Charlotte’s “Action Shakespeare” Busy With Exciting Projects
New Robinson Distinguished Professor of Shakespeare Studies, Rob Conkie, has revamped the former “Shakespeare in Action” program, bringing exciting projects and performances to students and communities.
Across two weekends, theatre students performed iconic Shakespearean speeches and scenes to festival-goers at the annual Carolina Renaissance Festival.
Students presented a staged reading and discussion of “Enter Nurse, or Loves Labors Won,” in the Black Box Theater – both a sequel to “Love’s Labor’s Lost” and a prequel to “Romeo & Juliet.” (IMG 2 & 3 by Maxwell Martin).
Invited by Charlotte alumna Jennifer Bourne, theatre students brought Shakespeare’s “Othello” to life for Garinger High School students with a staged reading of selected scenes.
Students completed, “O’er-Leaf,” a collaborative artists’ book that was on view during the Department of Art & Art History’s “Generations” 60th-anniversary exhibition, completing a triptych of Shakespeare-inspired, eco-focused art.
The previous projects in this series included an outdoor performance of “King Lear” and a “Cymbeline” inspired piece exploring the climate crisis. Brought to life by Art & Art History professor Kristin Rothrock, this project began with a prompt from Conkie that was then reimagined by students Amiyah Gibbs-Jones, Eunice Martinez Morales, Flor Rodriguez, Lena Shakhtour, and Zoe Turner.
What an exciting semester for our Action Shakespeare students. Stay tuned for more projects and performances, including a contemporary re-imagining of Shakespeare’s classic production, “Measure for Measure,” March 20-23 in the Belk Theater.