Teaching with [The Sourcebooks Shakespeare]

The plays in the Sourcebook Shakespeare series contain all that a teacher might desire in making Shakespeare come to life in the classroom. Because drama is dynamic by its very nature, it is limiting in the extreme to restrict the class to only reading the text. Performance must always be kept in the forefront of every classroom experience in all drama--including Shakespeare. I have the class read the text, and then we discuss the emendations and glosses. When we are familiar with the play and the dramatic conventions, we begin to "act the text." That is, we listen to the different interpretations offered to us on the excellent CD that accompanies every text. When I determine that the class is beginning to understand interpretation (it's OK to experiment with the play), we begin to act it ourselves. The class can then engages with the text in three ways: reading, watching/listening, and finally acting. Sourcebooks gives our students all three--a beautifully explained text, a CD that provides access to historical performances, and a text that can easily "double" as play script--giving the students the chance to experience playing with the language and with the ways in which the play might be performed. Thus language, usually the greatest barrier to Shakespeare--becomes the center of every students' understanding!

Audio performance comparative essay:

Write an essay comparing the various performances of the scene and how these performances change your interpretation of that scene.  What is the actor/actress emphasizing in his/her speech or dialogue?  What mood is being created through the performance? 

Focus on language and listening to the words.  Have the students read a passage by themselves and record their thoughts and understanding of that particular passage.  Then have some of the students read the passage out loud in front of the class.  Have them record their thoughts and interpretations of the scene after the reading.  Play the various audio excerpts of the scene for the class.  Have them record and discuss how the audio performances changed their perspective of the scene.

Pop culture – Group project – putting Shakespeare into a current context:

Ask the students to read Douglas Lanier’s essay “In Popular Culture.”  Instruct the students to create their own version of a scene, be it through a song, image, or performance that incorporates current issues being addressed by the themes of the play.  Use the Popular Culture essay for ideas of incorporation and adaptation. 

Performance Reviews Research exercise:

Choose a performance mentioned in the production notes, audio CD, or photos and research reviews of that particular performance.  What do the reviewers focus on from that performance?  Is there something about that particular performance that stands out in the reviews?

Performance portion of the unit – use photos, performance essays, and audio to discuss how performance changes the interpretation of a play

Take notes directly in the margin of the books – collect the books for participation points

The accompanying audio CD allows you to have several different productions in one place so that the students are able to hear two or three interpretations of the same scene.