There are a few more weeks to register for Spring Break Shakes, Dirt Road Theater's very first spring break performance camp for 11-18 year-olds, featuring the most beautiful comedy of them all, Twelfth Night!
Camp takes place at the Grange Hall Cultural Center in Waterbury and will run from 9:00-4:30 Monday, April 18th- Friday April 22nd, with our final performance at 1:00 on Saturday, April 23rd. Strict Covid safety protocols will be in place. Payment is available on a sliding scale, and both payment plans and sibling discounts are accepted. Please direct any questions to Maren at maren@dirtroadtheater.com. To register, visit our website: dirtroadtheater.com/camps
WHY SHAKESPEARE?
While it's true that Shakespeare's language can be a mouthful, the process of making it your own as an actor is one of the most joyful there is! Shakespeare is funny, he is weird, he is dark, and most magically of all, he's surprisingly relevant to us in our own messy human lives today. As an actor and a teacher of Shakespeare, I have often found his clear, fully-realized characters and storylines almost simpler to act than more modern ones.
WHY TWELFTH NIGHT?
Like many of Shakespeare's comedies, Twelfth Night is a complicated mixture of levity and depth, darkness and humor. Love, in all of its humorous and poignant forms, is woven throughout the storyline, and the characters- some earnest, some ridiculous, some mysterious- are a really passionate and complicated bunch and a fun challenge for the actors who portray them. In addition, Twelfth Night explores gender identity and the various ways that characters are able to free themselves (or attempt to free themselves) from the restrictive boundaries of gendered norms.
WHAT WILL THE CAMP BE LIKE?
Throughout our week together, we will dig into Shakespeare's story and explore how to bring it to life through rich character development, a study of the language, and an emphasis on collaboration and communication. Our final production will be organized to showcase the actors and the story, and while it will be fully staged in the Grange Hall theater, we will be heavily focusing on the process of making the story real and of creating the world itself, rather than spending time on production elements. This camp will be rigorous and fast-paced, and is intended for those with previous acting experience – though a background in Shakespeare is not at all necessary!
I NEED MORE INFO!
For a written summary of the play: https://www.shakespeare.org.uk/explore-shakespeare/shakespedia/shakespeares-plays/twelfth-night/
Character List and descriptions: https://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/twelfthnight/characters/
For a short video summary of the play:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPQAUs0YRYcTo
To read the whole play: https://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/play_view.php?WorkID=12night&Scope=ent[...]=pl
WHAT ABOUT COVID?
We will be doing everything we can to ensure the health and safety of our actors and audience members! Actors will be masked throughout the whole process, transitioning to clear masks for the performance. Audience will be limited in size to allow for spacing between pods, and masks will be required.