First Lady Michelle Obama with Chelsea High School student Shana Brown and Melissa Friedman
of Shakespeare Remix. Photo: Steven E. Purcell
Some aspiring playwrights got to visit the White House last week when their after school program received an award from First Lady Michelle Obama.
The Epic Theatre Ensemble's Shakespeare Remix program, which works with teens in seven City high schools, won the national Coming Up Taller prize at a ceremony recognizing outstanding after school arts programs.
Shana Brown, a senior at Chelsea High School, performed a soliloquy at the ceremony and delivered the keynote address. “Before this program I had never read Shakespeare before, I had never even seen an actual play, but three years later I'm writing them,” she said. “It helped me realize the joy I get when I see my writing come to life and opened my eyes to a talent I never knew I had.”
Working with artists, teens in the after school program learn to understand Shakespeare, discuss critically major dramatic themes, incorporate their own writing into new interpretations, and finally rehearse and perform the playwright’s work.
“These students are performing Shakespeare's language with meaning, with truth and with courage and they are bridging these plays to their time with their own words,” said Melissa Friedman, director of Shakespeare Remix.
Catch the troupe’s upcoming productions of Macbeth in December and February. Visit http://www.epictheatrectr.org for more information.
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