The old folks in the wheelchairs in the back of the room were slumbering, chins bumping chests, when Don Komar started tinkering with his piano. Lenny Kaye started blowing his sax and Anita Smith broke into a snappy version of “Silver Bells,” and no one was sleeping anymore. One elderly gentleman in baggy blue pants and a red shirt got so inspired that he rose from his chair and started dancing with his nurse as the rest of the audience clapped and cheered.

Senior Circuit shows feature folk musician Steve Rosen and tap dancer Bobby Rubenstein, who perform as “Steppin’ Tunes,” with 89-year-old tap dancer Jimmy Payne as emcee; the Alyo Children’s Dance Theatre, with modern dancer Tommy Gomez, 75, as emcee; and either storyteller Kathleen Visovatti or the Komar Trio, with Horn, who’s 86, as emcee. Underwritten by a grant from the Hulda B. and Maurice L. Rothschild Foundation, the Senior Circuit is nearing the end of a pilot phase that began in October and will run until late December. Cole hopes to raise enough money to offer year-round entertainment in north-side nursing homes.

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“A lot of the people don’t want to be here. They’re used to their independence. You shouldn’t just lock people in a home when they get old and forget about them. My thing is to get them out as much as possible. We go to museums or the planetarium or wherever. Some of the people don’t want to go with you. They’ll say, ‘I just want to stay home.’ But I don’t let them get away with that. I say, ‘Come on, we’re going. Let’s get out of here.’”

“I got my start here in Chicago. My father used to run the old Green Mill nightclub and I was in grammar school and I won the Herald Examiner’s Charleston contest; after that I was in show business. I’ve been all over the world. I played Vegas. I did the Ed Sullivan Show. I knew Fred Astaire when he was performing with his sister Adele. I knew Rodney Dangerfield when he couldn’t get jobs, he was selling wallpaper. Frank Sinatra and I used to hang around the same talent agency looking for work. A good friend of mine was Ray Bolger. Oh, there were so many of them–great dancers and singers and performers.”

After his tricks, Horn introduced Don Komar, sax player Lenny Kaye, and Anita Smith.

“I got you under my skin,” Kaye crooned.