With just six weeks until the 2018 Bard on the Beach season opens, registration is open for the return of its annual Young Shakespeareans Summer Theatre Camps and Teen Workshops. Camp and workshop sessions begin July 3, running through to August 31, 2018, allowing youth from ages 8 to 18 to receive coaching by professional actors from Bard on the Beach, and perform some of Shakespeare’s most beloved works under the famed white tents in Vanier Park.
“Shakespeare’s words are read and analyzed in English classrooms around the world, but we often forget a simple fact: These plays were never meant to be studied.” says Mary Hartman, Director of Education. “With Young Shakespeareans we actively and imaginatively introduce growing minds to these plays, giving young people the tools to make these timeless tales their own through performance. It is endlessly inspiring to see the perspective that new generations bring to these stories, and that more than 400 years later, Shakespeare continues to shed light on our lives.”
This season Young Shakespeareans will grow and expand to include The Young Shakespeareans Summer Camps and Workshops consists of 16 distinct sessions, most of which are half-day sessions running for two weeks. This season also introduces, for the first time, full-day options that take participants beyond the world of performance and into production. The workshops centre around one of Shakespeare’s most beloved plays (among 2018 options are Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and more). Over the course of the workshop, professional actors from Bard’s company will help participants bring Shakespeare’s words to life through coaching in voice, movement and dialogue, and with activities designed to boost confidence and foster collaborative relationships. Each session culminates with the opportunity for the young thespians to share their work on Bard on the Beach’s Vanier Park stages.
More than simply developing artistic talent and an appreciation of Shakespeare’s work, the summer camps are dedicated to inspiring and nurturing confidence, creativity, and positive social relationships amongst its youth participants. In more than two decades, the program has contributed to the development of thousands of aspiring thespians, including Bard alumni such as Christine Quintana, Rachel Cairns, and Kayla Deorksen.
For registration and full details about Bard on the Beach Young Shakespeareans Summer Theatre Camps and Teen Workshops and its other community initiatives visit:
bardonthebeach.org/education/community/young-shakespeareans.