The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum
Location:
Topanga, CA 
The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum is a professional outdoor repertory theatre located just north of Los Angeles. Through its repertory company, private Academy of the Classics, in-school Classroom Enrichment programs, and flagship School Days Field Trip Program, the company is committed to bringing classic and modern texts to life for audiences of all ages and races and all cultural and economic backgrounds. Founded in the early 70’s by Will Geer, Theatricum has an over 35-year history of introducing audiences to some of our greatest playwrights, such as Shakespeare, Miller, Hellman, Wilder, and Orwell. Led by Artistic Director Ellen Geer, the organization is also a learning laboratory introducing the next generation of students, artists, and audience members to heightened language and universal storytelling. Serving Los Angeles and the surrounding areas, it is a center for the arts of culture and social expression.
As part of Shakespeare for a New Generation, The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum will present The Taming of the Shrew as part of its School Days Field Trip program and A Midsummer Night’s Dream as part of its Classroom Enrichment program. Both programs offer an opportunity for Los Angeles-area youth to experience Shakespeare’s language in an exciting, visceral way that makes a lasting impression. The School Days Field Trip experience begins with an in-class visit by a artist-educator during which students are given background information on the play they will be seeing. On the day of their field trip, students travel to the company’s outdoor amphitheater to see a Living History presentation featuring Queen Elizabeth and William Shakespeare, take two technique workshops (juggling, combat, music, ensemble, etc.), see a full production of a Shakespeare play, and have the opportunity to ask questions of the actors. The Classroom Enrichment program brings an abridge version directly to the school using ten actors with a 55-minute cutting of the script. This is a perfect introduction to Shakespeare for those schools not able to travel to The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum’s theatre. The combination of these programs will serve over 30 schools in the greater Los Angeles and surrounding areas over the course of the 2012-2013 school year.
Company Website:
http://www.theatricum.com 
