As anyone who does any kind of educational work can tell you, kids can be awfully cute. And the emails, letters, and surveys we get here at Cal Shakes from conservatory campers, residency students, and Student Discovery Matinee attendees range from the sweet to the surprising, the inspiring to the painfully adorable.
The illustration to the right, from an Oakland middle schooler, falls firmly into all four categories. Click on the thumbnail to see the detail with which the student depicts Shana Cooper’s 2011 production of The Taming of the Shrew. Anyone who saw that show—as this student did as part of a Student Matinee audience—will instantly recognize the scenes and the actors! My personal favorite is the caption “MEAN MEETS CRAZY!” (And she obviously knows what she’s talking about when she squeezes in “Cal Shakes iss [sic] the place for go [sic] theatre!”)
I’m involved in a research project to quantify the impact of Shakespeare on writers and playwrights from 1616 (the year Shakespeare died) to the present. To learn more about this project, visit http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/937963725/shakespeares-impact-on-literature.
Please share this with others who are interested in Shakespeare’s work.