A first time, unique collaborative program between The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival and Philadelphia Young Playwrights is being offered to homeschooled teens in the area. This program will be a combination of the Shakespeare Festival's highly successful residency program and the Young Playwrights' equally successful playwriting program. The two will join forces to work with homeschooled teens for ten weeks this spring.The program will meet for 1 1/2 hours over a ten week, consecutive period with experienced actor, director and teaching artist Aaron Oster. The teens will start out by examining how comedy works, using examples from Shakespeare's The Two Gentlemen of Verona. They will spend several interactive sessions looking at the conventions and stock characters employed by Shakespeare. Then.....the students will be guided by Aaron in the writing of their own comedic scenes (and possibly entire plays...time permitting). During the last sessions additional professional actors and actresses will attend to give feedback and the entire program will conclude with performances of the student-created scenes by the professional actors and the students for an audience.
Aaron Oster has been a freelance theater director, performer, dramaturg, designer and educator in the greater Philadelphia area since 2003. He teaches regularly for The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, Philadelphia Young Playwrights, the Wilma School Studio and Wilmagination programs. Aaron has a Master of Fine Arts degree in Directing from Ohio University and he is currently an adjunct faculty member in West Chester University's Department of Theatre and Dance.
Area homeschooled teen groups have participated in the each of the programs offered by the Shakespeare Festival and the Young Playwrights in the past and have had highly rewarding experiences. This will be a groundbreaking and exciting opportunity to work with both highly regarded organizations together.
Program details:
When:
Wednesdays from 2:30-4pm
March 5, 2008 through May 7, 2008
Where:
The Free Library of Haverford Township
1601 Darby Road, Havertown, PA 19083
Cost:
$125 per participant for the entire ten weeks
To register:
contact Debby Rosan at rosandb@earthlink.net
Payment must be made via check made payable to:
PHILADELPHIA YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS
Mail payment to:
Debby Rosan
217 Trent Road
Wynnewood, PA 19096
Deadline: February 24, 2008
PLEASE CONTACT DEBBY WITH ANY QUESTIONS.
