New York State Funding for Arts Education Partnerships - SAP

Lakeland High School with Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival

Over eight weeks, a team of six professional actors performed scenes from Othello and Romeo and Juliet. Ninth and tenth graders who were studying the plays in English class then experienced the texts as actors, working with the professionals to gain a greater understanding of the story, character, and language of the play. Through warm-ups and games students learned about the technical aspects of dramatically presenting text, and were challenged to question the meaning of the text as actors do, developing a dramatic understanding of Shakespeare's language. Throughout the residency, the students worked in pairs, small groups, and as a whole class, collaborating as actors do as part of an ensemble. Students teamed with classmates to analyze a scene and make staging decisions. Each group shared its scene with the class.

Perhaps the most important learning was the idea that that Shakespeare is not some dead guy locked in a book - Shakespeare's plays were written to be performed by actors and seen and heard by audiences.

"I thought Shakespeare's work was difficult to understand.  After you both explained ways to visualize and interpret writing, it was exciting . . . I will never read Shakespeare the same way again!"  -  Alyssa My favorite thing was seeeing people who are usually quiet take hold of the task and get really into it."  --  Michelle "You gave me a different outlook on actors and actresses and how hard their job actually is."  --  Liz

"You inspired me to want to act. . . I was born a star!"  --  Alexa "Before, I really wouldn't do that kind of stuff in front of the class, but then I realized not only that everyone else was doing it, but also that it put life into life, if that makes sense to you."  --  Paul