Spotlight on a New Generation: 2007-2008 Season

Nebraska Shakespeare Festival, Omaha, NE

Romeo and Juliet

Nebraska Shakespeare Festival offered a fully-staged, touring production of Romeo and Juliet as part of the Shakespeare for a New Generation initiative. This production was a six-actor adaptation, accompanied by educational programs geared towards middle- and high-school students. These educational programs included workshops and post-performance discussions focusing on the themes found in Romeo and Juliet, such as the power of love and the responsibility toward family, friends, and society when it comes to love. Students who participated in the workshops had the opportunity for hands-on experience with Shakespeare as the actors lead them through a variety of exercises focused on performance and analysis.

"Many of our students cannot afford to attend a professional performance. " - Teacher, Lincoln East High School, Lincoln, NE

Participating Schools

Omaha and Lincoln schools have more opportunities for and access to theater in their communities, but not necessarily within their schools. The schools outside Omaha and Lincoln often do not have access to professional theater. In over half of the communities Nebraska Shakespeare Festival visited, this was their only opportunity to experience live professional theater of any sort, let along with the works of William Shakespeare. Below is a list of schools they company reached through this national initiative.

NEBRASKA

Albion: Boone Central High School

Axtell: Axtell High School

Bellevue: Bellevue East High School

Columbus: Columbus High School

Cozad: Cozad High School

Fremont: Fremont High School

Fullerton: Fullerton High School

Grand Island: Grand Island High School

Kearney: Kearney Catholic High School, Kearney High School, Sunrise Middle School

Lincoln: Lincoln High School, Lincoln East High School, Lincoln Northwest Star High School, Lincoln Southwest High School

Louisville: Louisville High School

Millard: Millard West High School

Minden: Minden High School

Omaha: Burke High School, Central High School, Girls Inc., Morton Middle School, Omaha South High School

Papillion: Papillion LaVista High School, Papillion LaVista South School

Petersburg: Boone Central High School, Boone Central Middle School, St. John the Baptist School

Winnebago: Winnebago Public School

IOWA

Sioux City: East High School

" There were a series of workshops delivered after the performance. The actors spent time discussing vocabulary, grammar, and poetry. The students were enthralled. The method of delivery and direct application to the previously viewed performance left the students with an appetite for the language of Shakespeare." - Teacher, Cozad High School, Cozad, NE

Importance of Initiative

This is Nebraska Shakespeare Festival’s second year as a participant in this national initiative. Below is their response to the importance of such initiatives.

“We believe initiatives such as this one are greatly needed not only in Nebraska but throughout the country. We have seen the power of Shakespeare in performance for young people in our educational programming and our summer Festival; however, the cost of these programs is higher than many schools’ budgets for arts programming. Initiatives such as Shakespeare in American Communities: Shakespeare for a New Generation allow the schools to bring professional theater productions to their students without the added concern of cost. It also provides companies such as ours another opportunity to reach out to young people and share the artistry of William Shakespeare.”

PHOTO GALLERY
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Photos courtesy of Nebraska Shakespeare Festival.