Natural State Chautauqua to be held tonight, Friday and Saturday
SMACKOVER — The Arkansas Museum of Natural Resources will present the 17th annual Natural State Chautauqua to be held at 7 p.m. under the tent on the museum grounds today, Friday and Saturday. The event is free and open to the public.
This year’s theme is “A Belle, A Bandit and A Badge: Law & Disorder in Arkansas” and will feature three interesting characters from Arkansas’s past: Jesse James, Belle Starr and Bass Reeves, according to Pam Beasley, museum superintendent.
The Natural State Chautauqua is a first-person interpretation of American history by those who shaped the nation. Scholars are chosen from across the county to spend three days in south Arkansas to present their characters and hold additional workshops, Beasley said. They present the character, then take questions as the character and finally step out of character to answer questions as the scholar behind the historic figure.
Sponsors of the Natural State Chautauqua include Murphy USA, AMNR Foundation, Arkansas State Parks, Smackover State Bank, South Arkansas Oil and Country Inn & Suites. This program is also sponsored in part by a grant from the Arkansas Humanities Program and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
All three scholars and the characters they portray are different, yet linked by one common thread – the law! Aaron Worley will present the infamous outlaw Jesse James, who held up his first stagecoach between Hot Springs and Malvern in 1874.
Karen Vuranch will portray Belle Starr, a flamboyant female outlaw known for cattle rustling and fraternizing with fellow outlaws. After hearing from two outlaws, the other side of the story will be told by legendary lawman Bass Reeves, portrayed by Dr. James Armstead.
“This line up is going to be extraordinary! Each of these characters played a part in the history of Arkansas and in America, and during Chautauqua, audiences will learn exactly how,” Beasley said.
Worley of Albuquerque, New Mexico, first portrayed Jesse at the Kansas City Public Library and has since presented the character for two chautauquas in Missouri. He “will bring Jesse James to life” at 7 p.m. today.
Vuranch is a storyteller, actress, historian and writer from West Virginia. In 2014, she bought Laura Ingles Wilder to life for the Natural State Chautauqua. Karen will present outlaw Belle Starr at 7 p.m. on Friday.
Armstead, of California, will land on the Natural State Chautauqua stage for the eighth time at 7 p.m. on Saturday, as he portrays Bass Reeves. He is a retired professor of Strategy and International Law from the U.S. Naval War College. In addition to Bass Reeves, he has 10 chautauqua characters in his repertoire.
Also on Saturday, two programs will be presented, including The Indian Territories: The Politics and Policy of U.S. Expansion by Armstead at 10 a.m., followed at 1 p.m. by a show-and-tell by Ryan Dodge, a collector of western memorabilia, of equipment including guns, knives and other accouterments used between 1860-1900.