Free Family Matinee Series

​Presented by Essentia Health
Big Top isn’t just about big-name artists. We’re a non-profit organization with a mission to present cultural activities that are both entertaining and educational. 

​Each year we bring the world to our stage with several free matinée performances... some of which happen to be big-name, national artists.

Everyone is welcome, and no one needs a ticket – just show up!
Free Family Series Events
Riding The Wind
Sun. June 16, 2024 at 1:00pm
Riding The Wind
Sun. June 16, 2024 at 1:00pm
The show that started it all! Created in 1985 by Warren Nelson and Betty Ferris, “Riding The Wind” was the first show performed on the Big Top Stage and 38 years later it remains a season highlight.

Ride the winds of time as you experience "illuminated musical history" of Bayfield and the Island Environs, with secrets of Red Cliff and Old LaPointe. Original music, evocative story-telling, and spectacular visuals lead you through a journey with lighthouse keepers, the Ojibwe, dreamers and schemers, voyageurs, fishermen, and more. Warren Nelson's original songs from this show have become classics. Come see it with friends for the first time or as so many have done, see and hear it again and again and again. Riding the Wind never loses its magic.
Songs & Stories of the Anishinaabe
Sat. June 22, 2024 at 1:00pm
Songs & Stories of the Anishinaabe
Sat. June 22, 2024 at 1:00pm
Join Michael Charette (Laughing Fox) and Severin Behnen for an eclectic afternoon that features musical vignettes from their celebrated creations The Seven Grandfather Teachings and Anishinaabe Dibaajimowin: An Ojibwe Story. Charette & Behnen will be joined by members of the BCO as well as drummers, singers & dancers from Bad River and Red Cliff. Mixed with traditional drumming, the team’s original compositions accompany the age-old stories and teachings of the Anishinaabe.
23 Skidoo & The Secret Agency
Sat. July 6, 2024 at 1:00pm
23 Skidoo & The Secret Agency
Sat. July 6, 2024 at 1:00pm
The Secret Agency is an interactive and inspiring hip-hop experience for families everywhere. Tapping into their GRAMMY winning original catalog from rapper and hip hop artist, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo, this electric ensemble combines the highly literate lyrical style of golden age hip hop with soul, funk, reggae and storytelling.

Hip hop has always been about bringing different elements together to create a powerful artistic union. The Secret Agency represents this through the diversity of its members, each of whom come from different backgrounds and bring unique skills to the show. From musical theater graduates to battle champions, they all unite under the original purpose of hip-hop culture: Peace, Love, Unity, and Having Fun! Onstage, rhymers with deft styles and deep vocabulary trade verses with singers whose harmonies are as sweet as they are strong. The dancers' acrobatic moves mesmerize the crowd and keep kids on their feet during dance contests and jams. The Secret Agency encourages kids to be proud of their own unique individuality, and remind grownups how exciting, scary, and beautiful it is to be young.
The Okee Dokee Brothers
Sat. July 13, 2024 at 1:00pm
The Okee Dokee Brothers
Sat. July 13, 2024 at 1:00pm
Justin Lansing and Joe Mailander may be GRAMMY Award-winning folk musicians, but when you meet them, it’s clear they’re just doing what they’ve been doing since they were three years old. As childhood friends growing up outside of Denver, Colorado, Justin and Joe were always exploring the outdoors. They channeled their adventurous nature into their wildly popular albums - Can You Canoe?, Through The Woods, Saddle Up, Winterland, and Songs For Singin’ - and ended up in the hearts of American families everywhere. They’ve inspired countless, plaid-shirted fans to get outside, get creative, and sing in harmony along the way.

Joe and Justin record and perform family music with a goal to inspire children and their parents to step outside and get creative. They believe this can motivate kids to gain a greater respect for the natural world, their communities, and themselves.

The five-time Parents’ Choice Award winners have garnered praise from the likes of NPR’s All Things Considered and USA Today, and have been called “two of family music’s best songwriters.”
Mináǧi kiŋ dowáŋ (My Spirit Sings):
A Zitkála-Šá Opera
Sat. July 20, 2024 at 1:00pm
Mináǧi kiŋ dowáŋ (My Spirit Sings):
A Zitkála-Šá Opera
Sat. July 20, 2024 at 1:00pm
Mináǧi kiŋ dowáŋ (My Spirit Sings in Dakota): a Zitkála-Šá Opera is a cinematic opera that tells the remarkable story of Zitkala-Ša, a Yankton Nakota woman. Created by an all-Native team and all Oceti Sakowin singers, this film entrancingly captures Zitkala-Ša’s legacy, from her boarding school days to her iconic Sun Dance Opera, and her activism in Washington D.C.

Through Dakota words and original music, this 30-minute film challenges and decolonizes the traditional boundaries of opera and shows the possibilities of Native storytelling. Zitkála-Šá was a writer, musician, educator, and political activist. She was one of the most influential people in the country during the early 20th century with multiple published works, performances in the Oval Office in 1900, wrote an opera in 1913, and co-founded the National Council of American Indians in 1926.

Through stunning cinematography, visual illustrations, and music, the opera leads audiences through some of the most pivotal moments of Zitkála-Šá's life. Additionally, almost a third of the libretto is translated and sung in Dakota.
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Discussion with Lyz Jaakola and appearance by The Oshki Giizhik Singers to follow.
Espiral7
Sat. August 3, 2024 at 1:00pm
Espiral7
Sat. August 3, 2024 at 1:00pm
Afro-Colombian Rhythms meet jazz and pop to create the effervescent Neo-Cali sound of Espiral 7. Discussion with band to follow performance.

Espiral 7 is a band born from the rich rhythmic patterns of Colombian Pacific Coast Folk music, blending Latin-pop, Latin-rock, Afro-Latin music, and more. Their music is a constant dialogue with the diverse arts of the region, creating a genre-defying experience that resonates with a broad audience. On stage, Espiral 7 transforms into a captivating sonic narrative of the city of Cali, delivering an explosive show backed by a powerful live band and compelling animated visuals. With a lineup that includes Tenor Saxophone, Trumpet, Electric Guitar, Bass, Drums, Percussion, and a vocalist who adds her light to the stage, the ensemble creates an immersive and vibrant musical experience.

​The Espiral7 Free Family Matinee was supported in part by a Performing Arts Global Exchange grant from Mid-Atlantic Arts.
Face to Face with Jake Shimabukuro
Sat. August 10, 2024 at 1:00pm
Face to Face with Jake Shimabukuro
Sat. August 10, 2024 at 1:00pm
Enjoy an intimate discussion with Jake Shimabukuro as he demonstrates and speaks to his love for the ukulele. ​Prepare to be wowed and inspired.

Widely recognized as “the Jimi Hendrix of the ukulele,” Jake Shimabukuro has created an international fanbase as a sensational performer whose concerts leave audiences awed, dazzled, and delighted. Strumming with a hummingbird blur, he coaxes an impossibly big sound out of the little instrument, playing an intoxicating mix of pop tunes, American Songbook standards and lilting originals.

In addition to his impeccable musicianship, Jake is also a gifted storyteller, weaving together musical narratives that draw listeners in and leave them spellbound. ​

​“One of the hottest axemen of the past few years doesn’t actually play guitar.” —Rolling Stone Magazine