Actors' Shakespeare Project

Founded in 2004, Actors' Shakespeare Project has produced plays in unconventional venues throughout metro Boston, has launched education and outreach programs, and has garnered outstanding reviews and recognition. At the core of the company’s work is their resident acting company who are actors and teaching artists that approach each play as the centerpiece of a larger community project with adults, teachers, and youth that takes place in schools, neighborhood service agencies, and at facilities operated by the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services. The projects focus on language, relationships, and storytelling through programs that crack the play open in visceral and personal ways and make connections to our lives, including open rehearsals, civic dialogues, workshops, teacher training, play readings, and the company’s Incarcerated Youth at Play program.

As part of Shakespeare for a New Generation, Actors’ Shakespeare Project will bring their production of Twelfth Night, directed by Melia Bensussen, to students from 10 Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville schools with a focus on underserved communities and youth within the Department of Youth Services. Activities will include a Summer Teaching Institute at Salem State College, classroom workshops with the company’s SWAT (Shakespeare Weapons and Tactics) teaching artists, tickets to student matinees, post-performance discussions, and a final festival workshop for multiple schools.