The Truckee (duh!). Favorite song with “river” in its title? Jason: “Where The River Flows” by Stone Temple Pilots. Mark: “River Euphrates” by Pixies. Marcus: “Moon River” because Chevy Chase. Favorite concert ever? We’ve seen so many great concerts we can’t call any one of them an absolute favorite. The closest we got was what Mark said about seeing Sonic Youth three different times within 15 years of each other and them all being great but different shows. That’s how you do it! Worst concert ever? We’re old, so we’ve also seen a bunch of bad concerts! Whether it’s the sound quality or the performance quality, we can’t really pin one down specifically. We usually just forget about the bad ones!

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Scott Pemberton band Portland native Scott Pemberton’s music is popular on the festival circuit and beloved by Reno audiences who’ve packed venues whenever he’s come to town over the years. The Scott Pemberton Band will play Rollin’ on the River on July 13. How do you describe your music? We call it “Timber Rock.” Does it fall into a specific genre? How important are genre distinctions in 2018? My music really doesn’t fall into a specific genre. It’s a combination of my influences, teachers, life experience and taste. I think adhering to one genre would limit the possibilities within the music. It’s the combination of genres that helps the music find it’s voice and sound. I think genre distinctions are as important and as established as ever in 2018. Most bands still fit within a certain box, be it funk, bluegrass, country or whatever. Those genre distinctions are very helpful for listeners to be exposed to, and find bands they like, and helpful for bands to develop an audience. I love bands in all of those genres and believe there is plenty of possibilities for beautifully creative music within the realms of any particular genre. But as long as there have been genres, there have been outliers. Bands or artists that just don’t fit into a box, who blur the lines of the boxes. And that seems to be my path, and tends to also be the music that influences me most. And I am fine with that. Musician(s) with whom you’d most like to collaborate? Boy, that’s tough. There are so many wonderful musicians out there. Ernest Ranglin has been one of my musical heroes for years. He is someone I would most like to collaborate with. And I’m beyond thrilled that he’s invited me to sit in with him during his set at High Sierra! Seriously, pinch me. Tony Allen is another musician whom I would love to collaborate with. He was the Fela Kuti’s drummer in the ’70s, and I just love his A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

vision on his solo albums. His concept of layering music, from the drums and bass up really resonates with me and is similar to how I create my music. What comes to mind when you hear the word “Reno”? We have had so much fun in Reno. I think of rocking dance parties, wonderful people, regrettable late night food and epic hotels. What’s your favorite river? The river closest to my heart is the Rogue River in Southern Oregon. My family has rafted on that river as long as I can remember. I have so many memories of camping on the Rogue with my great grandparents, grandparents, and my family still makes it a point to spend time floating on the Rogue in the summers. Favorite song with “river” in its title? It’s hard to play favorites on this one. But I’m going to go with Buddy Miles’ “Down by the River.” So chill, soulful and funky, with some very tasty guitar playing. Favorite concert ever? Prince played a secret show at the Roseland Theater in PDX a few years ago. It was such a treat to bask in Prince’s glory in a small night club setting. He was on fire that night and putting major heat on the guitar. So, yeah, I’ll never forget that one. Worst concert ever? Prince played a secret show at the Roseland Theater in PDX a few years ago. The Roseland is a pretty darn small club, and they majorly over sold it. That was the closest understanding I’ve had to packing cows into a semi to take them to slaughter. It was hot, security was harsh, people were angry and you couldn’t move at all. Of course, that all changed once the music started.

Silver will play its brand of American roots rock during Rollin’ on the River on July 13.

The UmpireS The Umpires is a Reno band comprised of musicians who play in many different outfits across many genres. The band’s sound is a blend of reggae, jazz and ska music. The Umpires will Play Rollin’ on the River on July 6. How do you describe your music? The simplest way to describe our band is groove music. We are heavily influenced by Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae music from the ’60s and ’70s, as well as jazz, R&B, soul, funk, Afrobeat, salsa, etc. It’s a blend of older genres with some new twists. Does it fall into a specific genre? How important are genre distinctions in 2018? So the genre distinction isn’t too important as long as people know it’s live instrumental music that’s danceable.

S i lv e r

J e l ly B r e a d

With bandmates hailing from such beloved local acts as the Kanes, Rigorous Proof, Six Mile Station and Buster Blue— Silver is a collection of veteran Reno rockers. Silver will play its brand of American roots rock during Rollin’ on the River on July 13.

With a funky mix of rock and what they call “desert twang,” the members of Jelly Bread have built a loyal local following. The band has also toured a tremendous amount and built a national following with its lively, rockin’ sound. Jelly Bread will play Rollin’ on the River on July 20.

How do you describe your music? We’re a working-class five-piece rock ’n’ roll act—straightforward, honest, pure. We like to keep artistry and pretense as far apart as possible. Does it fall into a specific genre? How important are genre distinctions in 2018? Rock ’n’ roll is about all, unless you wanted to break us down into blues, country, indie rock, alternative. But really, it’s all rock ’n’ roll. Musician(s) with whom you’d most like to collaborate?

High energy funk-fused with soulful roots. Does it fall into a specific genre? How important are genre distinctions in 2018? No. As musicians we don’t consider it very important that’s up to the audiences. Musician(s) with whom you’d most like to collaborate? Chris Stapleton, Allen Stone, Ben Harper, Cory Henry .... too many to list! What comes to mind when you hear the word “Reno”?

What comes to mind when you hear the word “Reno”?

Home. What’s your favorite river?

The Truckee River, mountains, dive bars and uppers.

Kashiak River in Alaska.

What’s your favorite river? Other than the Truckee River, obviously, I was a big fan of the Mississippi River.

If I told you, I’d get a few angry phone calls after this interview is published.

Jelly Bread will play Rollin’ on the River on July 20.

Home, dumb tattoos, and any vices being available at all times.

“Down By The Riverside.”

Favorite song with “river” in its title?

Worst concert ever?

Favorite concert ever?

What comes to mind when you hear the word “Reno”?

What’s your favorite river?

There’s five people in this band!

“Green River” by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

The Umpires will play Rollin’ on the River July 6.

Favorite song with “river” in its title? Favorite concert ever?

Favorite song with “river” in its title?

Worst concert ever?

We were blessed to have Selwyn Brown from Steel Pulse play on a tune from our EP (available to stream on SoundCloud). We’ve also played a lot with local and regional singers, and will continue to do that so, hit us up, singers.

How do you describe your music?

We’re trying to put together a show with Pink Awful—great Reno band. Also, I would love to work with Cake on producing a record.

I’d have to say Mountain Jam festival in New York State, when I was staying there a few years back. Headliners were Robert Plant, the Black Keys, and Alabama Shakes.

Musician(s) with whom you’d most like to collaborate?

Kings Of Leon at the Warfield in San Francisco. Was so loud we couldn’t enjoy it, had to leave a show we were really looking forward to and spent a lot of money too see.

A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

Mekong River. “River Man” by Nick Drake. Favorite concert ever? John Zorn’s Masada in San Francisco, Nov. 8, 1998. Worst concert ever? Motley Crue, because they used backing tracks, and Vince Neil forgot the lyrics.

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Celebrate loCal business owners!

Join us for the inaugural Made in nevada Marketplace and support local vendors!

live loCal MusiC!

beer Garden & loCal Food truCks!

shop FroM loCal vendors!

Mark your calendars! • Sunday, July 29th • 10 AM to 4PM • At Idlewild Park 14

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A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

dancing in the streets Eve Allen Garza leads dancers through a rehearsal of a piece being choreographed for Destination Dance.

by Ruben Kimmelman

PHOTO/RUBEN KIMMELMAN

Reno landmarks highlighted through dance n 2008, dancer Eve Allen Garza was in the Church Fine Arts building on the University of Nevada, Reno campus hanging upside down from the side of a stall in a women’s bathroom, mashing rose petals against the ceiling with her feet. The mashing of the petals was not part of the choreography. They’d been on the floor and had gotten stuck to the bottom of her ballet shoes as she danced through them. It was then when—per the choreography—she was hanging upside down, supporting herself with one hand on each side of a bathroom stall, that she began to notice small pink stains that followed her footprints as she rhythmically touched, lifted and moved her feet across the ceiling. She remembers thinking the janitors were not going to be very happy about this. That was her first experience with sitespecific dance. “Site-specific dance is dance that is created to be performed in a specific site, so essentially it should not exist in its fullest concept in any other place except where it is performed, and it’s also inspired by the place it is performed,” Allen Garza said. Site-specific dance is not a flash mob, which is usually not inspired by the place that it is performed. Nor is it just traditional dance being performed in a less traditional setting. “You can go see Swan Lake at Lake Tahoe, and that’s beautiful, but you can also see it on a stage and still have a very good experience,” Allen Garza said. “With site-specific dance, the place—the environment—that it’s performed in, is an essential component to the work itself.” That 2008 site-specific dance at UNR was choreographed by Cari Cunningham. According to both Allen Garza and Cunningham, one of the things that makes site-specific dance so special is its accessibility, as it is not confined to stages and theaters. Before that performance, Cunningham had worked in Boulder, Colorado, as a dance

journalist and critic and noticed that the most interesting conversations after a performance happened not in the stuffy environment of the theater itself, but rather in the women’s bathroom. So, sometime after she landed a job as an associate professor of dance here in Reno, she choreographed a piece for the bathroom. “We took the dance out of the theater and into the most unlikely space,” she said. The piece, which included the rose petals on the floor, also had dancers use lipstick to draw on the mirrors and even had them kiss the toilet seat cover—Cunningham emphasized that it was the cover, not the seat itself—to leave kiss marks. It was a very feminine piece and it was “seductive but in a very awkward way,” she said. “Here we were dancing in the bathroom, and we were pretty popular. Who doesn’t want to go into the women’s bathroom?” she added. For her and Allen Garza, this is another thing that makes site-specific dance special. Whatever connotations or associations an observer might have with a specific place also come into play. Even a place like a bathroom will invoke different experiences and ideas from each individual. A decade later, in 2018, Allen Garza is now organizing the second go-around, and first since 2015, of Destination Dance, a site-specific dance tour of downtown Reno. The event, which is a part of this year’s Artown, will take modern dance off the stage and into the community, showcasing downtown locations such as Nevada Museum of Art, the Downtown Reno Library and the old post office. Each site and performance will have its own set of dancers and its own choreographer. Cunningham is one of those choreographers. The first Destination Dance used sites like the downtown courthouse and the middle of

the Truckee River near Wingfield Park as stages. The downtown courthouse performance was a commentary on gun violence and the choreography had to work on steps and wouldn’t work on a flat stage, while the Truckee River performance was a commentary on consumerism, with dancers staged in the flowing water using water bottles as props, according to Allen Garza. This year’s tour route is about one mile long, and audiences will be guided from site to site to view each performance. The tour, which will take about an hour to complete, is free and open to the public, and people are free to come and go as they choose. Tours depart from the Reno City Plaza at 6 p.m., 6:20 p.m., 6:40 p.m., and 7 p.m. on July 12. According to Allen Garza, one of the things that distinguishes site-specific dance is its accessibility for the community. For example, when it comes to this year’s tour stop at the downtown library, which tends to be a common hangout for many of our community’s transient people, they will have the opportunity to watch it, and that’s exciting for Allen Garza. Cunningham is choreographing that piece, and, while the choreography is not entirely set yet, Cunningham plans on focusing on “the intersection of imagination and knowledge that comes through in books,” she said. She also said she sees the downtown library, which is overflowing with plants, as a place where the outside is brought inside. She wants to borrow this idea for her performance, and perhaps make a reference to the transient community with this although that has not been currently decided. “It’s a unique space that provides a lot of different things for a lot of different people,” she said. “It’s a great space for these different communities to engage.”

A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

Site-specific dance has been around since the ’60s, and Cunningham’s first experience with it herself was in 1998. For Gillian Carpenter, one of the dancers, this year’s tour will be her first experience. While she is nervous about being able to translate what the choreographer—in this case, Allen Garza—is looking for, she is very excited to be a part of something like this. “It’s unique, it’s fun, it’s going to be a something we remember forever,” she said. The performance will take place in the old post office and will use postcards as a main inspiration, Allen Garza said. Her choreography is going to limit dancers in space “like you’re limited when writing a postcard,” she said. She also purchased some postcards from Junkee Clothing Exchange for her and her dancers to study and use as inspiration and performance props. Like other public art—for example, murals and statues—site-specific dance can be seen as a reclamation of public space and an invigoration of community. It is also exposing people to performance art who might not otherwise be interested, or who might not feel comfortable with performance art in its more traditional, formal settings. In this sense, site-specific dance is very “Reno.” Allen Garza said events like Destination Dance are what people expect from the city and from Artown, and she hopes it motivates people to support performance art all year long. “I think it’s helping define who we are. I was born and raised here—Reno is awesome,” Allen Garza said. “I hope that people see, as a community, that we’re still here all year—we don’t just come in for Artown and disappear. We are all making art, all year long.” Ω

Visit the following website to learn more about this year’s Destination Dance Artown event, taking place July 12: https://bit.ly/2tkAnPY.

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by AndreA Heerdt

tephanie Kendziorski is a graphic designer and the creator of this year’s official Artown poster. RN&R caught up with her to talk about her work and winning this year’s poster competition. What made you want to pursue the fields of art, graphic design and web development originally? So, I was in art school in France. I got my degree. It was like a community college, but we learned art. And I was introduced to web design and graphic design, and I was really interested in it. At the time, I decided to move back to America with my dad. I just enrolled at [Truckee Meadows Community College] in graphic design, and I pursued web development and graphic design. So you grew up in France? I was born in America, but I was a kid when I moved to France. I spent 15 years over there, and when I graduated from high school, I then got a college degree, and I was ready to leave. So I came back. My mom is French, and she’s in France, and my dad is here. It makes it easy. You just graduated from TMCC, right? I did, four weeks ago. How does it feel? It’s a relief. Managing work and school is difficult, so it’s nice. I can start my career. I’m really excited. How has working in and studying the arts shaped you as a person? I’m constantly looking at signs everywhere. I’m driving, I look at political signs. Everything, I’m just trying to see how people do it and how I could include it in my work. Have you gone to any Artown events in the past? Not much. Last summer, my mom came to America, and we were strolling around town and saw the trees that had yarn around them and just some art in town but never a full event. Are you planning on going this year now that your poster is going to be hanging everywhere? Yes. I want to see as much as I can this summer. Why did you decide to try and create the poster for Artown this year? I was doing an independent study for school to get a couple more credits, and my assignment was to create a website for an event in town, so I chose Artown because it spoke to me. I was looking for content, just written content and images to put on my fictional website. I saw that they had the contest and I thought, “I have time in the evenings, why not?” I felt inspired by it. What specifically about Artown spoke to you? I love that this event gathers people. In summer, we can go stroll downtown and see art. Art has a way to speak to everyone. It has meaning that just can make people happy or sad.

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Poster Child How did you come up with the design for the poster?

What was your reaction when you found out you won?

I felt inspired by art forms in nature. If you’ve heard of Ernst Haeckel, he did some research on many art forms in nature, and I thought just line art and all of these lines coming together would be a good way to honor the community—to show how we come together in an elegant way.

I was shaking, and then I was on my carpet face down. I just didn’t realize I had won. It was a very happy moment for me. It made my dad proud, and it made me feel like I belong in Reno. It took me four years, but I belong now. So it was just a reinforcement that I made the right choice to come here. Ω

What was it like designing the poster using Adobe Illustrator? It was time consuming. I had the rough design, and then it wasn’t straight. The lines weren’t perfectly aligned, so I made a grid and zoomed in as much as I could. I just aligned every single line in there. Did you come up with any other ideas before you decided on this design? It was pretty much the idea I wanted from the start. It did change a bit—the lines, how I wanted them to look—but it was pretty much that idea. Why do you think your poster design represents the Reno comcom munity so well? I really just saw those lines connecting somehow, representing the community. I honestly wasn’t thinking too much about the different art forms when I was creating it. My focus was mainly on people gathering. I guess I felt that [the poster] still represented the event because it’s not just the art that’s created but maybe the people that participate in the event. Did you select these colors for a particular reason? So, originally, it was a dark grey background. I liked more of that contrast, and I wanted to have golden colors. If this were cut and had not been selected, I was planning on getting it printed with gold foil. But it was selected, and I’m really happy about it. What are you hoping people will take away from your poster design? I hope that they’ll be able to understand that it speaks of connections, just people gathering. But I hope they’ll also make their own meaning of it. I hope that it represents Artown, and I do hope it gets people interested and wanting to participate and attend.

A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

Stephanie Kendziorski designed this year’s Artown poster using Adobe Illustrator. photo/ANDREA hEERDt

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A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review 6/17/2018 9:41:31 PM

Peace of art

avid Drakulich was born and raised in Reno. He graduated from Hug High School and attended Truckee Meadows Community College before he proudly joined the army. He was an artist, and according to his mom, Tina Drakulich, she’d give David a pencil as a kid, and there would always be a new drawing on whatever paper he could find. When David left to serve, Tina remembers cleaning out his room and finding beautiful paintings hidden under his bed. Tina describes her son as always being super inquisitive, and the way he made sense of the world was through art. Joseph and Tina Drakulich lost David in 2008. He died in combat in Afghanistan just months before he was supposed to return home from his final tour. Within months of his passing, Tina remembers her family donating money to different art projects because she knew David always needed the arts and said her son fought for freedom of expression. Tina also said she’s always embraced the arts herself and wanted to use art as a therapy to heal after the tragic loss of her son. While searching for art programming, she said she struggled to find resources within the military community she could use as a Gold Star family member—an immediate relative of a U.S. Armed Forces member who died in battle. David had a particular passion for painting. He was mentored by Reno artist Lynda Yuroff, and according to his parents he would explode with artwork as a kid by painting on cabinet doors and drywall while the family was remodeling their home. David’s parents said he painted constantly until Sept. 11, 2001, when he watched the country get attacked. “I think he just felt his destiny, and he stopped really painting, and he started running with the track team and cross country,” said Tina, “He just trained with them, and trained with them and then he graduated from high school and he had said he wanted to join.” According to Joseph, it was the artist in him that made him into an exceptional soldier in war, because of his strong ability to draw and map out the surrounding area quickly as a forward observer—something that earned David his Bronze Star. “When David died we were like, ‘Why did David die?’” said Tina. “Joe automatically said for freedom of expression, and that actually goes on his headstone at the cemetery so that is the birthplace, really, of this project.” Within months of David’s passing, the family had a veterans art show. Tina remembers trying to think of what she could do to get more deeply involved in the arts, but she said she also felt paralyzed by the loss of her son and didn’t know where to turn. Yuroff, being close to David as his art mentor, was in grief, too. She wanted to help Tina and guided her into getting a veterans art show at the Northwest Library, which was the beginning of their involvement in Artown. They also later formed the David J. Drakulich Art Foundation, which provides art programming for veterans and the military-connected community and officially became a nonprofit in 2010. In 2010 Tina met Drew Cameron from the Combat Paper Project to learn how to make paper from decommissioned military uniforms. It starts with a Hollander beater, which is used to turn quarter-sized pieces of cloth, in this case military uniforms, into pulp. The pulp is then spread out and dried. It’s called combat paper. Tina remembers one of the very first things she did with the combat paper was make a crane. She describes the

by AndreA Heerdt

A Gold Star family turns old military uniforms into art

process of writing prayers on the paper and folding paper cranes as healing. “Being a teacher I, of course, had read all those little stories to my students about the girl who had leukemia and wanted to fold 1,000 paper cranes, and she didn’t make it before she died,” said Tina. “But that story had resonated with me, and that must be how it occurred to me when I was hurting.” At the time, Tina and a board member from the foundation wanted to secure funding to purchase supplies of their own to make combat paper. They met with the director of the Nevada Office of Veterans Services to petition that making art was a major mental health and behavioral health assistance—serving as a form of therapy for veterans and the military related community at large. Their request for funding was approved, and the foundation received money to buy the Hollander beater machine that was needed to make the combat paper. Tina realized what a unique art project she had on her hands, and, in 2013, invited people to participate in crane folding during Artown. She said it took about six years to complete 1,000 paper cranes, and they now circulate around different venues in Reno like the Reno Little Theater. At this year’s workshops, Tina plans to get the community involved with the entire paper crane process from start to finish. There will be a station for cutting, drawing sheets, decorating sheets, folding and a facilitator will ask the community survey questions, so the foundation can see how to better serve the community. They want to figure out how to better integrate the military community while also tackling other issues in Reno like homelessness and substance abuse. Beyond using combat paper to make cranes, the Drakulich family also makes flags out of combat paper. “There’s times when we feel extremely angry towards our country,” said Tina. “There’s things that are happening that we so disagree with and that seem to so not resonate with the constitution, or some of the things we sent our son out for, that others have died for, so given the freedom to express that, we’re finding out new things, and we’re still finding out it’s a great country because of that.” The foundation also wants to introduce these art projects and others like the Veterans Writing Project to a young demographic as soon as they return from deployment or even during their tours by sending them art supplies. “When I was needing help the most, it was hard for me to find anything as a military connected person, so I decided that we needed to put something in place,” said Tina. They welcome those who cannot make it to the official Artown project times to create art at their studio at the Potentialist Workshop. Ω

This community art project will be held in Victorian Square Plaza on July 2, the Potentialist Workshop on July 18 and the Sparks Heritage Museum on July 28. Learn more David J. Drakulich Foundation for Freedom of Expression at: www.davidsartmemorial.org.

A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

photo/andrea heerdt

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Help prevent HIv

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Small talk by Jeri Chadwell

Young Chautauquans bring history to life

f you turn up at McKinley Arts & Culture Center on July 3 or Bowers Mansion on July 26, you’ll have the opportunity to stand face to face with some pretty famous figures from the past—from Hedy Lamarr to Eddie Rickenbacker and even Dat-So-La-Lee. The eldest, however—at least among those three—will be just 13. Who are these young lookalikes? They’re members of Great Basin Young Chautauqua. Since 1993, local kids and teens have had the chance to try on the lives of famous historical figures through this Great Basin Humanities program. Chautauqua is a living history program in which costumed performers give theatrical monologues as notable people from the past. It gets its name from Chautauqua Lake in New York State and an adult education movement that became popular there during the late 19th century—though the costumed performances of today bear little resemblance to the lectures and speeches that were common to Chautauqua back then. Education is, however, a major theme of modern Chautauqua. And today’s Chautauquans—as the performers are called— will tell you that their pastime is a lot of work. Essentially, it’s part acting and part serious scholarship. Some adult Chautauquans, like local investigative reporter Frank X. Mullen, may spend 10 months or more researching a historical figure before portraying that person for the first time. That’s because Chautauquans don’t just perform as their historical characters. They also have to answer questions—both in character and as scholars during a Q&A session that follows performances. Some might wonder how much appeal such a scholastic pastime would hold for most kids. Mullen can understand their skepticism. “It’s hard enough to give a book report when you’re a kid,” he said. “It’s hard enough to stand up in front of a class and do a little report. And those are your classmates.” But Mullen mentors kids in the Young Chautauqua program, and he said, for those who give it a try, the experience generally has a lasting positive effect. “To do this in front of an audience of dozens or even more than a hundred strangers, that’s something that once they do it, I think it helps build kids’ confidence,” he said. “I’ve seen so many kids who were really introverted, and the first time they got up would talk so softy you couldn’t hear them at all. In time, especially if they stuck with it and did a different character the following year, they

would really be able to come out and throw their whole hearts into the character. That’s something that doesn’t go away. They’ll have that for the rest of their lives.” And many kids do end up sticking it out. Such has been the case for 12-year-old Jillian Kirgin, a fifth year participant in the program. I portrayed Janis Joplin in my first year,” she said. “My mom had to do a lot of the reading for me, because it wasn’t good for an 8 year old. It was some content that might not be appropriate—but I was able to take some of the stories out that I really liked about her. She was very passionate about music, and I love music so much.” These days, Kirgin does all of her own research. “I used mostly websites and books,” she said. “I spend a lot of time at the library looking at books, like biographies and autobiographies about my characters. And for websites, I always like to look to make sure where the information came from—making sure they’re not making it up, you know?” This year, she’s portraying female athlete Babe Zaharias, famous for her success in golf, basketball, baseball and track and field. It’s a lot of work starting with a new historical figure during each Young Chautauqua season, but Kirgin said she finds it fun. “I didn’t realize at first that we had to do so much research and then write a monologue—in our own words,” she said. “We couldn’t plagiarize, so to speak. And that really hit me when I started, but now it’s seems kind of easy to me, after five years of practice. It’s still a very long process, but I enjoy every moment of it.” She’s even influenced some of her friends to join the program—among them, Kate Woolstenhulme, 12, and Clara Hall, 13. After hearing about Chautauqua from Kirgin during another friend’s birthday party, the pair decided to join. Last year was their first. Hall portrayed Bonnie Parker, and Woolstenhulme chose Maria Montessori. “We go to a Montessori school, and they would talk about her sometimes,” Woolstenhulme said. “And on her birthday, they’d bring out a picture of her. I never really knew who she was. I wanted to know, and it was very interesting to find out who she was.” The characters the children choose sometimes reveal a lot about their motivations for participating in Chautauqua. For Hall, who said she’s always been interested in acting, there’s an appeal to trying out an identity like Bonnie

12-year-old Kate Woolstenhulme portrays Lady Bird Johnson.

“Small Talk” continued on page 23 A speciAl supplement to Reno news & Review

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HIRI

“Small Talk” continued from page 21

Parker or her choice for this year—actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr. “She was a little bit similar to Bonnie in that way, because she wanted to be famous,” Hall said. “She loved the movies. And, you know, it was also that—because there was more to her than what people saw. That was the thing with Bonnie. It’s just when you learn more about them, and you kind of connect with them.” For Woolstenhulme, there’s an appeal to being well spoken. She credits her own interest in Chautauqua to the intelligent, engaging pitch she heard from Kirgin at that birthday party. This year, she’s portraying Lady Bird Johnson, in part, she said, “because she was a beautifully spoken woman.” By portraying women she admires, Woolstenhulme said, she’s learning to emulate their best traits—and she’s inspiring other people, in turn—among them, her younger siblings, Eli, 10, and Kalli, 8. They’re both participating in Young Chautauqua for the first time this year— Kalli as Native American basket weaver Dat-So-La-Lee and Eli as World War I pilot Eddie Rickenbocker. “I thought it would be cool to see how it was like, because I saw my sister having so much fun doing it and learning so much,” said Kalli Woolstenhulme. “I thought it would be cool if I could do it, too.”

For their mother Laurel Woolstenhulme, it’s a boon to have all three kids explore their individual interests through a single program. And she appreciates that the program teaches the kids scholarship in a way that’s accessible, even to her youngest. “The way Great Basin has set this up— they’ve just broken it into these bite-sized pieces,” she said. “And one week they have you research and choose a character. The next week you do a timeline of that person’s life. And then you come up with three stories from the person’s life. And then they share that booklet with anyone across the country who wants to start up a program. … The level of professionals they bring to the program every week, I’m blown away by the resource.” Kate Woolstenhulme and her friends Hall and Kirgin all agree that they’ll stick with Chautauqua as an extracurricular during their teens years, and—despite the fact that it’s only their first year— Woolstenhulme’s younger siblings agree. Kalli has even picked her character for next year, a local historical figure she’s ready to learn more about. “I’m going to be Eilley Bowers,” she said. Ω

(From top left) Kalli Woolstenhulme as Dat-So-La-Lee, Eli Woolstenhulme as Eddie Rickenbocker, Clara Hall as Hedy Lamarr and Jillian Kirgin as Babe Zaharias.

Learn more about Great Basin Humanities’ Young Chautauqua program and upcoming events by visiting the website: https://bit.ly/2tzKLCm.

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