SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – The Taylor Creek Visitor Center kicks off its summer evening programs on Saturday, July 11, 2026. Chautauqua presenter Steve Hale returns to the Lake of the Sky Amphitheater to perform in first person and dressed to impress as marketing genius millionaire Stephen T. Mather, creator and first Director of the National Park Service in 1916. Ken Burns called America’s National Parks “America’s Best Idea” and credits Mather as the visionary genius and “obsessed” leader who created the National Park Service (NPS) in August 1916.
“Mather” invites you to travel with him on his extraordinary life’s journey with a box of all-purpose Borax cleaner that propelled him to create the U.S. National Park Service whose professional Rangers preserve, educate, illuminate, and inspire all who visit our national parks now and in future generations. Mather’s foresight continues to preserve the diversity and grandeur of America’s landscapes, history, and culture that has grown to 433 units encompassing 85 million acres coast to coast from Arcadia to Independence Hall Historic to Yosemite National Parks. He’ll tell us how his 1919 visit to Fallen Leaf Lake added Visitor Interpretation as an integral part of the mission for the National Park Service.
The performance is from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the amphitheater. Admission is free though $5 donations are accepted to support future programs.
