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     It has been said a person can't know the trials of another unless he has walked a mile in his shoes.

      After 10 weeks of research, the Henderson Young Chautauquans are ready step into the shoes of their chosen historical figures by performing 20-minute, first-person stories throughout the school year.

      Sponsored by the Henderson District Public Libraries, the Young Chautauquans' first performance in Boulder City on Aug. 30 was the first public step toward mastering their character's look, speech and mannerisms while overcoming a bit of stage fright.

      "I think by the end of the program, I'll actually be able to get up and talk in front of people," said Megan Darington, who portrays Martha Jane Canary. "I can do anything in front of people except for talking."

      For the Basic High School sophomore, the tough frontier woman -- popularly known as Calamity Jane -- was a departure from Darington's normally shy demeanor. Aside from Jane's personality, she was very uneducated, which posed an obstacle for Darington, who's an honor student.

      "I have a bigger vocabulary than she did, so it's hard to decide what words she would've used," Darington said.

      Where Darington sees performing as Jane as "a half an hour where I don't have to be me," Tony Knobel found inspiration to join Brown Middle School's drama club underneath Benjamin Franklin's wig.

      "After I (performed), I felt more relieved," the eighth-grader said. "I thought it was going to be worse than it actually was."

      Unlike some of his fellow Young Chautauquans, Knobel did his research on the inventor, author and diplomat in the library.

      "It's harder (to research) on the Internet because there's a lot of untrue things," Knobel said.

      Despite living in a world of computers, video games and television, Kasidy Seegmiller, a sixth-grader at White Middle School, found her character's life on a Midwest farm more eventful than life in a growing city.

      "My life is nothing compared to hers," Seegmiller said. "Every minute of hers was exciting."

      Lisa Sich, facilitator for the group, and volunteer Armida Inman helped guide the children and McCaw Elementary School teacher Janet Bremer through their research and practices, but as the characters were presented, the group made suggestions and dispersed advice, Sich said.

      "History has never been my best subject, so I'm learning, too," Inman said.

      Bremer, who is working on Nevada mining pioneer Marie Louise Mackay to present at her school as part of the McCaw School of Mines, looks at the group as a student and a teacher.

      As a student, she received feedback on her performance from her classmates, and as a teacher, she marveled in the children's knowledge and gave them confidence to speak in front of an audience -- something she does daily.

      "The audience isn't going to remember the dates," Bremer said. "The audience is going to remember the characters and the stories.

      "It's not the costume but the presence."

      The Henderson Young Chautauquans will perform as Abraham Lincoln, Franklin, Mackay and Jane at the Galleria at Sunset mall Sept. 22 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Eleanor Roosevelt, Wilder, Annie Oakley and Albert Einstein will be presented Sept. 23 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. All performances will take place on the mall's food court stage.

      Those interested in performance schedules or becoming a Young Chautauquan can call Sich at 567-3672.