Muhlenberg County Public Libraries will present the next in their series of Kentucky Chautauqua programs on April 13.
Actor Kevin Hardesty will present his show, “Daniel Boone: The First Kentuckian,” featuring a script by Bo List, at Thistle Cottage as part of the ongoing Thursdays at Thistle series of programs. The event begins at 7 p.m.
Hardesty’s presentation will help separate fact from myth surrounding Daniel Boone’s life. While the intrepid explorer never actually wore a coonskin cap and was neither a backwoods bumpkin nor an epic slayer of Indians, as legend would indicate, he did play a crucial role in the foundation of our country.
Daniel Boone is widely known as a great frontiersman during the early years of our nation. A natural leader, he first began seriously exploring Kentucky in 1769 and in 1775 conducted an expedition into the Kentucky wilderness that led to the founding of Boonesboro in present-day Madison County. He was followed by other settlers who made their homes in what would eventually become the state of Kentucky.
Boone is famous for many fantastic exploits: the rescue of his daughter from Indian kidnappers; his own escape from captivity to warn Fort Boonesborough of an impending attack; leading the defense of the fort against a nine-day Shawnee siege and more. Boone ran a tavern in Limestone (now Maysville) and later served as a delegate in the Virginia Assembly. He left Kentucky for Missouri in 1799 and died there in 1820.
This program will be Hardesty’s second visit to Thistle Cottage. He previously portrayed Jefferson Davis at a 2016 Chautauqua program.
Hardesty is an accomplished actor. He has a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in acting/theater from the University of Kentucky and has performed professionally in theater, film and television over the last 30 years. His credits include prominent leading roles in Biloxi Blues, Hamlet, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet as well as his work with the Kentucky Chautauqua program.
Hardesty’s script is written by Bo List, who has more than 20 years of experience as an actor, writer and director.
This is a free event, and light refreshments will be provided.
This program is part of the library’s Thursdays at Thistle series, featuring speakers, musicians and other performers once each month.
Thursdays at Thistle is provided by Muhlenberg County Public Libraries with funding from the Felix E. Martin Jr. Foundation. For more information about this or other upcoming programs, call the library at 270-338-4760.
Kentucky Chautauqua is an exclusive presentation of the Kentucky Humanities Council, Inc. with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and from: Christina Lee Brown, the Brown-Forman Corporation, the Carson-Myre Charitable Foundation, the Cralle Foundation, the Elsa Heisel Sule Foundation, Lindsey Wilson College, Morehead State University, Paducah Bank, PNC and Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America, Inc.
The Kentucky Humanities Council is a non-profit Kentucky corporation affiliated with the National Endowment for the Humanities. For more information, visit kyhumanities.org or call 859-257-5932.
