Lawrence Creates Makerspace revitalizes 120-year-old tradition

Barry Barnes performs Peace!

Joann Qandil watched and smiled as Topher Enneking recited a short poem with his 16-month-old daughter Friday evening at Lawrence’s first Winter Chautauqua.

“It’s gorgeous,” she said as Enneking rhymed while his daughter, Francesca, hummed softly into a microphone. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

The Lawrence Creates Makerspace, 512 East Ninth St., is responsible for the revitalization of the 120-year-old chautauqua tradition, said co-founder Barbara Kerr. The Winter Chautauqua marked this year’s last Final Friday Art Party.

“My first question when I got here was, ‘What the heck is a chautauqua?'” Qandil said with a laugh.

A chautauqua is traditionally an informal community meeting meant to entertain and educate those in attendance, Kerr explained. The event is made up of different acts about five minutes in length, she added.

Throughout the evening, participants read stories, recited poems, sang songs, danced and played instruments. One performer clucked her poem like a chicken, later providing the audience with a translation of the barnyard noises.

Performing twice throughout the evening was Enneking, who said he enjoyed the concept of the event and the open atmosphere it provides.

Christopher Enneking performs a duet with his daughter Francesca during an event called the Winter Chautauqua that was hosted by Lawrence Creates Makerspace, 512 Ninth St. Friday evening as part of December’s Final Fridays events.

“As a performer, it’s a huge open space,” he said. “There are things for people to see and do. They’re experiencing life, and I get to be a part of it.”

Kerr said she hopes the Winter Chautauqua sparks an interest in local entertainment.

“The idea is that any group of people have talent within them,” she said. “And we spend so much time in front of TV screens and going to professional performances that we forget we’re capable of entertaining ourselves and each other.”