THE GLOBAL HAMLET PROJECT
About the Project
Beginning in 2018, ImprovEd Shakespeare started a worldwide film and theatre production. For more than a year, we learned, shared experiences with, and recorded young people. In addition, we spoke to their educators, and discovered valuable techniques to approaching the Bard of Avon. Altogether, our journey took us across North America, to Europe, Africa, Asia, plus Australia. During a tour which spanned those continents, ImprovEd Shakespeare’s Andee Kinzy sought out and worked with youth in twelve different countries and sixteen separate cities.
Scene by scene and week by week, these youth performers from different cultures added to the ongoing, painful saga on our YouTube web series. Beyond cultural and language differences, each location featured a distinct crop of young players. Yet, all used the Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, as their common thread, to tell the story.
Afterward, we compiled the film Global Hamlet. Our production features students ranging in age between 8-21 years. Not only does the film meld ages, but it also merges levels of experience, as well as multiple languages. Moreover, it includes a vibrant cast of young people from the USA, Germany, South Africa, Israel, India, Australia, the Netherlands, Russia, and England.
13 MONTHS, 12 COUNTRIES, 16 CITIES, OVER 100 KIDS
To begin with, each Episode was divided into three parts and released separately as 3-5-minute videos on our YouTube channel:
- Part 1: Prior to the Shakespeare scene, the first Episode deciphers the story. And it keeps the audience on track as to where we are in the series. By using modern narration, the youth speak directly to the audience, thereby, making you part of the production.
- Part 2: The Shakespeare scene is an abridged version of Shakespeare’s text. Thus, giving the youth the opportunity to play with Shakespeare and putting his language into their mouths. Without a doubt, we believe the best way to learn about Shakespeare is through performance.
- Part 3: Finally, this segment specifically targets teachers, directors, and educators. Significantly, this Episode introduces innovative and creative approaches to Shakespeare. Included among these techniques are theatre games, improvisation, plus advice. All in all, we give those working with Shakespeare and youth insight into unique activities and consequently, help them to breathe fresh life into their work.
THE WEB SERIES ON YOUTUBE
| Location | Website | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Austin, Texas, USA | ImprovEd Shakespeare Company | June 2018 |
| San Francisco, California, USA | Mission Graduates | August 2018 |
| Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA | Philly ALC | September 2018 |
| Montreal, Quebec, CANADA | Repercussion Theatre and Geordie Theatre School | October 2018 |
| Airola, ITALY | ImprovEd Shakespeare Company | November 2018 |
| Berlin, GERMANY | Shakespeare Company Berlin – Shakespeare Kids | November 2018 |
| Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA | Vista Nova Drama Club | January 2019 |
| Jerusalem, ISRAEL | Crossroads Jerusalem | January 2019 |
| Bengaluru, INDIA | Bangalore School of Speech and Drama | February 2019 |
| Sydney, AUSTRALIA | Sport for Jove and Bell Shakespeare | March 2019 |
| Melbourne, AUSTRALIA | Home Education Network | April 2019 |
| Paris, FRANCE | Drama-ties | May 2019 |
| Amsterdam, NETHERLANDS | Six Degrees of Separation | June 2019 |
| St. Petersburg, RUSSIA | Uniye Gospoda Artisti | June 2019 |
| London, ENGLAND | Brent Youth Theatre at the Yellow in Wembley Park | July 2019 |
| Rockland Co., New York, USA | Children’s Shakespeare Theatre | July 2019 |
| Austin, Texas, USA | Govalle Shakespearians | September 2019 |
| Austin, Texas, USA | ImprovEd Shakespeare Company | September 2019 |
Founder and Director of ImprovEd Shakespeare, Andee Kinzy, conducted and directed the Global Hamlet Workshops.
ABOUT IMPROVeD SHAKESPEARE
Each fall and spring, ImprovEd Shakespeare develops a new production for live performance. In honor of the traditional Renaissance traveling troupe, during a period of a few weeks, we present Kid-friendly plays at various venues around town. Our Players, between 3rd-12th grade, gear themselves with playful, as well as engaging interpretations of works by the Bard of Avon. Suitable for all ages, each performance runs for about an hour.
Furthermore, these shows are always FREE. However, we gladly accept Donations! Additionally, visit ImprovEd Shakespeare, Shakespeare for Kids by Kids on Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter. And don’t forget to click on our BLOG for the stories behind these videos.