Latest news with #JohnnyAppleseed
Chicago Tribune
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Lake Forest theater company premieres The Queen's Museum in outdoor venue
A theater not bound by walls or a building, a performance written to be performed out in nature, all characteristics of this weekend's world premiere of The Queen's Museum. The latest partnership between Citadel Theatre and Lake Forest Open Lands blends a theatrical and ecological gift in The Queen's Museum, written by Mark Adamczyk, with outdoor performances on July 17 through July 20th, at 350 North Waukegan Road in Lake Forest. Citadel co-founder and artistic director, Scott Phelps, says he founded Citadel in 2002 with his wife, Ellen. The theatre, now in its 23rd season, has collaborated with Lake Forest Open Lands for 18 years. 'What began in 2007 as an interest in theatre or storytelling hikes along the trail, featuring tales like The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, and Johnny Appleseed – has morphed over the past several years, into Citadel's production of original musicals for the entire family, usually based on a children's short story,' Phelps said. Vice president and director of development for Lake Forest Open Lands, Paula Clair-Gould, says to come together to provide the venue for these productions has been such a positive and very much in line with their mission. 'As stewards of the land, we have been able to transcend the natural space, to expand and enlarge artistic experiences for our community in these native settings,' Clair-Gould said. This year's production brings audiences to The Queen's Museum, directed by Ben Ballmer. The Queen's Museum is based on the original short story, The Queen's Museum by Frank Stockton, first published in January 1906, and adapted by musician and playwright Mark Adamczyk. The monarch of the realm commissions the housing of her collection of artifacts for the inspiration and edification of the populace. What a noble idea! What a wonderful plan! What could possibly go wrong? Well, there's this band of down-on-their-luck pirates, see, drawn to the scent of plunder and rousing dance numbers, coming together in another Citadel outdoor summer extravaganza full of music and fun for the whole family, according to the Citadel website. Ballmer says directing for young audiences is part of a world of children's theatre that relies on encouraging engagement and interaction with audience members during a performance. 'Actors learn to improvise and to involve the audience in the story — and in The Queen's Museum, this swashbuckling adventure seems to come to life outdoors,' Ballmer said.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Local woodworker brings Christmas favorite to life
LISBON, Ohio (WKBN) – It's still seven months until Christmas, but just over a month until Christmas in July. A Lisbon man is preparing for both. He's halfway through a special project to bring a Christmas favorite to life, and his design is a full-size version of a classic toy with a set of three life-sized nutcrackers. Jerry Tyson's idea came from a Christmas party where people painted smaller models. He started looking at them and felt he could build them bigger. Each of the woodworking masterpieces is about 6 feet tall.'They were not easy. Each one of these are turned from logs that I physically went and cut down trees and milled each one piece by piece, scaling it up from the model,' Tyson said. The nutcrackers are multiple pieces, all attached. They're made from pine and one took a week to form and put together, followed by up to four days to paint, which was the easiest part.'My favorite one is Father Christmas, and that's because of what he represents,' Tyson said. The third nutcracker is Lisbon's favorite legend, Johnny Appleseed. Tyson plays the part during the annual festival, living in a small cabin downtown. The nutcrackers will be on public display in just a few weeks. 'So, the very first place that I know they're going to is the Columbiana County Fair. They'll be in the art building,' Tyson said. Johnny Appleseed will join Tyson for the September festival. All three will be in the square for Christmas. Each piece carries his signature. He's a one-of-a-kind artist. Tyson hopes that in a world of 'Made in China', people understand what it took to put these together and appreciate the work.'There's things that we do that feeds our belly, and then there's things that we do that feeds our soul, and this feeds my soul. Just knowing that you can give something to your community that they could enjoy,' Tyson said. Tyson's plan calls for adding three more nutcrackers, a female and male elf ( Santa's helpers), plus a wooden boy, which doesn't have all the paint and shows off the character of the wood. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Cleo Redd Fisher Museum wins award for Johnny Appleseed exhibit
LOUDONVILLE — The Cleo Redd Fisher Museum received the Best Exhibition Award (under $500,000 budget) from the Ohio Museums Association for its exhibit "Johnny Appleseed: Cultivating a Nation." According to an announcement, the award was presented during the association's annual awards banquet on March 30. Leslie Braden, president of the board of directors, and Laurie Bower, trustee, accepted the award on behalf of the museum. The exhibit, developed by museum curator Kenny Libben, debuted in summer 2024. It explored the life, myth and legacy of John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, and examined his influence on early American agriculture, conservation and culture. The exhibit was made possible by a grant from the Ashland County Community Foundation and is now available as a traveling display for other museums, libraries and cultural centers. 'This award is not just recognition of a single exhibit,' Braden said. 'But a celebration of our museum's continued commitment to high-quality programming, community engagement and historical storytelling. We are proud of what our team − and our volunteers − continue to accomplish year after year.' This award adds to a list of honors for the museum, which is operated by the Mohican Historical Society, a nonprofit group. In 2015, Libben received the Outstanding Individual Achievement Award from the Ohio Local History Alliance, followed by the Hunter-Burley Award from the Small Museum Association in 2024. The museum's volunteers have also been recognized, with John and Alice Schopfer receiving the Ohio Local History Alliance's Outstanding Individual Achievement Award in 2020 and Jeanne Griffin named Volunteer of the Year by the Ohio Museums Association in 2021. In 2022, Libben was elected as an officer of the International Council of Museums' Committee for Regional Museums, earning international recognition for his work. Since then, he has been invited to collaborate with and speak at museums across the globe, further raising the profile of the Loudonville-based institution. For more information about the Cleo Redd Fisher Museum, upcoming events or booking the Johnny Appleseed traveling exhibit, visit This story was created by Jane Imbody, jimbody@ with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at or share your thoughts at with our News Automation and AI team. This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Cleo Redd Fisher Museum wins Ohio Museums Association award
