Young Shakespeare Players East Spring Production Info:
“the readiness is all…” The program welcomes all young people ages 7-18 to join the production of Julius Caeser. There are no auditions or rejections, all participants will receive one or more substantial speaking roles. Interested and want to learn more? Join the intro session at The Shea Theater on Wednesday, January 21 from 4-7pm.
Rehearsals sixteen weeks on Sundays (10am-4pm) & Wednesdays (4-7pm) at the Shea Theater.
Tuition is $500, scholarships available. Contact Suzanne Rubinstein for more information of if you have a conflict on January 21: suzanne@ysp.org or call 802-258-7922. Registration forms available online, www.youngshakespeareplayerseast.org
Young Shakespeare Players East Program info:
Can kids ages seven to eighteen do Shakespeare? Yes, uncut and unbelievable. The Young Shakespeare Players (YSP) East is a non-profit theater program where young people perform full-length, original works of Shakespeare. YSP East is proud to be the first ‘chapter’ of YSP outside of Madison, WI where the program was founded in 1980.
After a successful Fall 2014 debut in Turners Falls with YSP East’s two casts enjoyed performing Twelfth Night to four full-house performances at the Shea Theater, the Players are now looking forward to their upcoming program, Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, beginning Wednesday, January 21, 2015.
Nearly 2060 years ago, the most famous assassination in human history — the killing of Julius Caesar — changed the world forever. More than 400 years ago, Shakespeare’s great play about the clash of public duty and private ambition changed even the way we speak and write: “Friends, Romans, countrymen,” “Beware the Ides of March,” “The unkindest cut of all,” “There is a tide in the affairs of men,” “It’s Greek to me,” etc. This great play has been called “one of the absolutely essential texts for true literacy in Western culture.” It is also always one of the most satisfying and beloved productions for Young Shakespeare Players actors and audiences.
Young Shakespeare Players East Method
At the Young Shakespeare Players East there are no auditions or rejections. Every participant who registers receives one or more speaking roles. The program is dedicated to exploring these masterful works as they were written, without modernizing or editing—and thanks to the unique method developed by Richard DiPrima— young people perform with complete understanding.
DiPrima noticed years ago that most programs for children underestimate their ability to think deeply and work hard. At YSP it is our job to say to young people ‘you can use this marvelous material with your own marvelous minds.’ YSP actors don’t simply memorize their lines. They study the meaning of every word they speak. “We are in the age of texting and tweeting,” he says. “We can’t lose the thing that makes us most human, our language.”
“I am pretty sure I have learned more from thirteen productions at YSP than thirteen years at school,” says Mara Hoyt, a veteran YSP East actor. She continues, “YSP has taught me that it doesn’t really matter what other people think of you – leave your embarrassment at the door.”
Each production has multiple casts. During rehearsals, one cast is on stage performing a scene while the rest of the actors help direct by watching and listening with extraordinary care, and commenting constructively on the performance. At YSP, the young people teach each other.
“Being able to produce a full length Shakespeare play with kids our age is amazing. It’s a tremendous community” says YSP East actor Annabelle Fitch. Another veteran actor, Anan Eisenstein Bond expresses that her favorite parts of YSP are “learning to be on stage and making new friends. It’s like a whole new life.”
So, if you are between the ages of seven and eighteen and would like to join the Young Shakespeare Players East this spring the Young Shakespeare Players East will welcome you, as their motto is ‘the readiness is all’ from Hamlet.