Chautauqua 1925
written and directed by Michael Minions
October 23rd-26th, 2025
written and directed by Michael Minions
October 23rd-26th, 2025
HARRY: Welcome one and all to the Okanagan Chautauqua, 1925 edition. I’m the Reverend Harry Curly and I’ll be your emcee for the evening. What is a Chautauqua you might ask? And well you might. Let me introduce my co-host, Miss Hester West, for a bit of an explanation.
HESTER: Chautauqua can best be described as a Christian, but nondenominational, adult educational summer camp. It got its start in 1874 on the shores of Chautauqua Lake in upstate New York. The program generally includes lectures, workshops and meetings, which you can attend tomorrow and the next day, and wholesome family entertainment, which is what you’ll be seeing tonight.
Inspired by the travelling tent shows of the early twentieth century, Chautauqua 1925 features classic folk and country songs like “You Are My Sunshine,” “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” “Keep on the Sunny Side,” “Man of Constant Sorrow,” “Wildwood Flower,” “Wayfaring Stranger” and more. The show features a large ensemble of singers and a talented string band.
Performances of Chautauqua 1925 are taking place from October 23rd-26th in Room S104 on the Kelowna campus of Okanagan College.
Performances of Chautauqua 1925 are taking place from October 23rd-26th in Room S104 on the Kelowna campus of Okanagan College.
Poster by Jeremy Beaulne.
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The Performers:
Shannon Bracken Bob Caron Victor Campagnaro Graham Daley Harry Grossmith Michael Kalmuk Davis Kyle C.J. Marks Rolen Marks Sandy MacKay Taylor Millett Shan Owens Senna Padula Gloria Poulette Gabby Romancini The Band: Monte Barwick Robert Campbell Bob Caron Tom Kinahan Mike Minions Conceived & Directed by: Mike Minions Stage Manager: Hope Forster |
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Red Dot Players roll back the years with toe-tapping Chautauqua 1925
Pack your curiosity and warm up your singalong voice: the Red Dot Players are inviting audiences to step back exactly a century for Chautauqua 1925, an old-time musical revue written and directed by retired Okanagan College Education Technology Coordinator, Mike Minions.
Performances will light up the Okanagan College Theatre in Kelowna from October 23–26.
Part history lesson, part front-porch jam session, Chautauqua 1925 recreates the magic of the travelling chautauquas that criss-crossed North America in the early 20th century. Expect humour, wholesome advice, and toe-tapping favourites like You Are My Sunshine, Will the Circle Be Unbroken, and Man of Constant Sorrow. In other words: songs you know by heart, even if you didn’t know you knew them.
“I first came across many of these songs on a 1972 Nitty Gritty Dirt Band album,” said director Mike Minions, then aged 14. “Some others are from the original Carter Family recordings, and some were used in the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
But this isn’t just a nostalgic nod to the past. Chautauqua 1925 is a reminder of how music and community gatherings have always helped people connect, reflect, and celebrate —something just as true today as it was a hundred years ago.
Minions’ research found that the actual Dominion Chautauqua circuit (based out of Calgary) toured over 400 towns in Western Canada between 1917 and 1935. It included three days of lectures, workshops and meetings, with nightly wholesome family entertainment, “We’re just doing the entertainment part,” said Minions.
The cast brings together Okanagan College students, alumni, employees and community members, creating a production that’s as collaborative as the chautauquas themselves.
It’s always interesting putting a show like this together,” shared Minions. “I bring along a few ideas but it’s the cast of characters that make the lyrics come to life. And the strong band does a great job supporting each song in a way that suits it best.”
Performance Details
Thursday, October 23 at 7 p.m.
Friday, October 24 at 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 25 at 7 p.m.
Sunday, October 26 at 2 p.m.
Tickets are $15, available at https://www.reddotplayers.com/
Performances will light up the Okanagan College Theatre in Kelowna from October 23–26.
Part history lesson, part front-porch jam session, Chautauqua 1925 recreates the magic of the travelling chautauquas that criss-crossed North America in the early 20th century. Expect humour, wholesome advice, and toe-tapping favourites like You Are My Sunshine, Will the Circle Be Unbroken, and Man of Constant Sorrow. In other words: songs you know by heart, even if you didn’t know you knew them.
“I first came across many of these songs on a 1972 Nitty Gritty Dirt Band album,” said director Mike Minions, then aged 14. “Some others are from the original Carter Family recordings, and some were used in the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
But this isn’t just a nostalgic nod to the past. Chautauqua 1925 is a reminder of how music and community gatherings have always helped people connect, reflect, and celebrate —something just as true today as it was a hundred years ago.
Minions’ research found that the actual Dominion Chautauqua circuit (based out of Calgary) toured over 400 towns in Western Canada between 1917 and 1935. It included three days of lectures, workshops and meetings, with nightly wholesome family entertainment, “We’re just doing the entertainment part,” said Minions.
The cast brings together Okanagan College students, alumni, employees and community members, creating a production that’s as collaborative as the chautauquas themselves.
It’s always interesting putting a show like this together,” shared Minions. “I bring along a few ideas but it’s the cast of characters that make the lyrics come to life. And the strong band does a great job supporting each song in a way that suits it best.”
Performance Details
Thursday, October 23 at 7 p.m.
Friday, October 24 at 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 25 at 7 p.m.
Sunday, October 26 at 2 p.m.
Tickets are $15, available at https://www.reddotplayers.com/
