‘Playing with Shakespeare’ Workshop at Chandler

Discover your "inner Bard" at a "Playing with Shakespeare" workshop Sunday, July 27 from 3-5 p.m. at the Chandler Center for the Arts in Randolph. This special summer program will feature four professional actor/teachers from New York City who will conduct a workshop with a performance.

The two-hour workshop will introduce participants to the world of Shakespearean acting, including speaking the text and playing the character. After sharing the secrets that every classical actor knows, the actor/teachers will get participants up on their feet and onto the stage. There will be fun exercises, word games and even a chance for participants to join in the performance with the actors in the late afternoon performance.

The workshop is the brainchild of actor Jamie Ward, who has performed in New York City for 20 years and in Vermont for the last five years.

"This is a chance to know what it’s like to be a part of an acting troupe, to speak and understand the words of the greatest of English playwrights," Ward said. "There always seems to be such a mystery surrounding Shakespeare’s text, but we hope to get people on their feet, and speaking the words, moving with the play’s flow, understanding it and making it their own."

The workshop will be followed by a performance at 5 p.m., featuring the songs, sonnets, monologues and famous scenes from the plays of William Shakespeare. The performance is open to the public and will be followed by a potluck dinner in the Chandler upper gallery.

To get involved, get some verse and get into the world of Shakespeare, call 728-9878 or email outreach@chandler-arts.org. It is recommended that participants be over age 10. Younger participants must be accompanied by an adult. The registration deadline is July 21.

For more information contact Betsy Cantlin at 728-9878 or outreach@chandler-arts.org.

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