Tag Archives: drama for kids

Summer Drama Camp in 1-week – a Simple How-To Guide

By | | ,
Leave a comment
summer drama camp fun

Recently I have been contacted multiple times on how to run a 1-week summer drama camp and questions around it. So, I figured I would write a post on how to do it and hopefully help any others who want to get kids excited about Shakespeare and drama!

First of all, YES, yes you can do it. It’s easier than you think. Secondly, YES, yes the kids CAN MEMORIZE all their lines by the end of the week. I’ve taught a summer drama camp over 20 times and haven’t found a kid who couldn’t be successful yet!

Continue reading →

EMPATHY – Part 8 of Why Drama is so Important in School

By | |
Leave a comment

Part 8 of the 12 part series: Why Drama is so important in School. – EMPATHY

happy loverhappy lover Continue reading →

Create a Performance Playbill

By | | ,
Leave a comment

This is a short post about an activity you can do with your kids as you get ready for the show.  As many of … Continue reading →

Creative Performance Ideas

By | | ,
Leave a comment

This is a quick post about a couple ideas that are awesome, and all credit goes to an amazing homeschool mom, Amy.

Recently Amy directed her … Continue reading →

Character Line Quantities for Playing With Play Books

By | | ,
2 Comments

Over the years, I have taught EVERY single one of our plays, most of them multiple times, and some of them at least 20 times…. (Hamlet, Midsummer, R&J, Caesar, Macbeth…). But, one of the best tools for me to use is the Character Line Quantities spreadsheet to help me with casting.

A teacher asked me recently, “why don’t you share that?” Which I gladly did. But it hit me, why don’t I share this with EVERYONE?

There’s nothing like casting a play. Trying to figure out dynamics of who can synergize with whom; what characters will pull the most … Continue reading →

Backyard Shakespeare – A Homeschool Experience

By | | , , ,
1 Comment
backyard Shakespeare

Backyard Shakespeare. What is that, you may ask. Well, it’s a very ingenious and creative way to engage homeschooled kids with Shakespeare, education, language arts, drama, and most importantly, fun!  

I recently had the privilege to teach a group of 7 kids Playing With Plays The Tempest for Kids and we had a BLAST! Best part, we did it in the backyard of a house of one of the homeschooling families.  Their deck was a natural stage. So, a few costumes, a few scripts, a few rehearsals, and BAM! We’ve got a fun, melodramatic Shakespeare play performing in … Continue reading →

Shakespeare Festivals

By | |
Leave a comment
shakespeare festivals

Traveling soon and have kids? Well then, there is no better time to stop by a Shakespeare Festival. Family trips can be mundane and boring on the road, However, there are great ways to mix this up. You can play road games, you can stop by random bizarre sites along the way like a giant blue ox or motels made out of teepees or my favorite, Ted Drewes Frozen Custard (BEST. ICE CREAM. EVER). Or you can stop somewhere fabulous for some great Shakespeare! Guess what!? In most cities you can find great Shakespeare Festivals pretty easily!

Educators always say, and I’m … Continue reading →

Portable Sides for Easy Stage Productions Anywhere!

By | | ,
Leave a comment
Figure 9 - complete assembly

So, I teach Shakespeare for Kids classes all over the place, and most venues I teach at do not come with stages. I’ve performed in gyms, dance rooms, dojos, boyscout meeting areas, and classrooms. One thing is consistent, I need a place for the actors to go “off-stage”. That is why I created easy-to-assemble sides, built to travel and make an instant performance space!

Below are the simple instructions for the inexpensive and portable sides. Once created, these sides take about 10 minutes to put up and take down, which makes them GREAT for quick performances like Continue reading →

Crystal Ball for Caesar – Magic 8-ball!

By | | ,
Leave a comment
magic 8-ball

So, I always have fun and do my best to work the laughs for the audience in my melodramatic Shakespeare for Kids plays.  That’s certainly true with my performance of Julius Caesar for Kids! I used one specific prop to get some laughs. The Magic 8 Ball! (find it here on Amazon) That’s right, the soothsayer came out to warn Caesar about the “Ides of March” and then pulled out the Magic 8-ball to prove it so! The audience loved it, and, more importantly, the kids loved using it! Fun for all!

Enjoy! Continue reading →

Long John Silver Wooden Leg

By | | ,
Leave a comment
Wooden leg sock set

Wooden leg sock setWooden leg sock setSo, I recently did the play, Treasure Island for Kids, and it was an absolute blast. However, when it came to … Continue reading →