Shakespeare on the Common Presents Coriolanus

We love Shakespeare! KM LOVES Boston Common! What better combination could we find than Shakespeare on the Common?

This year's play is one that is often noted as the least liked of all of the Bards work - Coriolanus. We knew little of the play before we went - I had explained to KM that it was one of Shakespeare's political dramas and that they had chosen it because of the connection with "The Occupy Movement," but really that was all we knew.

We sat through the performance becoming more and more perplexed and confused scene by scene, act by act. We didn't understand why they were fighting, we didn't understand who the good guy was suppose to be -  or the bad really - and there were a whole lot of rather bizarre side comments that made things even more bewildering.

The stage design, lighting, background, costumes and even the actors were all as good as we have come to expect from the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, but the story itself just left us in a state of puzzlement. We chatted the whole way home about how bizarre it was and were not able to figure out what it was we were missing. We went with a friend who also really loves Shakespeare, but was just as bewildered as we were. I was quite glad that none of KM's friends had been able to make it to the performance with us as I fear it would have turned them off of Shakespeare all together!

The Hokey Pokey - Shakespeare style! - By Jeff Brechlin

The Hokey Pokey - Shakespeare style! - By Jeff Brechlin:

The following is from the Washington Post Style Invitational contest that asked readers to submit "instructions" for something (anything), but written in the style of a famous person. The winning entry was The Hokey Pokey (as written by William Shakespeare).

O proud left foot, that ventures quick within

Then soon upon a backward journey lithe.

Anon, once more the gesture, then begin:

Command sinistral pedestal to writhe.

Commence thou then the fervid Hokey-Poke,

A mad gyration, hips in wanton swirl.

To spin! A wilde release from Heavens yoke.

Blessed dervish! Surely canst go, girl.

The Hoke, the poke -- banish now thy doubt

Verily, I say, 'tis what it's all about.

        -- by "William Shakespeare""

'via Blog this'

Shakespeare Thematic Unit

I have been getting a lot of emails asking about our Shakespeare Thematic Unit, so I figured I would take a few minutes to outline our plan.

KM has been in a Shakespeare group for three years now and since she has a really good grasp on a few plays and a phenomenal understanding of the language, we have decided to cover a good deal of Shakespeare's plays, some better known and some not so much.

We began the summer using the free educational resource kit we got from the National Endowment of the Arts. This kit was incredible!!! KM also spent a good amount of time researching Shakespeare's life by reading Who Was William Shakespeare? and The World Of Shakespeare. We also have been gathering info on all things Elizabethan, utilizing Teacher Created Thematic Unit, discovering the beauty in his sonnets and were lucky enough to be able to attend a  free Shakespeare on the Common performances of All's Well That Ends Well. 

Starting this week we will begin delving into recordings of the plays - all of which can be found on Netflix. Here are the ones we will be covering -

• Romeo & Juliet - 1968
• Romeo + Juliet - 1996
• Macbeth
• Much Ado About Nothing
• Hamlet
• Taming of the Shrew
• Richard III
• Othello 
• O
• King Lear
• As You Like It
• The Tempest
• Merchant of Venice
• Julius Cesear
• Anthony Cleopatra
• Henry V
• Twelfth Night
• Comedy of Errors
• Merry Wives of Windsor
• The Winter's Tale
• Midsummer's Night Dream
• All's Well That Ends Well
• Love's Labour's Lost

Additional Related Films - 

• Shakespeare in Love
• Rosencratz and Guildenstern Are Dead
• Rosencratz and Guildenstern are Undead

Additional Resources - 

• Rocketbooks
• Scholastic's Unlocking Shakespeare Folders

All our lesson plans are done on Homeschool Tracker so if you use it too and would like a copy feel free to ask! I would not recommend this type of intensive program for a child that isn't familiar with Shakespeare and more importantly the language style.

Hammond Castle - a Medieval Castle with a twist!

We went to Gloucester to visit Hammond Castle today. It was a great trip, the castle was definitely a one of a kind experience. Beautiful structures, incredible stained glass, and indoor swimming pool, intricate woodcarvings, and some rather odd modern pieces and inventions from the original owner and designer of the castle John Hays Hammond, Jr. - one of America's premier inventors.

All's Well That Ends Well - Shakespeare on the Common

This was one of the best performances I have seen in quite sometime! It was also KM's very first Shakespeare performance that she was not permforming in!!!

 Before the show she had a great time chasing squirrells and pigeons - you can only truly chase those creatures in the city if you want to have a chance to catch them!!!

I was amazed at the backdrop - seemed to be some sort of metallic surface - and the lightning and mood effects that it caused were incredible! The other coolest thing was that the center stage was on some sort of casters and the stagehands could spin it like a lazy susan! It was the coolest thing I have seen in an outdoor theater space!  

    

   It was a great night and we can't wait to go back next year! 

You Tube Monday - Much Ado About Clips

I am aware that it is Thursday and I had intended for this to be posted on Monday, but it didn't quite work out that way! 

Although it took me over a month, I FINALLY had a chance to get clips from the Young Shakespeare Company's performance of Much Ado About Nothing from 6-11. This is KM's favorite part as i't features her drunken speech -

The audio is a bit off, but you can the gist!

Plays and Parties!

Last weekend was rather hectic, but couldn't have been more fun -

We started off with the Much Ado About Nothing shows Friday and Saturday! KM's performance of Borachio was INCREDIBLE!!! Who knew she could be such a great drunken villian!!! -

Friday they were lucky enough for the weather to hold off so they could have the performance on the outdoor stage.

And although they were not so fortunate on Saturday - I think the performance was even better at the indoor venue!

Then Sunday was the Littles' birthday party mixed with ZPs graduation! The kids had a lot of fun in the bounce house and getting their faces painted -

and I managed to sneak a few shots of the ever elusive older brother -

Looking Ahead to High School - Part 5

If you missed any previous parts HERE is a quick link to them.


This is the third year that KM has been participating in an incredible theater group that focuses on Shakespearean plays. She has been in Romeo & Juliet, Midsummer Night's Dream and is currently working on Much Ado About Nothing.

The fab director that we are so lucky to be able to work with has reworked the original plays, keeping the original language and pentameter, but making them approachable and suitable for this age group. She has learned so much about the language and of course theater skills, but has now asked to learn about Shakespeare and to read the original scripts, so she will be doing a thematic unit on Shakespeare next year which will include his life, sonnets, Romeo & Juliet, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet and Richard III.

We will be utilizing the following resources a free Shakespeare Kit - Shakespeare in American Communities  and the Shakespeare Thematic Unit from Teacher Created Resources as spines for this study. KM really likes and responds well to these interdisciplinary units. We are also planning on watching several versions of each play, other movies that follow the story lines of these plays, and are hopeful that she will be able to continue working with the theater group!