ImprovEd Shakespeare’s
JULIA CAESAR
Fall/Winter, 2016-2017

CAESAR – what if He was a She?

After a summer where we brought Witchcraft in Their Lips to the Texas Nonprofit Theatres Youth Conference, and our first Shake Up Shakespeare camp at Austin Scottish Rite Theater, the school year began again. With the political climate, I (Andee Kinzy) felt it was the perfect time for Julius Caesar. The high enrollment from the spring grew even more, so we were able to divide into two casts, each performing their own version. In addition, this project was supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department to more fully develop our all-female productions. Reversing the Shakespearean norm, this all-girl youth cast flipped the genders in the story of JULIA Caesar. A total of eight 12-15 year old girls, several of whom performed multiple roles, produced two stagings. The grant allowed us to hire additional professional artists to work with the players. We performed a traditional version directed by Andee Kinzy at Austin Scottish Rite Theater in November with a dance sequence choreographed by Andrea Ariel. And then in January, as part of Hyde Park Theatre’s Frontera Fest BYOV (Bring Your Own Venue), we had a site-specific production directed by Sarah Loucks for a small audience in an intimate home setting. This one had a dance sequence developed by Tara Alperin of Nuna Maana. The story of Caesar unfolded as the audience moved room to room, inside and outside, with limited periods of standing.