![Chautauqua Institution 150th Anniversary logo](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/CHQ150thAnniversaryLogo_white.png)
Discover Chautauqua
Every summer Chautauqua Institution welcomes over 100,000 visitors, to celebrate community and prioritize personal growth. Many travel here to relax, renew and recharge on the shores of Chautauqua Lake. Join us for our historic 150th anniversary season and see for yourself why Chautauqua was, and continues to be, a cherished destination.
Chautauqua’s Summer Assembly Season
There’s nothing quite like Chautauqua in the summer. Experience our grounds as they come alive with guests seeking relaxation, reinvention and our many innovative programs, performances and recreational activities.
The Seasons and Stories of Chautauqua: The 150th Anniversary Season
June 22–August 25, 2024
As most great things do, Chautauqua started with an idea: Americans were yearning to use their newfound leisure time in service of self and community betterment. It was the early 1870s and an unlikely pair of visionaries took that idea, found the perfect lakeside spot to put it to the test, and invited the nation. It worked. Soon thousands of people, multiple generations of families, descended upon the grounds each summer, traversing the lake by steam-powered boat to arrive at Fair Point. They came to learn the latest in religious and educational thought, to be entertained and enriched, and to rest and rejuvenate.
Explore the 2024 Weekly Themes
![Crowds of people standing together in the shape of continents on the map](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/shutterstock_231214222.jpg)
Eight Billion and Counting: The Future of Humankind in a Crowded World
Week Four: July 13–20
![Renée Fleming singing by a piano with a crowd of people behind her](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Met-Volpe-Gala-2000x1333-1.jpg)
Exploring the Transformative Power of Music with Renée Fleming
Week Six: July 27–August 3
![A view of Niagara Falls](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/niagara-falls-beautiful-landscape-2022-11-03-08-16-24-utc.jpg)
Water: Crisis, Beauty and Necessity – A Week in Partnership with National Geographic
Week Eight: August 10–17
![Wynton Marsalis giving a lecture at a podium in the Amphitheater](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/081919_WyntonMarsalis_DM_07-1.jpg)
Rising Together: Our Century of Creativity and Collaboration with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra
Week Nine: August 17–25
Featured Events
![Wilco](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Wilco_by_Peter_Crosby_1.jpg)
Wilco
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WILCO
Don’t miss Wilco’s debut performance at Chautauqua, where the venerated alt-rock greats will showcase their enduring love for rock ‘n’ roll. With a musical journey spanning thirty years, Wilco’s authenticity and fearless exploration of genres shine through, exemplified in their 13th studio album, Cousin, a collaboration with Welsh artist Cate Le Bon. The new tracks fit right in alongside a setlist of fan favorites, including hits like “I Am Trying to Break Your Heart,” “Via Chicago,” “Spiders (Kidsmoke),” and more.
CUT WORMS (opener)
Max Clarke is the Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and musician presently known as Cut Worms. Cut Worm’s new Self Titled album continues Clarke’s exploration of what he calls “pop essentialism.” Mining the golden hits of yesteryear for a timeless sound, he contemplates age-old questions through a modern lens. Here, he leaves behind the legendary studio and sought-after producers for a more homegrown approach, working with a cast of gifted friends and collaborators. The result is a compact collection of daydream anthems that live between the summer’s hopeful beginnings and the season’s fleeting end.
This performance is made possible in part by The Scott and Patti Fine Endowment Fund and by CAPER.
July 6 @ 7:30 pm Week Three (July 6–13)
Jurassic Park Live in Concert with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
Amphitheater
![Jurassic Park Live in Concert with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JurassicPark_InConcert_v2.jpg)
Jurassic Park Live in Concert with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
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Stuart Chafetz, conductor
The action-packed adventure pits man against prehistoric predators in the ultimate battle for survival. Featuring visually stunning imagery and groundbreaking special effects, this epic film is sheer movie magic 65 million years in the making.
Now audiences can experience Jurassic Park as never before: projected in HD with a full symphony orchestra performing John Williams’ iconic score live to picture.
Welcome… to Jurassic Park!
This performance is made possible in part by The William D. Kuhns Fund for General Music Purposes of Chautauqua Institution.
![Patricia Parker](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2024_0709_ParkerPatricia.jpg)
Patricia Parker
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Patricia “Pat” Parker is the Ruel W. Tyson Distinguished Professor of Humanities and director of the Institute for the Arts and Humanities at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she previously served as chair of the Department of Communication and Director of the Graduate Certificate in Participatory Research.
A critical communication scholar activist and decolonial researcher, Parker’s work centers Black feminist/womanist leadership as critical organizing praxis. Her most recent book, Ella Baker’s Catalytic Leadership is grounded in the Black intellectual traditions advanced by human rights strategist Ella Baker. It is a primer on community engagement drawn from her participatory research with Black teen girls learning and doing social justice leadership following those traditions.
Parker’s current projects flow from her work as co-chair (with James Leloudis) of the University Commission on History and Race where she is leading efforts to center Black descendant communities in telling the histories of their ancestors and memorializing them, while creating pathways toward reckoning, healing, and repair. Parker is the 2023 recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Award, one of the highest honors for UNC-Chapel Hill faculty, in recognition of academic work that exemplifies the ideals of democracy, public service, and the pursuit of knowledge.
Please note that Patricia Parker replaces Donovan X. Ramsey, the previously announced lecturer for July 9 who is now unable to join us. Ramsey’s book When Crack Was King remains a 2024 selection of the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle.
This program is made possible by The June and Albert Bonyor Lectureship Fund.
![Kai Bird](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Bird_Kai_CLS_071024.jpg)
Kai Bird
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Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer, historian and journalist Kai Bird is the co-author of American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer — the definitive biography of the theoretical physicist and “father of the atomic bomb” that served as inspiration for director and screenwriter Christopher Nolan’s most recent film, “Oppenheimer.” A relentless chronicler of history and a consummate storyteller, Bird elevates lessons from the past to undeniable relevance for audiences of today. He joins the Chautauqua Lecture Series in a week confronting “What We Got Wrong: Learning from Our Mistakes” to discuss the legacy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, whose groundbreaking work altered the course of history, and help us navigate the tremendous ethical and moral ramifications of that work.
For American Prometheus, Bird and his late co-author Martin J. Sherwin were awarded the Pulitzer Prize for biography, the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Duff Cooper Prize for History. Bird is the New York Times bestselling author of The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames, and biographies of Jimmy Carter, John J. McCloy, McGeorge Bundy and William Bundy. He chronicled his childhood in the Middle East in his memoir, Crossing Mandelbaum Gate: Coming of Age Between the Arabs and Israelis, which was a finalist for both the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. The executive director and distinguished lecturer of the Leon Levy Center for Biography at the CUNY Graduate Center in New York City, his work includes critical writings on the Vietnam War, Hiroshima, nuclear weapons, the Cold War, the Arab-Israeli conflict and the CIA.
An elected member of the prestigious Society of American Historians, Bird received his bachelor’s degree from Carleton College and his master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University.
This program is made possible by The Kevin and Joan Keogh Family Fund and The Dr. Edwin Prince Booth Memorial Lectureship Fund.
July 12 @ 7:30 pm Week Three (July 6–13)
An Evening with Shawn Colvin & KT Tunstall Together on Stage
Amphitheater
![An Evening with Shawn Colvin & KT Tunstall Together on Stage](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/ShawnColvin_KTTunstall_2024_Chautauqua_AV_1200X628.jpg)
An Evening with Shawn Colvin & KT Tunstall Together on Stage
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Shawn Colvin stopped the industry in its tracks with her arresting 1989 debut, “Steady On.” The following spring, Colvin took home the GRAMMY Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album, establishing herself as a mainstay in the singer-songwriter genre. In the ensuing 30 years, Colvin has won three GRAMMY Awards, released thirteen superlative albums, written a critically acclaimed memoir, maintained a non-stop national and international touring schedule, appeared on countless television and radio programs, had her songs featured in major motion pictures and created a remarkable canon of work.
KT Tunstall burst onto the music scene with her 2004 multi-platinum debut, Eye to the Telescope – which spawned the global hits “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree” and “Suddenly I See”. These songs, paired with her pioneering looping skills, established KT as a captivating and dynamic performer, as well as a songwriter with a knack for balancing introspective folk and propulsive rock.
![Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Frankie-Valli-The-Last-Encores-TM-Spec.jpg)
Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons
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The original Jersey boy himself, Frankie Valli is a true American legend. His incredible career with the Four Seasons, as well as his solo success, has spawned countless hit singles. With unforgettable tunes like “Sherry,” “Walk Like A Man,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Rag Doll,” “December ‘63 – Oh What A Night,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You,” and of course, “Grease.” His songs have been omnipresent in other iconic movies such as The Deer Hunter, Dirty Dancing, Mrs. Doubtfire, Conspiracy Theory and The Wanderers. As many as 200 artists have done cover versions of Frankie’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” from Nancy Wilson’s jazz treatment to Lauryn Hill’s hip-hop makeover.
Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons have sold over 100 million records worldwide. They continue to tour throughout the U.S. and abroad to packed houses receiving nightly standing ovations from thrilled fans of multiple generations.
July 20 @ 8:15 pm Week Five (July 20–27)
A Symphonic Celebration of Genesis & Phil Collins with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
Amphitheater
![A Symphonic Celebration of Genesis & Phil Collins with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/CSO_Genesis-Phil-Collins_072024.jpg)
A Symphonic Celebration of Genesis & Phil Collins with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
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Stuart Chafetz, conductor
Aaron Finley, vocalist
Brook Wood, vocalist
Brian Kushmaul, drums
Phil Collins’ one of a kind drum work and songwriting have left an enduring mark on music. With the megaband Genesis and his numerous solo hits, Phil Collins – along with bandmates Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford – penned unforgettable hits featured in this symphonic tribute featuring two vocalists. Show highlights include “Follow You Follow Me,” “Abacab,” “I Missed Again,” “Turn It On Again,” “Sussudio,” “One More Night,” “Take Me Home,” “Two Hearts,” and the iconic “In the Air Tonight.”
This program is made possible by Week Five Presenting Sponsor Erie Insurance, by Northwest Bank, and by The Emily McKnight Corry Endowment.
![Boyz II Men](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/072624_BoyzIIMen_Updated.jpg)
Boyz II Men
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Chautauqua Institution welcomes legendary R&B vocal group Boyz II Men to its 2024 summer concert series. The smooth harmonies and enduring themes of Boyz II Men earned them the distinction of best-selling R&B group of all time, with 64 million albums sold. With past hits like “End of the Road,” “I’ll Make Love to You,” “One Sweet Day” and “Motownphilly,” the group redefined popular R&B, and continues to create timeless hits that appeal to fans across all generations. Throughout their 30-year career the trio has won four Grammy Awards, nine American Music Awards, nine Soul Train Awards, three Billboard Awards and a 2011 MOBO Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music.
July 27 @ 8:15 pm Week Six (July 27–August 3)
Renée Fleming with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
Amphitheater
![Renée Fleming with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Fleming_Renee_CSO.jpg)
Renée Fleming with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
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Rossen Milanov, conductor
One of the most acclaimed singers of our time, Renée Fleming joins the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Rossen Milanov. Honored with five Grammy® awards and the US National Medal of Arts, Ms. Fleming has sung for momentous occasions from the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to the Diamond Jubilee Concert for Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. This summer she brings Voice of Nature: the Anthropocene to the Amphitheater, a new, live, multi-media performance piece, inspired by her Grammy Award-winning album of the same name. In concert with an original film created for this performance by National Geographic, Fleming sings music ranging from Handel to The Lord of the Rings, with stunning video captured in locations from the Amazon rainforest to Yosemite, addressing humankind’s complicated relationship with nature.
This program is made possible by Week Six Presenting Sponsors AHN Westfield and Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield.
July 28 @ 2:00 pm Week Six (July 27–August 3)
Opera Conservatory Masterclass with Renée Fleming
Fletcher Music Hall
![Opera Conservatory Masterclass with Renée Fleming](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/ReneeFleming_Masterclass_2024.jpg)
Opera Conservatory Masterclass with Renée Fleming
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Join us for a special masterclass where the next generation of opera stars from our esteemed conservatory have the unique opportunity to receive valuable insights and artistic mentorship from renowned soprano Renée Fleming. Experience the transformative power of music as students hone their skills, delve into repertoire, and explore the nuances of vocal technique, interpretation, and stage presence alongside one of the most illustrious figures in opera.
Please note this program is being recorded and some views may be obstructed. We recommend arriving early to secure preferred seating. Tickets must be obtained in advance.
July 29 @ 3:30 pm Week Six (July 27–August 3)
The 20th Annual Robert H. Jackson Lecture on the Supreme Court of the United States — Kate Shaw
Hall of Philosophy | CHQ Assembly
![The 20th Annual Robert H. Jackson Lecture on the Supreme Court of the United States — Kate Shaw](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Shaw_Kate_RHJLecture_072924.jpg)
The 20th Annual Robert H. Jackson Lecture on the Supreme Court of the United States — Kate Shaw
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Kate Shaw is a Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. A constitutional law scholar, her academic work and writing focus on executive power, the law of democracy, the Supreme Court, and reproductive rights and justice.
Her scholarly writing has appeared, among other places, in the Harvard Law Review, the Columbia Law Review, the Cornell Law Review, the Georgetown Law Journal, and the Northwestern University Law Review, and her popular writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Slate, Time, and The Atlantic. Shaw is a contributor with ABC News, a contributing opinion writer with The New York Times, co-host of the Supreme Court podcast “Strict Scrutiny,” and a Public Member of the Administrative Conference of the United States.
Before joining the Penn faculty in January 2024, she spent over a decade on the faculty of the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, where she was also co-director of the Floersheimer Center for Constitutional Democracy. Earlier in her career she served as an associate counsel in the Obama White House Counsel’s Office and served as a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens and the Honorable Richard Posner of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
Shaw received her Bachelor of Arts from Brown University, and her Juris Doctor from Northwestern University.
Chautauqua Institution’s Robert H. Jackson Lecture is named in honor of the former Chautauquan, Jamestown lawyer, New Dealer, Solicitor General, Attorney General, Supreme Court justice, and Nuremberg chief prosecutor. Every summer the Jackson Lecture is a leading expert discussing the Supreme Court, the Justices, signal decisions, and related legal developments.
Chautauqua’s previous Jackson Lecturers have been Geoffrey Stone (2005), Linda Greenhouse (2006), Seth Waxman (2007), Jeffrey Toobin (2008), Paul Clement (2009), Jeff Shesol (2010), Dahlia Lithwick (2011), Pamela Karlan (2012), Charles Fried (2013), Akhil Amar (2014), Laurence Tribe (2015), Tracey Meares (2016), Judge Jon O. Newman (2017), Justice Rosalie Silberman Abella of Canada’s Supreme Court (2018), Donald B. Verrilli, Jr. (2019), Ruth Marcus (2020), Melissa Murray (2021), Reva Siegel (2022) and Justin Driver (2023).
![Il Divo](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/IlDivo_Group_04_2632_FIN_HiRes.jpg)
Il Divo
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Twenty years of life, music, and brotherhood have only enlivened, enhanced, and enriched Il Divo. Like a fine wine bettered by time, the group’s individual notes, accents, and signatures have fully bloomed over the course of a storied career. Now, the iconic quartet—Urs Bühler (tenor) of Switzerland, Sébastien Izambard (tenor) of France, David Miller (tenor) of America, and Steven LaBrie (baritone) of America—uphold the spirit of their signature sound, while expanding its scope on their tenth full-length offering and very first independent album, “XX: 20TH ANNIVERSARY ALBUM” [Il Divo Music/Thirty Tigers].
August 3 @ 8:15 pm Week Seven (August 3–10)
Sinatra & Beyond with Tony DeSare and the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
Amphitheater
![Sinatra & Beyond with Tony DeSare and the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/CSO_TonyDeSare.jpg)
Sinatra & Beyond with Tony DeSare and the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
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Stuart Chafetz, conductor
Called “two parts Frank Sinatra and one part Billy Joel,” the triple-threat singer/pianist/songwriter Tony DeSare takes on the legend of Ol’ Blue Eyes himself. From jazz clubs to Carnegie Hall to headlining with major symphony orchestras, Tony DeSare delivers a fresh take on old school class in an outstanding, critically-acclaimed tribute to the great Frank Sinatra that includes songs like Come Fly with Me, I’ve Got the World On a String, It Was A Very Good Year, One for My Baby, The Summer Wind, I Get A Kick Out of You, Night and Day, New York, New York, My Way, and so many more Sinatra classics.
This performance is made possible in part by The Elizabeth Elser Doolittle Endowment Fund for Adult Programming.
![The Earliest Chautauquans: A Re-enactment](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/CHQ-Tents.jpg)
The Earliest Chautauquans: A Re-enactment
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The Earliest Chautauquans: A Re-enactment
What was it like to be a Chautauquan in the 1870’s? Join us for a re-enactment at the 1870’s era tent on Miller Park to meet some Chautauquans from that era and learn about the lives of the earliest Chautauquans.
Refreshments will be available.
Rain Location: Jessica Trapasso Pavilion, Children’s School
This program made possible by a gift from Cathrine and Craig Greene
![Amy Tan](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Tan_Amy_CLS_080624.jpg)
Amy Tan
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Born in the United States to immigrant parents from China, Amy Tan rejected her mother’s expectations that she become a doctor and concert pianist. She chose to write fiction instead. In keeping with her love of science in the wild and childhood love of doodling, Tan — who serves on the board of the American Bird Conservancy — took up nature journal sketching in 2016, and now the beloved writer best known for The Joy Luck Club returns to the Amphitheater stage for a week dedicated to “Wonder and Awe — A Week Celebrating Chautauqua’s Sesquicentennial.” She’ll discuss her latest work, The Backyard Bird Chronicles, and the wonder and awe inspired by the natural world.
Tan is the author of The Joy Luck Club, The Kitchen God’s Wife, The Hundred Secret Senses, The Bonesetter’s Daughter, Saving Fish from Drowning, and The Valley of Amazement, all New York Times bestsellers, as well as two children’s books and the nonfiction books The Opposite of Fate and Where the Past Begins: A Writer’s Memoir. Her work has been translated into 35 languages and adapted for film, television and opera.
For her work, Tan has been nominated for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the International Orange Prize. She is also the recipient of the Commonwealth Gold Award, the 2005 Common Wealth Award of Distinguished Service, the 2021 Carl Sandburg Literary Award, and other honors. In March 2022 she was voted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. She was also awarded the 2021 National Humanities Medal by President Joe Biden in a ceremony at the White House.
Tan’s Chautauqua presentation coincides with “Amy Tan’s Backyard Birds,” an exhibition of her nature journals and sketches on display from June 8 to Aug. 25, 2024, at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute in Jamestown, New York.
This program is made possible by The Locke-Irwin Fund and The Kathryn Sisson Phillips Memorial Lectureship Fund.
August 9 @ 8:00 pm Week Seven (August 3–10)
Stephen Sanchez with Special Guest Ray Bull
Amphitheater
![Stephen Sanchez with Special Guest Ray Bull](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/StephenSanchez_TheConnieCoShow_TourAdmat_Web_update.jpg)
Stephen Sanchez with Special Guest Ray Bull
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Stephen Sanchez has materialized at the forefront of popular culture with a sound that’s as timeless as it is necessary for the times. It’s easy to sway into the embrace of his breezy baritone stylings, warm guitar phrasing, and untouchable charisma. His music is also an eternal bright spot illuminated by a belief that the kind of romance and love we used to see on the silver screen is still possible.
Barely in his twenties, the singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer has already enchanted audiences everywhere. His breakout single “Until I Found You” went multi-platinum, vaulted into the Top 25 of the Billboard Hot 100, and generated nearly 2 billion streams powered by the original piano version and duet with gold-certified pop singer and songwriter Em Beihold. He delivered much-talked-about performances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Late Night with Seth Meyers, and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Meanwhile, he also sold out successive headline tours and earned acclaim from Billboard, Consequence, and more. He was even invited by Sir Elton John to perform “Until I Found You” at Elton’s last show ever headlining Glastonbury.
Doors: 7 p.m.
Ray Bull: 8 p.m.
Stephen Sanchez: 9 p.m.
August 10 @ 7:15 pm Week Eight (August 10–17)
Houston Ballet with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
Amphitheater
![Houston Ballet with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/007A0100_Edit.jpg)
Houston Ballet with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
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Rossen Milanov, conductor
With over 50 years of rich history, Houston Ballet has evolved into the country’s fourth-largest ballet company and with a global reach, touring in renowned theaters in Dubai, London, Paris, Moscow, Spain, Montréal, Ottawa, Melbourne, New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Tokyo and more.
Australian choreographer Stanton Welch AM has served as Artistic Director of Houston Ballet since 2003, raising the level of the Company’s classical technique from dance legends such as Sir Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, John Neumeier, and Jerome Robbins. Continuing the legacy of being a choreographic eden, Houston Ballet has also commissioned new works by Aszure Barton, Trey McIntyre, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and Justin Peck. Julie Kent joined Welch as Artistic Director in 2023, after serving as Artistic Director of The Washington Ballet from 2016 – 2023, where she commissioned over 26 world premieres from a diverse range of choreographers as well as several full-length classical ballets. Kent retired as a Principal dancer in 2015 as the longest-tenured dancer in American Ballet Theatre’s 84-year history and is deeply committed to positively impacting artists, audiences, and communities through the transformative power of dance.
Program:
Stars and Stripes: Pas de deux
Maninyas (excerpt)
Sylvia Act I pas de deux
Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux
Madame Butterfly Act I pas de deux
Don Quixote Act II grand pas de deux
This performance is made possible by The Craig and Cathrine Greene Family Fund.
![Erika Woolsey](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Woolsey_Erika_CLS_081224.jpg)
Erika Woolsey
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Erika Woolsey is a National Geographic Explorer, visiting scholar at the Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab, and chief scientist and CEO of The Hydrous, a non-profit dedicated to translating ocean science into public understanding. As a marine biologist, divemaster and virtual reality filmmaker, she loves bringing people to the ocean, in real life as well as virtually. Her work has taken her to coral reefs around the world, and now her specializations in ocean science, education, virtual reality and design bring her to the Amphitheater stage to open the Chautauqua Lecture Series week on “Water: Crisis, Beauty and Necessity — A Week in Partnership with National Geographic.”
Woolsey is the creator of award-winning ocean extended reality (XR) experiences, including “AR Reef” (an augmented reality experience created in partnership with The Smithsonian, Adobe and The Hydrous); “Immerse” (a 360-degree/3D film); “Explore” (an interactive VR experience developed for research with the Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab and the National Science Foundation); and “Expedition Palau” (a shared, synchronized, immersive reality experience). She has authored more than 20 peer-reviewed publications ranging in topics from coral reef ecology to social learning in virtual reality, and in 2023 was named as one of 50 explorers changing the world by The Explorers Club.
Woolsey conducted her PhD research in coral reef ecology on the Great Barrier Reef with James Cook University and the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, earned her Masters of Applied Science in Coastal Management from the University of Sydney, and studied biology and art history at Duke University.
This program is made possible by The Barbara R. Foorman Science Literacy Endowment.
What Will Your Chautauqua Institution Experience Look Like?
![Robert George and Cornell West giving a lecture together](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/062623_RobertGeorgeCornellWest_JK_01-2.jpg)
Learn
Expand your horizons with lectures, classes, and commune with others looking to do the same.
![Rossen Milanov conducting the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/080823_CSOAugustinHadelich_CL_04-2.jpg)
Experience
Be inspired by a performance by our own Opera and Theater companies, the symphony orchestra and more!
![People playing pickleball](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/081023_Pickleball_JK_01_v2.jpg)
Relax and Recreate
As a pedestrian community, recreation and relaxation are built into the fabric of daily life at Chautauqua alongside offerings on our fields, courts, fairways and lakefront.
![Two men talking on a bench](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/071823_GeneralPhotoWalk_DM_09.jpg)
Connect
This is a place where life feels full of kindness, hope and possibilities. Chautauqua’s multi- and interfaith commitment means regular chances to hear from, learn from and engage with people of different faiths, including those who profess no faith tradition.
Plan Your Experience Today
No matter how long you plan to stay, a Chautauqua Institution experience is one you won’t soon forget. Use our experience planner to make booking your next visit simple.
![The Athenaeum Hotel](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/DSC_1425.jpg)
Where to Stay
From the Athenaeum Hotel to countless private rental properties, Chautauqua offers accommodations for all needs and tastes.
![](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/073016_SixStars2_CB_01-fotor-202309269410.jpg)
Gate Passes and Tickets
Your Gate Pass is your passport to the Chautauqua experience. All patrons need a Gate Pass during the Summer Assembly season.
![People enjoying drinks around a fire at 3 Taps](https://www.chq.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/072221_ThreeTaps_Sunset_DM_01-1.jpg)
Eat, Drink & Shop
Chautauqua Institution’s historic and picturesque grounds are open throughout the year for shopping, dining and exploring.
How Will Your Family Experience Chautauqua?
From family-friendly enrichment classes, day camps, performances and entertainment, our summer retreat is sure to inspire wonder and curiosity.
Stay Up to Date and Discover all Chautauqua Institution has to Offer
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