GA Shakes Curriculum

Georgia Shakespeare's NEW

Center for Theatre Education!

Here at Georgia Shakespeare, we believe that classic works, from children's stories to Shakespeare, are timeless. We have created a curriculum that takes the youth learner, aged 3 to 18, through all of the major classic stories. Through exploration, play, and acting, we can help enhance your student's artistic side, language arts skills, and world view, as we discover one of the most exciting time periods in English speaking history!

The best part is that all class participants get up on their feet and learn about acting at the same time, and there is always a performance for friends and family on the last day!

Note: All classes comply with Georgia State Performance Standards in Language Arts and Social Studies, as well as the National Standards for Arts Education.

Curriculum developed by Brooke Collins, Education Associate.

Puck's Playhouse (3-5 yr olds)
Pre-schoolers with parents play together in castles, create magical forests with play dough, and play silly games to create a safe, fun, interactive and creative environment.

Kindergarten-2nd Graders

From Fairy Tales to Dr. Seuss
Kids read and bring to life classic fairy tales and poetry like Stone Soup, The Sky is Falling and Green Eggs and Ham by creating scenes and a craft to help tell each story.

Queen Elizabeth's Time Travelers
Kids discover the interesting differences between our world today and Shakespeare's world in the 16th century. The use of games, music, and crafts allows the kids to have an awesome time while exploring one of the greatest time periods in English speaking history.

Bugs, Flowers, and Shakespeare!
Shakespeare and science. The two were meant to be! From flower poetry in Midsummer and Hamlet, to bugs, monsters, and stars in The Tempest, this great class will enhance your child’s scientific senses while secretly exposing them to some of Shakespeare’s most beautiful speeches.

Say it like Shakespeare *Final Performance Class
The kids ensemble comes together to discover the power of poetry, rhythm, and theme, and create a new piece based on a chosen sonnets. Literature choices can include Dr. Seuss, Silverstein, and other famous children’s poets, including Lois Burdett’s Shakespeare books for kids.

3rd-5th Graders

Shipwreck!!!
Cast members become the crews of pirate ships and the British navy, as we discover the famous water plots and scenes from Shakespeare's The Tempest, Twelfth Night, Pericles and Comedy of Errors.

The Language of Laughs
Shakespeare coined the phrase, "laugh yourself into stitches!" Your kid will laugh, hoot, and holler as we explore four of Shakespeare's famous comedies! The cast will perform scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Taming of the Shrew, Much Ado About Nothing, and As You Like It on the final class day.

Way Cool Classics
Classic children's stories come alive as the kids perform scenes from Treasure Island, Alice in Wonderland, Robin Hood, and The Secret Garden. The cast also helps to create a collaborative scenic design that helps bring the stories off of the page on the final performance day.

Playmaker's Performance *Final Performance Class
Our talented kids come together to rehearse and perform one of Georgia Shakespeare’s famous 45-minute cut scripts, specifically cut to be performed by 3^rd – 5^th graders, while still keeping Shakespeare's language in tact! Possible titles include A Midsummer Night's Dream, Twelfth Night, Comedy of Errors, and Romeo and Juliet.

6th-8th Graders

The Tragedian's Tragic Travels
Kids explore Shakespeare's tragic heroes and heroines through games, scenes, improv and stage combat. Discover Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and King Lear with a modern twist.

Stage Combat for Kids
Kids learn fight choreography with a certified fight captain while exploring, blocking, and performing the big fight scenes from Romeo and Juliet, Twelfth Night, and Macbeth!

It's All Greek To Me!
Shakespeare coined the phrase, and based many of his stories on Greek myths and folklore. Come discover some famous Greek plays and the beginnings of theatre, as well as some of Shakespeare's famous scenes that incorporate the Greek legends. Scenes from both time periods will be performed on the final day!

Improv for Kids
Improv is not just full of fun and a good time; it supports the basics of acting! Improv is also a main componant of acting and theatre training for 6th-8th graders, as defined in the National Standards for Performing Arts. It is the perfect artistic class for the "non-actor," as it is primarily theatre games and developing the "think on your feet" skill. Come play!

Shakespeariance *Final Performance Class
Kids come together to explore and conquer the world of Queen Elizabeth, Shakespeare the Man, and Shakespeare the Writer in a collaborative and newly created 45-minute piece just for them, by them. All aspects are guided and directed by a professional teaching artist, but all of the content is their own (excpet for when they are speaking the speech of Shakespeare, of course!).

9th-12th Graders

Acting N' Shakespeare
Students dive into the wacky world of Shakespeare and his contemporaries. Discover that it isn't as hard as you think it is, learn some of his more famous texts, speeches, and scenes, and meet new friends, all at the same time! This class is a pre-requisite for our teen performance class, The Shakespeare Connection, which performs on Georgia Shakespeare's mainstage in the spring of each year.

Audition Technique
Want to be an actor? Then auditioning is your profession! Let us help you prepare for the next big audition at school, or for the audition at the college of your dreams. In a group setting, students are able to learn from each other, as well as support each other, through a hard and challenging aspect of theatre. Classical and non-classical pieces are used.

Stage Combat, Level One and Two
Teens get a chance to train with a certified fight instructor to learn the basics of different styles of fighting for theatre, including hand to hand, rapier and dagger, and quarterstaff. In level two, class participants get to learn choreography in two person fights, as well as group fights. Most learned fight scenes will be based in Shakespeare's work, so students get to learn what it is like to continue with dialogue and characterization while maintaining a safe fight scene and atmosphere.

Shakes, Rattle, and Role! (A musical theatre / Shakespeare class)
Shakespeare and musicals go hand in hand, with famous plays like West Side Story (Romeo and Juliet) and Kiss Me Kate (The Taming of the Shrew). Teens get a chance to work with a professional musical theatre actor, as well as learn and perform scenes, songs, and dances from these legendary Shakespearean musicals! Students can also develop their own work with sonnets and long speeches, incorporating the rhythms of the piece with the rhythms of music and dance.

The Shakespeare Connection *Final Performance Class
Class members focus on two of Shakespeare's plays, one comedy and one tragedy, and connect to the themes and characters through modern acting, movement, and song styles. Based on the chosen plays, the ensemble works together to create an original performance piece through the group's unique and personal perspective, and puts Shakespeare's words into action! The final performance is presented in the evening on Georgia Shakespeare's mainstage. *This class is offered each spring, but requires the pre-requisite of either Acting N' Shakespeare or Shakes, Rattle, and Role!