SlideShare uma empresa Scribd logo
1 de 3
Baixar para ler offline
See Barton, Grant & More on Civil War Tour
 By Kara Rowland
 Roll Call Staff
 June 3, 2004, Midnight
Why do people stare at Natalie Zanin? Maybe it’s the hoop skirt and bonnet. Or maybe it’s
because she often runs down Tenth Street Northwest alerting passersby that President Abraham
Lincoln has just been shot.
Zanin is founder of Historic Strolls, a theater troupe that performs a variety of interactive
historical tours throughout Washington, D.C. On Saturday, the group will stage its monthly
production of “Courage! The Civil War in Washington,” a 90-minute glimpse of life in the
nation’s capital between 1860 and 1865, featuring a chronological tour of Civil War-era
structures. With regular appearances by contemporary figures such as Clara Barton, Matthew
Brady and Walt Whitman, Zanin and her fellow actors — each decked out in period garb —
bring the past to life with personal anecdotes and obscure trivia.
“I’m just fascinated with stories,” said Zanin, a self-described history buff who recently finished
the script for a new World War II tour, scheduled to debut June 19. “I really enjoy creating
vignettes from the past and showing people little, different slices of Washington history.”
Performed the first Saturday of every month until December, Zanin’s Civil War stroll includes
stops at what was the studio of war photographer Brady, the Barton home, the city’s first post
office and the original City Hall. The tour concludes at the Petersen House, the rooming house
where Lincoln died after being fatally shot at Ford’s Theatre across the street. “People have told
me they’re very moved by that part,” Zanin said. “When I tell that story I just always well up
with tears. I can’t help it.”
To keep things fresh from tour to tour, Zanin said she and her crew of actors make slight changes
to the script, alternating historical characters — “You just never know who you are going to
meet,” she said. For example, on this weekend’s tour, she revealed, participants will encounter
Ulysses S. Grant, Helen Wright and John Wilkes Booth.
For Zanin, who will don a hoop skirt in her fictional role as narrator Demetria Parish, acting is
only half the fun. “I love the research part of it. I love just spending hours cracking the books and
finding obscure facts.” In the past, Zanin’s expertise has landed her a spot on the History
Channel to discuss ghosts in Washington, a topic she will revisit this week for the Travel
Channel.
Zanin said she tries to weave into the script amusing obscurities and little-known facts that
listeners might find interesting. Barton, one of Zanin’s favorite characters, is a good example.
While most people are familiar with Barton’s reputation as the founder of the Red Cross, few are
aware that she also founded the first missing soldier’s office after the war, in addition to later
becoming the first female government employee to receive pay equal to a man’s during her
tenure as a clerk at the U.S. Patent Office. “It’s pretty amazing,” Zanin added.
In her role as Parish, Zanin said she purposefully composed a fictional narrator from the diary
entries of several different people. “I wanted to be anonymous,” she explained. “If you’re
anonymous, you can talk about your life.”
Aside from the “Courage!” tour, the troupe’s repertoire includes “Bad Olde Days,” a “Gangs of
New York”-themed look at late-19th century gang life in the area; “Ah Wilderness!,” a history of
theater in the city; and seasonal productions of “Ghost Story” in October, followed by “Charles
Dickens in Washington” during the winter.
See Barton, Grant & More on Civil War Tour
 By Kara Rowland
 Roll Call Staff
 June 3, 2004, Midnight
“I block out these tours in my head,” Zanin said. “I walk through town and I have all this
research that I’ve done and then I match it to sites. I write a script for the actors, give them lines
and we rehearse it a couple times. Then we throw it out there.”
A former Historical Society of Washington employee, Zanin began acting in community theater
productions on the weekends and now multi-tasks as writer, director and producer of the troupe
she formed in 2002 after leading tours and programs for children at the society’s Heurich House.
“It was going to be part time, but it’s really kind of taken over,” said Zanin, who operates
Historic Strolls out of her home in Silver Spring, Md.
According to Zanin, the size of a tour group typically ranges from 10 to 20, while chartered tours
tend to run larger. The scripts are written to include interaction between characters and audience
members, ranging from trivia questions to scavenger hunts. Zanin added that she is always sure
to bring chocolate for the kids and a popular recipe from the time for parents.
During its two years of existence, the Historic Strolls troupe has encountered everything from
inclement weather and freezing temperatures to being mistaken for protestors. Alice Anne
English, a local actress who has appeared in the Civil War tour as newspaper reporter Jane
Swisshelm and surgeon Mary Edwards Walker, said the period costumes have precipitated
several embarrassing moments.
“Everyone assumes we are city-sponsored tour guides. People come up and ask us for
directions,” said English, who recalled her cell phone going off during a performance and having
a bystander mistake her for a man in women’s clothing. “I must have looked very strange,” she
laughed.
“The worst is when we’ve had to get on the Metro,” Zanin said. “You get two reactions — one
is, people stare. The other one is, people look and then they quickly turn away and are just like,
‘Oh my God.’”
Although Historic Strolls is a for-profit business, Zanin sets aside part of the proceeds from each
tour for various nonprofit organizations, an idea that she said came to her after staring at a jar of
Paul Newman’s Marinara Sauce. “It’s not like a huge sum of money,” she said. “But it was really
cool to go and hand a check to the Red Cross.” Proceeds from Saturday’s tour will be donated to
the Arlington Chapter of the Red Cross.
English agreed that the tours may not be lucrative, but said, “It’s just kind of fun to get people
out of their own cocoon.”
Zanin said her family is getting used to her unusual job. “My husband was an actor when I met
him so he’s very understanding about it.” As for her 4-year-old son, “Every week he’ll say to me,
‘Mommy, who are you this week?’”
When asked if she had any new tours in the works, Zanin immediately replied, “Oh yes. But it’s
top secret.”
Tickets for this Saturday’s “Civil War in Washington” tour are $12 for adults and $6 for
children. Visit www.historicstrolls.com or call (301) 588-9255 for more information.

Mais conteúdo relacionado

Mais procurados

Lecture 11 valentino
Lecture 11   valentinoLecture 11   valentino
Lecture 11 valentinoUN11
 
Erika's IP Multimedia Presentation
Erika's IP Multimedia PresentationErika's IP Multimedia Presentation
Erika's IP Multimedia Presentationerikaschoon
 
The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?
The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?
The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?Merlyn Barnes
 
Portraitof jasonbymiashows
Portraitof jasonbymiashowsPortraitof jasonbymiashows
Portraitof jasonbymiashowsmiashows93
 
Hillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.com
Hillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.comHillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.com
Hillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.comlearnafrica2
 
Impact Statement SV Press Release
Impact Statement SV Press ReleaseImpact Statement SV Press Release
Impact Statement SV Press ReleaseSasha Hatfield
 
Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...
Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...
Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...Jean Bemesderfer
 
✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman
✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman
✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Womanhnyhny2
 
Sojourner Truth - Angelea S
Sojourner Truth - Angelea SSojourner Truth - Angelea S
Sojourner Truth - Angelea Sshimeallspeeps
 

Mais procurados (18)

Lecture 11 valentino
Lecture 11   valentinoLecture 11   valentino
Lecture 11 valentino
 
Erika's IP Multimedia Presentation
Erika's IP Multimedia PresentationErika's IP Multimedia Presentation
Erika's IP Multimedia Presentation
 
The paper
The paperThe paper
The paper
 
The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?
The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?
The Strong Black Woman is dead or is she ?
 
Portraitof jasonbymiashows
Portraitof jasonbymiashowsPortraitof jasonbymiashows
Portraitof jasonbymiashows
 
Is she dead
Is she deadIs she dead
Is she dead
 
Hillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.com
Hillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.comHillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.com
Hillary Hill - Gather.com : Gather.com
 
Impact Statement SV Press Release
Impact Statement SV Press ReleaseImpact Statement SV Press Release
Impact Statement SV Press Release
 
Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...
Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...
Perception and Authenticity: Characterizing the Empress Dowager Cixi's Relati...
 
Civil War Era
Civil War EraCivil War Era
Civil War Era
 
✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman
✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman
✭✢daunlodeu Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman
 
English:The Story Of An Hour Kate Chopin
English:The Story Of An Hour  Kate ChopinEnglish:The Story Of An Hour  Kate Chopin
English:The Story Of An Hour Kate Chopin
 
www-theasy-com[1]
www-theasy-com[1]www-theasy-com[1]
www-theasy-com[1]
 
Themes
ThemesThemes
Themes
 
Sojourner Truth - Angelea S
Sojourner Truth - Angelea SSojourner Truth - Angelea S
Sojourner Truth - Angelea S
 
Wine1
Wine1Wine1
Wine1
 
The Lottery
The LotteryThe Lottery
The Lottery
 
Sell lines
Sell linesSell lines
Sell lines
 

Semelhante a Roll Call article

The 10 most important american plays
The 10 most important american playsThe 10 most important american plays
The 10 most important american playskristyncna
 
The Importance Of Anonymous Sources In Journalism
The Importance Of Anonymous Sources In JournalismThe Importance Of Anonymous Sources In Journalism
The Importance Of Anonymous Sources In JournalismBrenda Zerr
 
Joan Rivers Character Traits
Joan Rivers Character TraitsJoan Rivers Character Traits
Joan Rivers Character TraitsMonique Jones
 
Essay On The Conflict Between Romeo And Juliet
Essay On The Conflict Between Romeo And JulietEssay On The Conflict Between Romeo And Juliet
Essay On The Conflict Between Romeo And JulietSusan Tullis
 
Scars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis Joplin
Scars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis JoplinScars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis Joplin
Scars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis JoplinGina Alfaro
 
Best seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUP
Best seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUPBest seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUP
Best seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUPveer203
 
Best seller of class 9 cbse english
Best seller of class 9 cbse englishBest seller of class 9 cbse english
Best seller of class 9 cbse englishveer203
 
The Bay Area Brony Spectacular
The Bay Area Brony SpectacularThe Bay Area Brony Spectacular
The Bay Area Brony SpectacularYolanda Jenkins
 
The Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the Allens
The Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the AllensThe Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the Allens
The Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the AllensAidan Bean
 
Literary criticism by Juliana Pereira
Literary criticism by Juliana PereiraLiterary criticism by Juliana Pereira
Literary criticism by Juliana PereiraJuliana Pereira
 
Stereotypes Of Women In The Dinner Party
Stereotypes Of Women In The Dinner PartyStereotypes Of Women In The Dinner Party
Stereotypes Of Women In The Dinner PartyMichelle Madero
 
Importance Of Setting In The Luxe
Importance Of Setting In The LuxeImportance Of Setting In The Luxe
Importance Of Setting In The LuxeTheresa Singh
 
Toni Morrison Influences
Toni Morrison InfluencesToni Morrison Influences
Toni Morrison InfluencesKelly Flores
 
The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...
The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...
The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...Kimberly Thomas
 

Semelhante a Roll Call article (20)

The 10 most important american plays
The 10 most important american playsThe 10 most important american plays
The 10 most important american plays
 
The Importance Of Anonymous Sources In Journalism
The Importance Of Anonymous Sources In JournalismThe Importance Of Anonymous Sources In Journalism
The Importance Of Anonymous Sources In Journalism
 
Joan Rivers Character Traits
Joan Rivers Character TraitsJoan Rivers Character Traits
Joan Rivers Character Traits
 
Acts 15 And Galatians Analysis
Acts 15 And Galatians AnalysisActs 15 And Galatians Analysis
Acts 15 And Galatians Analysis
 
The Vista 1
The Vista 1The Vista 1
The Vista 1
 
The Vista 8
The Vista 8The Vista 8
The Vista 8
 
Essay On The Conflict Between Romeo And Juliet
Essay On The Conflict Between Romeo And JulietEssay On The Conflict Between Romeo And Juliet
Essay On The Conflict Between Romeo And Juliet
 
Scars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis Joplin
Scars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis JoplinScars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis Joplin
Scars Of Sweet Paradise The Life And Times Of Janis Joplin
 
Best seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUP
Best seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUPBest seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUP
Best seller class 9 by SUSHANT & GROUP
 
Best seller of class 9 cbse english
Best seller of class 9 cbse englishBest seller of class 9 cbse english
Best seller of class 9 cbse english
 
The Bay Area Brony Spectacular
The Bay Area Brony SpectacularThe Bay Area Brony Spectacular
The Bay Area Brony Spectacular
 
The Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the Allens
The Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the AllensThe Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the Allens
The Strange Sad Story of the Adirondack's Notorious Outcasts, the Allens
 
Literary criticism by Juliana Pereira
Literary criticism by Juliana PereiraLiterary criticism by Juliana Pereira
Literary criticism by Juliana Pereira
 
Stereotypes Of Women In The Dinner Party
Stereotypes Of Women In The Dinner PartyStereotypes Of Women In The Dinner Party
Stereotypes Of Women In The Dinner Party
 
Importance Of Setting In The Luxe
Importance Of Setting In The LuxeImportance Of Setting In The Luxe
Importance Of Setting In The Luxe
 
The Blue Hotel
The Blue HotelThe Blue Hotel
The Blue Hotel
 
Essay On The Lottery By Shirley Jackson
Essay On The Lottery By Shirley JacksonEssay On The Lottery By Shirley Jackson
Essay On The Lottery By Shirley Jackson
 
Best seller
Best sellerBest seller
Best seller
 
Toni Morrison Influences
Toni Morrison InfluencesToni Morrison Influences
Toni Morrison Influences
 
The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...
The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...
The New Way Of Life And Culture On The Lower East Side...
 

Roll Call article

  • 1. See Barton, Grant & More on Civil War Tour  By Kara Rowland  Roll Call Staff  June 3, 2004, Midnight Why do people stare at Natalie Zanin? Maybe it’s the hoop skirt and bonnet. Or maybe it’s because she often runs down Tenth Street Northwest alerting passersby that President Abraham Lincoln has just been shot. Zanin is founder of Historic Strolls, a theater troupe that performs a variety of interactive historical tours throughout Washington, D.C. On Saturday, the group will stage its monthly production of “Courage! The Civil War in Washington,” a 90-minute glimpse of life in the nation’s capital between 1860 and 1865, featuring a chronological tour of Civil War-era structures. With regular appearances by contemporary figures such as Clara Barton, Matthew Brady and Walt Whitman, Zanin and her fellow actors — each decked out in period garb — bring the past to life with personal anecdotes and obscure trivia. “I’m just fascinated with stories,” said Zanin, a self-described history buff who recently finished the script for a new World War II tour, scheduled to debut June 19. “I really enjoy creating vignettes from the past and showing people little, different slices of Washington history.” Performed the first Saturday of every month until December, Zanin’s Civil War stroll includes stops at what was the studio of war photographer Brady, the Barton home, the city’s first post office and the original City Hall. The tour concludes at the Petersen House, the rooming house where Lincoln died after being fatally shot at Ford’s Theatre across the street. “People have told me they’re very moved by that part,” Zanin said. “When I tell that story I just always well up with tears. I can’t help it.” To keep things fresh from tour to tour, Zanin said she and her crew of actors make slight changes to the script, alternating historical characters — “You just never know who you are going to meet,” she said. For example, on this weekend’s tour, she revealed, participants will encounter Ulysses S. Grant, Helen Wright and John Wilkes Booth. For Zanin, who will don a hoop skirt in her fictional role as narrator Demetria Parish, acting is only half the fun. “I love the research part of it. I love just spending hours cracking the books and finding obscure facts.” In the past, Zanin’s expertise has landed her a spot on the History Channel to discuss ghosts in Washington, a topic she will revisit this week for the Travel Channel. Zanin said she tries to weave into the script amusing obscurities and little-known facts that listeners might find interesting. Barton, one of Zanin’s favorite characters, is a good example. While most people are familiar with Barton’s reputation as the founder of the Red Cross, few are aware that she also founded the first missing soldier’s office after the war, in addition to later
  • 2. becoming the first female government employee to receive pay equal to a man’s during her tenure as a clerk at the U.S. Patent Office. “It’s pretty amazing,” Zanin added. In her role as Parish, Zanin said she purposefully composed a fictional narrator from the diary entries of several different people. “I wanted to be anonymous,” she explained. “If you’re anonymous, you can talk about your life.” Aside from the “Courage!” tour, the troupe’s repertoire includes “Bad Olde Days,” a “Gangs of New York”-themed look at late-19th century gang life in the area; “Ah Wilderness!,” a history of theater in the city; and seasonal productions of “Ghost Story” in October, followed by “Charles Dickens in Washington” during the winter. See Barton, Grant & More on Civil War Tour  By Kara Rowland  Roll Call Staff  June 3, 2004, Midnight “I block out these tours in my head,” Zanin said. “I walk through town and I have all this research that I’ve done and then I match it to sites. I write a script for the actors, give them lines and we rehearse it a couple times. Then we throw it out there.” A former Historical Society of Washington employee, Zanin began acting in community theater productions on the weekends and now multi-tasks as writer, director and producer of the troupe she formed in 2002 after leading tours and programs for children at the society’s Heurich House. “It was going to be part time, but it’s really kind of taken over,” said Zanin, who operates Historic Strolls out of her home in Silver Spring, Md. According to Zanin, the size of a tour group typically ranges from 10 to 20, while chartered tours tend to run larger. The scripts are written to include interaction between characters and audience members, ranging from trivia questions to scavenger hunts. Zanin added that she is always sure to bring chocolate for the kids and a popular recipe from the time for parents. During its two years of existence, the Historic Strolls troupe has encountered everything from inclement weather and freezing temperatures to being mistaken for protestors. Alice Anne English, a local actress who has appeared in the Civil War tour as newspaper reporter Jane Swisshelm and surgeon Mary Edwards Walker, said the period costumes have precipitated several embarrassing moments. “Everyone assumes we are city-sponsored tour guides. People come up and ask us for directions,” said English, who recalled her cell phone going off during a performance and having a bystander mistake her for a man in women’s clothing. “I must have looked very strange,” she laughed.
  • 3. “The worst is when we’ve had to get on the Metro,” Zanin said. “You get two reactions — one is, people stare. The other one is, people look and then they quickly turn away and are just like, ‘Oh my God.’” Although Historic Strolls is a for-profit business, Zanin sets aside part of the proceeds from each tour for various nonprofit organizations, an idea that she said came to her after staring at a jar of Paul Newman’s Marinara Sauce. “It’s not like a huge sum of money,” she said. “But it was really cool to go and hand a check to the Red Cross.” Proceeds from Saturday’s tour will be donated to the Arlington Chapter of the Red Cross. English agreed that the tours may not be lucrative, but said, “It’s just kind of fun to get people out of their own cocoon.” Zanin said her family is getting used to her unusual job. “My husband was an actor when I met him so he’s very understanding about it.” As for her 4-year-old son, “Every week he’ll say to me, ‘Mommy, who are you this week?’” When asked if she had any new tours in the works, Zanin immediately replied, “Oh yes. But it’s top secret.” Tickets for this Saturday’s “Civil War in Washington” tour are $12 for adults and $6 for children. Visit www.historicstrolls.com or call (301) 588-9255 for more information.