Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Melodrama disguisesp lesson in history

WEEKEND EDITION Oct. 25 - 26, 2003

Pop quiz: What color is the Nevada state flag? When D.E. "Scotty" and Joyce Gosh asked 73 people attending sports events at Sunset Park one Sunday afternoon, they found only 13 knew, so they set out to change that.

They launched a line of coloring and activity books, titled "Nevada Nick's," that aims to enrich children's knowledge of Nevada state history.

Through a nonprofit organization, the Family Traditions Foundation, they publish the books, which also feature word searches, picture coloring, and crossword puzzles.

The title character of their book, "Nevada Nick's Tour of Nevada History," is a costumed 1850s Nevada prospector who teaches children about Nevada history and American traditions.

Gosh believes that teaching history through a fun activity book will result in a greater interest and higher rate of learning.

"What we're doing is teaching, in an entertaining way, the great state of Nevada," he said. "We're letting the kids know that they are Nevadans, and we're teaching them about the beauty and historical background of this great state."

To add to the children's involvement, the Goshes have recently developed a melodrama starring Bill Miller as Nevada Nick. The melodrama, which is being tuned up at Bonnie Springs Ranch, involves a lot of audience participation. Audience members are encouraged to cheer and boo on cue.

For example, when the word "gold" was said during the play, the audience was prompted to yell out, "dust -- heh, heh, heh."

A villain preys on a woman, who must pay him gold to keep her house. The characters appear in period dress and a man plays the woman, because women did not participate in acting during the era.

It also relies heavily on visual gags.

When the woman puts a pail on the villain's head, she then asks, "What's wrong? You're looking a little pale."

Employees of Bonnie Springs Ranch make up the play's cast, which is set to make its debut at Parson and Jydstrup elementary schools on Wednesday.

Miller, who also does gun shows and other entertainment at Bonnie Springs Ranch, said the melodrama is full of comedy as well as educational information.

"I love this show. It is one of my favorites here at the ranch," he said. "It's kind of corny, but that is a good thing for children and adults to both enjoy. When something is funny, you keep focused and interested in what's going on."

Miller said he got information for the melodrama from Nevada Nick's activity books.

"They're great," he said. "Through the books and the melodrama the kids really learn in a fun way where they get to scream and holler."

Gosh's wife added that different props will be used to teach the children about Nevada wildlife, such as the jackrabbit and the beaver.

"We teach the children about the beaver because it is a big reason traders came out to Nevada," she said. "A lot of people came out for beaver fur to make beaver tail hats, which were very popular for the New England region."

The Goshes and cast members say children learn more when they are interested and can somehow get involved.

Jody Clark, a Bonnie Springs cast member and employee said that children learn the best through laughter.

"I think the kids will really enjoy the show, especially seeing a man dressed up like a woman," Clark said. "Kids learn so much from watching grown-ups being silly."

"See, we try to stay true to the time period, so we have men dress like women like they did back then," Gosh said. "It's historically correct and it is also funny for the children to see men dressed like women. They just roar when the see a man in a dress."

But the melodrama also is a wonderful teaching tool for all ages, he added. If children are going to learn about state history, they need to learn young, he said. Clark County public schools teach state history in fourth and seventh grade, which is too late to begin, according to Gosh.

To get children involved at earlier ages, the Goshes designed "Nevada Nick's A thru Z Fun Book" for kids, families and teachers. The book is filled with Nevada fun facts, games and puzzles, and even basics in learning Spanish words.

Joyce Gosh said state history should be one of the first things a child learns.

"Texas teaches history young," she said. "Children need to learn and be able to recognize history to bring pride back into the state. Where I used to teach, everyone knew the state flag, the state bird and those kinds of things."

Joyce Gosh, who is now retired, spent 40 years educating children in Texas while her husband ran their gardening business in Houston and Austin. While volunteering at Nevada schools, she noticed that the Nevada state flag was rarely hanging on school properties, which is something she wasn't used to.

The Goshes say they while they, like most Nevadans, are transplanted here from another state, they were eager to learn about the state's history.

"We just knew that we had a mission," Scotty Gosh said. "We didn't know what kind, but we knew that we were meant to move away and do something good."

Gosh says he and his wife are fulfilling their goal with the history activity books and will continue for years to come.

"We really have achieved something," he said. "We are working hard to achieve our vision, which is promoting and preserving Nevada and American history, customs and traditions in fun and entertaining ways so that all children, regardless of race, creed, or color, may live happy productive lives in a peaceful atmosphere."

The Family Traditions Foundation has recently pubished the fourth edition of "Nevada Nick's Tour of Nevada History" and is currently working on a new book for preschoolers titled "Beautiful Nevada is Your Home.'

To order activity books or get information about Nevada Nick's melodrama, contact Scotty and Joyce Gosh at 873-3551. Information is also located on the web at nevadanick.com.

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