Merry Wives a hit; Hamlet ready to begin
On May 12 and 13, 2009, the high school stars came out when 13 schools joined with the Shakespeare Festival in the sixth annual Metro Youth Shakespeare. Each school troupe performed scenes from The Merry Wives of Windsor that seamlessly transitioned into the next scene, so that the audience viewed a production of the entire play. The audience cheered as each group took the stage, passing along the elements that identified each character – a blue shawl for Anne Page, a beard and padded vest for Falstaff, a white cape for Master Ford. Some schools have participated for years, some were new this year, but all had a semester-long fun, educational immersion in Shakespeare.
The Festival sends teaching artists twice a week to work with the students participating in Metro Youth Shakespeare. Some schools bring in their drama clubs, some, the English department. For most schools, the program is an extracurricular project. However, the students at the St. Louis Homeschool Network and McCluer Senior High School earn course credit, and the program is part of class work at Clyde C. Miller Career Academy and Ritenour High School.
One of the biggest benefits of this program is that students from widely varying backgrounds work together to create this seamless, well-rehearsed production that is open not just to their fellow students but to the general public as well. And it’s not just acting. Students do it all – directing, casting, lighting, costumes, sets, sound design, stage management – as well as in-depth study of the play, Shakespeare, his times, and his poetic structure.
Metro Youth Shakespeare: Hamlet is ready to roll, beginning in January 2010, with ten schools preparing to work together to create that greatest of all plays. Public performances will be 7 p.m. Friday, March 26, at 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, March 27, at Harris-Stowe State University’s Emerson Performance Complex. Please make plans to attend. You will find it worth your while.
For more information on Metro Youth Shakespeare, including how you can have your school participate, click here!
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2009's Metro Youth Shakespeare: The Merry Wives of Windsor. Photos © J. David Levy.