Family Entertainment Series

Dan Zanes has trouble pinning down exactly what kind of music he plays.

“I think we call it folk music,” he said. “Or maybe social music? Folk music? All ages, social folk music. Something like that.”

But the Grammy Award-winning artist is sure of one thing: The music he plays is for everyone.

“It’s always important to us that everybody is a part of the show,” he said. “It’s an intergenerational experience. Very communal.”

Zanes and his wife, Haitian-American jazz musician Claudia Eliaza, are bringing their energetic act to Chautauqua at 5 and 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 9 in Smith Wilkes Hall, as part of the Family Entertainment Series.

In keeping with the goal of the FES to provide entertainment for individuals of all ages and inclinations, the musical duo said the show will be sensory-friendly. 

“We want to open the door as wide as possible,” Zanes said. “If someone who is on the autism spectrum wants to come see us, we make sure that they and their family are able to enjoy the show. Above all, we want these shows to be fun, and we want everyone to have access to that fun.”

As a part of that attitude of accessibility, the couple said they encourage audience members to stand up, dance or sing along. The environment of the show, they said, will be one of relaxation and celebration; everyone is encouraged to have fun, whatever that means to them.

Zanes and Eliaza incorporate a variety of instruments into their performance. Both artists sing and play guitar and percussion instruments. Zanes plays mandolin and harmonica, and Eliaza plays flute and trombone. Working in tandem, the duo covers a wide range of the instrumental spectrum to bring a variety of sound to the stage.

The husband-wife team will be performing a diverse lineup of songs at their Chautauqua performance. Everything from some of Zanes’ greatest hits like “All Around the Kitchen” and “House Party Time,” to recent tracks from the couple’s songbook Dan Zanes’ House Party!: A Family Roots Music Treasury, are fair game to appear onstage.

Eliaza is a certified music therapist, and has experience helping listeners find peace and happiness in music. She said today’s performances will be ones where everyone can be comfortable being themselves.

“The shows are not intimidating,” Eliaza said. “Even if you don’t sing or don’t feel that you have a voice, I think a lot of people who come to our shows feel very comfortable and even express themselves vocally.”

And although the show is a part of the FES, Zanes said no one should feel excluded if they don’t have children. Instead, he doubled down on his “music for everyone” message.

“We think the shows feel kind of like a family reunion,” Zanes said. “Sometimes the music is for the older folks, sometimes it’s for the younger folks, but nobody gets left behind.”

Following the Old First Night festivities, Theatre of Varieties is bringing the spice of life to Chautauqua at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, August 7, in the Amphitheater as part of the Family Entertainment Series. The performance will feature a juggler, contortionist, ventriloquist and magician — promising a wide range of acts for audience members to enjoy.

Although each entertainer specializes in a different skill, all four started performing at a young age.

Leading the show will be ringmaster Michael Dubois, who will also perform juggling, slackwire and unicycle tricks. For one stunt, the juggler skips rope while bouncing a ball on his head.

“All my stuff is fast-paced and comedy driven, but high skill,” DuBois said.

From Horseheads, New York, DuBois learned to juggle in his middle school gym class.

“When it was too cold to play outside, we would do a two-week juggling segment,” DuBois said. “I’ve been very fortunate to make a career of it since graduating college from Penn State in 2004. It’s taken me all over the world.”

DuBois made a name for himself with appearances on late-night television and a cross-country college tour of a one-man show. For the last five years, he has teamed up with aerialist Viktoria Grimmy for a duo act called “The Great Dubois’.” Grimmy will also perform in Theatre of Varieties, entertaining the audience with her flexibility and hula hoop skills.

Grimmy is a fifth-generation circus performer from Russia who left home at 13 to continue her family trade. Since then, she has performed with the Big Apple Circus, Ringling Brothers and Britney Spears’ Circus Tour. Grimmy has also performed on Broadway in Pippin, and her film credits include “Burlesque” and “The Greatest Showman.”

“Ultimately, the art of the circus is to be able to reach into the soul of everyone and take them out on the ring or stage with them, so you yourself are here performing with me,” Grimmy said in an interview with RealClear. “I find that quite magical.”

Ventriloquist Lynn Trefzger said she is excited to return to the grounds with her talking camel and other felt friends, having previously performed in Smith Wilkes Hall in 2016.

“I’m looking forward to being back,” Trefzger said. “I’m excited to entertain for all ages.”

Although tonight’s performance will mark Trefzger’s Amp debut, it will not be her first time sharing the stage with the her co-stars.

“What’s fun is that I’ve worked with both acts before,” Trefzger said. “I’ve known Michael and Viktoria for a long time, and I just worked with David (Boyd) recently.”

Trefzger picked up her first puppet at 9 years old and booked her first gig when she was 10. Having now ventriloquized for 40 years, she performs on Disney cruises and at corporate events, modeling many of her current characters on her five children.

Trefzger said part of her act for Theatre of Varieties will involve audience participation, with one audience member acting as her “human dummy.” She will also bring along her puppet sidekick, Simon, and a “precocious character” named Chloe.

Finally, magician and illusionist David “Kid Ace” Boyd will dazzle Chautauquans with a performance that fuses hip-hop music and fashion.

“I infuse that into magic just to give people a different experience than what they may associate a magician with,” Boyd said. “From what I believe and have seen, people are more in tune to it because it keeps them on their feet.”

Boyd said his flair developed from his upbringing in Harlem, New York, where the magician learned his first trick at age 12 from his theater teacher.

“For me, magic and illusion is more than just a passion,” Boyd said. “It’s an escape from reality. I can truly express myself and all my insecurities go away. For me, it’s the one thing that truly empowers me.”

Boyd has since toured everywhere from the Bahamas and Netherlands to Australia and Japan. In addition to a private performance for Madonna, the magician did a one-man show “Underground Magic” at the Elektra Theatre in Times Square in 2012.

Boyd also performed on the third season of “America’s Got Talent” and was recently featured on “Bill Nye Saves the World.” The magician said he has a “love-hate relationship” with television.

“The hours are so long, and you’re in their world, and you’re working in their environment, but the product is amazing when you get it,” Boyd said.

Boyd said that he loves performing for families because he credits his own family for his success.

“The reason that I am able to do all of this touring and am able to live my dream is because of my parents,” he said. “I’m forever grateful for them for helping me believe that I could truly, truly do this.”

So far this summer, the Family Entertainment Series has exposed audiences to Chinese acrobats, a children’s opera and imaginative plays written by local third- and fourth-grade students. Now, Kathakaar will introduce Chautauquans to Indian culture using traditional music and dance with interactive performances at 5 and 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 31, in Smith Wilkes Hall.

Kathakaar’s Mike Lukshis, who plays a percussion instrument called a tabla, said that the show’s music and choreography “go hand in hand” and that it is designed to both educate and entertain audiences through “kathak,” a form of Indian dance that emphasizes storytelling through pantomime.

“The show is basically a presentation of Indian classical dance,” Lukshis said. “This is an ancient tradition that was practiced by traveling dancers and storytellers.”

Through Jin Won’s choreography, Lukshis said audiences will hear the story of Krishna, a deity known for his trickster tendencies, as well as a story that involves a “battle with snake monsters,” among other Indian legends.

“It’s dramatized in a way that is interesting for kids,” Lukshis said. “With absolutely brand new exposure, they can come away hopefully with a brand new understanding of music and culture.”

Originally from South Korea, Won lived and studied in India for 15 years. During this time, she trained in kathak under Shrimati Shubha Desai and took lessons in Indian classical percussion from Pandit Divyang Vakil.

Upon arriving in Bombay, Won did not let her age, gender or national origin stand in the way of her performing arts studies.

“Back then, everyone told me that no woman plays tabla and that you have to start at a young age,” Won said in an interview with Brown Girl Magazine.

Won currently serves as a performer and faculty member at the Taalim School of Indian Music in the United States. She authored a textbook on tabla that is currently being translated into Korean, while her life story is the focus of a documentary by the Korean Broadcasting Service.

When Taalim toured with an exhibition called “Pradhanica,” Won fused her backgrounds with Korean and Indian culture by wearing a costume inspired by hanbok, a traditional Korean dress. Won said she uses art to communicate across languages as a cultural ambassador.

“I try to find common ground where everyone can understand and feel it,” she told Brown Girl Magazine.

Having seen Kathakaar in New York City last January, Institution Vice President of Performing and Visual Arts Deborah Sunya Moore said she hopes Chautauquans will engage with the show’s artistry.

“I expect that kids and adults alike will be mesmerized by the traditional dance and music,” Moore said. “I hope that we all leave understanding more about some rich cultural

With practice, almost anyone can learn how to juggle a ball or two.

Photos | Demetrius Freeman and Eve Edelheit

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Circurious makes its Chautauqua debut

Suzi Starheim | Staff Writer

One hundred years of American entertainment will be featured at 7:30 p.m. tonight in the Amphitheater with the arrival of Circurious to the stage as part of the 2011 Season special Wednesday-night Family Entertainment Series.

Circurious, a touring production of Cirque-tacular Entertainment, combines the idea of “going to the circus” with entertaining and athletic performers such as contortionists, singers, dancers, aerialists and acrobats, to entertain audiences of all ages.

Tad Emptage, producer and talent coordinator of Circurious, said the show will be approximately 80 minutes long and consist of 14 performers, all world-class athletes.

These performers, along with a host, will take the audience through time, decade by decade, beginning with Harry Houdini in 1911 and moving through Buffalo Bill, the United Service Organization, the war era and even highlighting the fun and novelty of the 1950s. Throughout the entire show, the host will include fun facts about American show business to educate the audience while the performers amaze with daring acts, Emptage added.

While each time frame is a small part of the whole show, Emptage said, each decade is separately contained and easily identifiable against the others. This is especially evident with the 1950s hula-hoop performance, he added.

Also encompassed throughout the show are more serious topics, and Emptage said the one he is looking forward to the most is a body balancing act from the Vietnam era. In creating this act, Emptage had to figure out “how to approach a volatile time in America’s past and treat it with respect and honesty.”

Because of acts like this, Emptage said, the show is good entertainment for all ages. It will entertain both adults and children, and Emptage is excited to see grandparents laughing alongside their grandchildren.

“It is actually an adult show that the children will enjoy,” he said. “What we did when creating the show was to make sure we had something that appealed to everyone.”

Emptage said this will be the first time Circurious has performed in Chautauqua, and he is excited to perform in the Amphitheater because it is outdoors. The Amphitheater also can house more guests, and with more guests comes more energy from the audience, he added.

“The energy that you get from the audience is what feeds you the most as an entertainer,” he said.

“It’s one of the differences between movies and the live theater,” Emptage said. “It’s something that we share together. It’s not passive; it’s active. It’s something that can only be experienced live.”

Suzi Starheim | Staff Writer

Normal guests for the Tuesday night Family Entertainment Series performances are children and their parents, but tonight’s two shows will have some guests of a different species attending and performing. These guests are the animals of Nickel City Reptiles and Exotics, and they will be the focus of tonight’s performances.

Animal handler Jeff Musial said tonight’s shows, at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. in Smith Wilkes Hall, are for guests of any age and will include a variety of animals people don’t often get to see. He said some of the guests in tonight’s show include a black and white ruffed lemur, a baby black-handed spider monkey, alligators and snakes.

To teach people conservation information about these animals, Musial said, he uses a fun method that involves mixing education with entertainment for audience members.

“We call it ‘edutainment,’” he said. “We like to educate people, but in a fun way.”

Musial invites guests up on stage with him at various points during the shows to hold some of the snakes and bugs. He said this allows guests to develop a love for exotic species while seeing them up close.

Musial said using a more fun method to teach kids and adults about endangered and rare species of animals helps them to focus throughout the entire show and to absorb the information given to them. This means Musial also gets to include a little bit of comedy and some “fun facts” about the animals.

Musial said that for almost 14 years, he has worked to educate the public on aspects of wildlife.

None of the animals at Nickel City Reptiles and Exotics are taken from the wild. They have all been brought from other educational organizations, are previous unwanted pets or were rescued from neglectful situations, Musial said.

Nickel City Reptiles and Exotics has appeared on several morning talk shows and late-night shows such as “The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet” and “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” both in 2009. This has allowed them to reach an even broader audience in their goal of educating the public on wildlife.

Musial said after Chautauqua, Nickel City Reptiles and Exotics will make another appearance on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” July 21.

Even after almost 14 years of working on animal conservation, Musial said he still loves to see an audience’s reaction when he brings out each of the animals in his shows. The most rewarding part of teaching audiences conservation is the fact that audience members laugh and smile, he said.

“I do it in a way where they get it all through fun and laughing,” Musial said. “I just like to entertain people. I’m a big kid at heart.”

Suzi Starheim | Staff Writer

A blend of clean comedy, juggling, flying props and extraordinary stunts comes to Chautauqua as Nels Ross, CEO of In Jest Inc. brings “In Jest: Comedy Variety Show” at 5 and 7 p.m. tonight to Smith Wilkes Hall. These performances come as part of the 2011 Season’s Family Entertainment Series.

Ross, a performer, comedian and speaker, began working on his act when he was 8 years old and said his main influence was his mother, who was a mime, fire-eater, singer, dancer and storyteller. After seeing Ross’s interest in juggling and performing, his mother gave him the book Juggling for the Complete Klutz, and his love grew from there.

“She was my first inspiration in learning how to juggle,” he said.

Since then, Ross has immersed himself in juggling and performing, even working with instructors from the Ringling Bros. Circus and Cirque du Soleil throughout his training. Ross also immersed himself by studying theater at the University at Buffalo.

At the age of 20, Ross took time to tour with a circus and then began his career as a full-time performer when he was 24 years old.

Ross has performed for audiences in Chautauqua as part of the Family Entertainment Series five times in the past, and he said he always makes sure to have something new for returning audiences.

“Whenever I return somewhere, I come back with a different show,” Ross said. “There will be some brand-new elements.”

Included in tonight’s performances will be a new balancing act Ross said is a combination stunt of several different skills. These include balancing, spinning and juggling props simultaneously. He said he also plans to have more unique elements in the shows, which will include “exploding and squirting things.”

In addition to providing family entertainment and comedy, Ross also does ministry work and said he believes his ministry work takes an active role in all his performances.

“I believe all of my shows are ministry in the sense that laughter can be a cup of cold water to somebody that is hurting,” Ross said. “The message really here is to enjoy life, and I hope my show does that.”

Ross said his ultimate goal in performing is always to bring mirth, joy and laughter to his audiences, and this is what he plans to do at Chautauqua this evening.

“Ringling Brothers sometimes calls their show ‘The Greatest Show on Earth,’” Ross said. “I call this show ‘The Greatest Show on Mirth.’”

He also said a great benefit of laughter is stress relief, and this is something refreshing to audience members of any age.

“This is truly a show for all ages,” Ross said. “Bring the kids. Bring the parents. Bring the grandparents.”

Suzi Starheim | Staff Writer

Lasers, bowling balls, electric carving knives and comedy will fill the Amphitheater at 7:30 p.m. tonight. These all play a part in “Expecting the Impossible: Mark Nizer’s Live 3D Show,” a special Wednesday entry into Chautauqua’s Family Entertainment Series this summer.

Nizer, who has been working to perfect his act since he took juggling classes as a child, won the International Juggling Association Championships and has performed at such venues as the Kennedy Center and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

Nizer said he plans to bring plenty of juggling, comedy and 3-D lighting effects to tonight’s performance. He added that incorporating comedy allows him to form a stronger connection with the audience. This means that while Nizer is juggling a variety of potentially dangerous objects, he is also working to make the crowd laugh.

“A lot of comedians rely on finding some common ground with the audience,” Nizer said. “I make that connection because we’re all experiencing that same kind of challenge together.”

Though it may go unnoticed by most in the audience, Nizer utilizes a unique tool to bring the various aspects of the show together.

“I designed this unique system that lets me run everything from my belt,” Nizer said. “I want to truly have it be a one-man show.”

Nizer controls all aspects of the show, from audio, lighting and video to fog machines and lasers. The only assistance he’ll receive this evening is having an individual throw him one of his props from the side of the stage.

Everything is controlled from his belt, which is programmed to change button settings for each routine in his act. Audience members typically don’t even notice that Nizer is controlling the special effects.

“It’s hard to even notice it’s happening, but the whole goal was to make it an easy thing to do,” Nizer said.

Nizer said although some of the smaller children in attendance tonight may not understand all the comedic aspects of his show, the use of lighting, music, juggling and lasers means that there is something for everyone.

“It’s perfect for everybody,” Nizer said. “It crosses all ages.”

The early start time of the event and Chautauqua’s outdoor Amphitheater will provide Nizer with a unique experience; the ambient light will allow him the rare opportunity to see the people he is performing for.

“It’ll be an interesting experience to be able to see the audience,” Nizer said. “I can usually only see the first two rows.”

Nizer said his show will be approximately 75 minutes long, and he will single-handedly entertain the audience the whole time.

“I’m always tickled by people saying, ‘I haven’t laughed so hard in my whole life,’” Nizer said. “I’m going to expect people to have a great time and laugh. It’s definitely different than anything you’ve ever seen before.”

Suzi Starheim | Staff Writer

Audience members can find themselves taking an active role in tonight’s Family Entertainment Series performance. This is the Pittsburgh Opera’s “Opera Improv Trunk,” and it allows audience members to take part in making a finished “Opera-on-the-spot” improvisation alongside Pittsburgh Opera teaching artists.

The Pittsburgh Opera teaching artists who will be in the presentation tonight are Amy Stabnau, Bridget Steele, Liliana Piazza, Rob Frankenberry and Mark Trawka.

Each of these artists will offer the audience two arias, which are vocal pieces from operas. The audience will then have the opportunity to vote on which of these arias will go into the final improvisation story. The artists will also offer several story titles, and audience members will choose what story title they will then use to create the improvisation.

Marilyn Egan, director of education for the Pittsburgh Opera, said tonight’s presentations will teach audiences about opera while also making them a part of the improvisation process.

Unlike most performances, Egan said, the “Opera Improv Trunk” will not show up as a finished product for guests to merely sit and watch.

“It’s improvised on the spot,” Egan said. “It’s a cross between Disney street performers, teachers in a school and opera on a stage.”

Because of this, Egan said, the performance is more of a presentation than a planned event.

“The audience members will help to shape what the program is,” Egan said. “So many things are prepared in advance, but this is not one of those performances.”

This is the first time the “Opera Improv Trunk” will be in Chautauqua, and Virginia DiPucci, president of the Chautauqua Opera Guild, said one of the main objectives of today’s presentation is to broaden the opera audience by sparking an interest in opera. DiPucci said this could be very difficult if audience members don’t have an initial understanding of opera.

“People look to opera as a very sophisticated art form and keep away if they’re not very knowledgeable in it,” DiPucci said. “If you want an audience that’s going to be with you for a long time, you have to start from when they are children.”

The other main objective of the presentation is to offer musical enrichment for children.

“We wanted to bring opera to all levels of society and to all ages,” DiPucci said. “This is the opportunity for cross generations to enjoy and learn about opera together. I think that that’s really important.”

DiPucci, whose love of opera began when her mother brought it to her attention as a child, said individuals who are exposed to and educated in opera from a young age tend to stay tied to it throughout their entire lives.

“There’s wonderful setting and wonderful music to opera,” DiPucci said. “You have to show people that, and you show youngsters that, and they get very attached to that.”

Overall, Egan said that making opera available to people who aren’t necessarily familiar with the art form is a major objective of the presentation. To that end, the teaching artists try to incorporate facts about opera into the presentation.

“Opera can be accessible, and it can be fun,” Egan said. “Teaching artists can help people think about opera in new ways.”

The two performances will take place at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. tonight at Smith Wilkes Hall and are sponsored by the Chautauqua Opera Guild.

This article originally appeared on Page 3 of the Tuesday, June 28, issue of The Chautauquan Daily

Suzi Starheim | Staff Writer

Families looking to enjoy a stress-free Tuesday night have to look no further than tonight’s Family Entertainment Series act.

, a ventriloquist, puppeteer and comedian will perform at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. tonight in Smith Wilkes Hall.

A semi-finalist on the 2008 season of “America’s Got Talent,” Harrison takes his passion for entertaining kids and families very seriously. He has performed on many cruise lines, including Norwegian, Princess, Royal Caribbean International and Holland America, and he just finished his 10th year with Disney Cruise Line.

He also expanded his talents to the TV realm when he wrote and starred in “Kids in the Firehall.”

While Harrison, who is from Vancouver, British Columbia, has never been to Chautauqua, he said he has known for approximately six months that he would be bringing his show here during the 2011 Season. He was approached about performing in Chautauqua after doing a performing arts showcase in New York last year.

With a background in improvisation, Harrison said he tries to go with the flow in his performances. This allows him to adapt to unexpected factors in any show.

“It’s good as a performer to be slightly nervous,” he said. “You don’t want to be so comfortable that you get too relaxed on stage. You never know what kids are going to do or say, so you just have to go with the flow.”

Harrison’s show typically runs from 45 minutes to one hour long, and he said determining the length of his show can be challenging when dealing with
young kids.

“I cater to the family market, so we don’t like to go much longer than an hour,” Harrison said. “I play it by ear, and if they’re still engaged, I keep going. Every audience is a little bit
different.”

While the majority of Harrison’s show is dedicated to entertaining families, he said he often has to spend time making sure his audience understands different aspects of the show.

“I spend the first five minutes of the show explaining the art because many don’t know about ventriloquism or puppets,” Harrison said. “It’s just something kids don’t really experience anymore.”

From there, Harrison tries to make each performance fun for audiences.

“Each routine is unique and different,” Harrison said. “I’m not the traditional ventriloquist. I try to find things that are unique, one-of-a-kind, family-friendly and engaging.”

For tonight’s performance, Harrison said he is excited about the “many, many special guests” he has for his audiences. These include a 20-foot talking snake puppet named Ana Conda, a talking tennis ball and racquet named Mr. Tennis Ball and Dunlop, and a human puppet, which will be created from a member of the audience by throwing his voice while making the audience member’s mouth move.

Harrison said one of his goals in entertaining guests is to “take them on a little bit of a ride.” He does this by providing them with entertainment for entire families of any age.

He also said he enjoys the fact that he can “get kids away from the TV for an
hour or so.”

Overall, Harrison said he wants to see his audience in Chautauqua “have a good time and forget their worries.”