Seniors Showcase Their Thespian Skills in Hamlet Performances

12/14/2018

Famous lines from Hamlet echoed throughout Estherwood on Thursday, December 13, as seniors performed various scenes from one of Shakespeare’s most beloved plays in the School’s iconic mansion.

After reading and studying Hamlet, students in English classes taught by Bob Cornigans, Miriam Emery, Lisa Green and Paul West were asked to approach the play from a new perspective — that of directors and actors. The seniors personalized their scenes and honed their acting skills with guidance from professional actors from The Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival (HVSF), who visited with the students over the course of several weeks.

During an initial visit, the HVSF actors performed two versions of a Hamlet scene and discussed with students the choices they made to execute each one. Over the next two weeks, students engaged in activities designed to encourage risk-taking and creativity as they crafted original visions for their scenes and characters. “Fun is part of the point with this activity,” said Lisa Green. “We want students to engage playfully both with Shakespeare and with each other. But students also gain new insights into Hamlet’s complex language and themes as part of the process — it stretches them intellectually as well.”

The project culminated with a performance of Hamlet in Estherwood on Thursday, December 13, during which students engaged in talkbacks with an audience of peers, teachers and the HVSF actors.

The English Department first collaborated with HVSF on the Hamlet Performance Project in 2007, and it has since become an annual fall tradition.