Following the Nevada Day Parade on Saturday, October 27, 2007, the Nevada State Museum will offer free admission for families and a whole slate of free programs in honor of Nevada Day.
Local musician Susan Botich will set the stage with guitar music in the museum’s South Changing Gallery starting about 12:30 p.m. Then join New York Times bestselling author Ellen Hopkins as she shares Characters of the Comstock, a fun-filled hour of fascinating stories gleaned from Virginia City’s boom-and-bust history. This program features storytelling and tall tales for ages 10 � adult and begins at 1:30 p.m. in the South Changing Gallery.
The fun continues upstairs in the auditorium from 2:30 � 4:30 p.m., as Ellen leads a creative writing workshop for students in grades 6-8 and their parents. Participants will create newspaper stories with the flavor of Dan DeQuille’s tall tales. The workshop is free, but enrollment is limited. Advanced registration is required for the workshop. Contact Deborah Stevenson at 775-687-4810, ext 237.
In its heyday, Virginia City was home to a large cast of colorful characters, from a young Mark Twain to old Henry Comstock himself. Gamblers, gunslingers, banditos, and dueling firemen all became front-page news, along with miners, millers and silver barons. And if things ever got too tame, Dan DeQuille, publisher of Virginia City’s Territorial Enterprise, was not above printing a tall tale or two.
Ellen Hopkins’ presentation and workshop are Tumblewords events, part of the Nevada Touring Initiative, a program of the Nevada Arts Council supported by the National Endowment for the Arts and Western States Arts Federation.
Ellen Hopkins is a poet and author, with 20 published nonfiction books for children and four best-selling young adult novels. Ellen is the assistant regional advisor for the Sierra Nevada chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and a member of Ash Canyon Poets. She is a Nevada Artist in Residence and a Nevada Arts Council Tumblewords artist. She has lived in Nevada for twenty years, and says the Silver State will forever be home.
I personally love reading your articles. My dad grew up in Carson, working on ranches, soap box derby, etc. There were so many stories growing up that your articles bring a smile and good memories.