Schools Shakespeare Festival
The annual Shakespeare Schools Festival South Africa (SSFSA) kicks off in George on Friday 31 August at the Oakhurst Insurance George Arts Theatre and continues until Sunday 2 September.
After huge success at Cape Town theatres, the SSF, now in its 8th year, continues to roll out nationally from 24 August. The SSFSA is an educational programme aimed at improving language and social skills through the performing arts.
George Arts Theatre manager Heather Stead said, "A Shakespeare play in a professional theatre is a challenge for young learners, one that they clearly relish, and the SSFSA is an ideal way for youngsters to explore their acting prowess and theatrical potential in a fun, developmental way. At the same time they make their theatre debuts on professional stages in a non-competitive environment".
The SSFSA is fully interactive and provides guidance and resources for the writing of scripts, training, staging, technical aspects, rehearsals and postproduction feedback. Thus, learners and educators are equipped to successfully direct and perform their Shakespearean plays. Locally, aspirant actors fared very well last year and Stead was gratified at the lively interest shown in the event.
Participating schools prepare and perform 30-minute abridged versions of the Shakespearean plays, using creative and artistic license to produce innovative amateur dramatic work on local stages.
Performances are open to the public. For more detailed venue and booking info, please e-mail info@educape.co.za.