Chautauqua Showcase – “William Clark: American Explorer”

“They Made America”

Featuring Master of Ceremonies – Mark Twain as portrayed by McAvoy Layne

William Clark was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in pre-statehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Missouri. Along with Meriwether Lewis, Clark led the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804–1806 across the Louisiana Purchase to the Pacific Ocean, the first major effort to explore and map much of what is now the Western United States and to assert American claims to the Pacific Northwest.

Doug Mishler has been a Chautauquan since 1993 when he first portrayed P. T. Barnum. Mishler has made over eight hundred presentations of over thirty historical figures including Henry Ford, Jackson Pollock, and recently added Chuck Yeager, Gene Roddenberry, and Earl Warren. He is also the founder and Managing Artistic Director of Restless Artists’ Theatre in Reno and has taught American Cultural History for over twenty-three years.

Cost: $15 for everyone 17 years and older. No member discount as this is a special Chautauqua fundraising event.