Coming soon …
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Welcome to Julius Caesar
A question that was discussed frequently during our rehearsal process was “Who is the villain?” Our conclusion: we’re not sure! Productions of Julius Caesar often seek to make a certain type of political statement, and indeed, one recent production cast an actor who resembled Obama in the title role, while another used an actor who resembled Trump. We all agreed that we did not want to take that route. Trying to tie Cassius, Brutus, Antony, or Caesar to a particular belief system, political party, or public figure would only lead our audience to, perhaps, assume that they know whose side they should be on – it’s so much more interesting to live in the ambiguity.
For us, one of the most interesting and important “characters” was the crowd AKA The Citizens. It’s fascinating to see how quickly and easily they switch their loyalties. Listen carefully to the funeral speeches of Brutus and Marc Antony – whose side would you be on?
The play opens as The Citizens celebrate the Feast of Lupercal. We discovered that the current celebration of Mardi Gras has its roots in the ancient festival. You might notice a few nods to that connection in our staging!!
Our Players are taking on the monumental challenge of telling this story. What can you do to support them? While you are in the performance space, please keep your phone off and give them your full attention.
But before you turn your phone off, we encourage you to click here to read a synopsis of the story
Dramatis Personae
In Order of Appearance
Flavius, a tribune … Dash Kirkley, 12
Marullus, another tribune … Katya Pontell, 14
A Carpenter … Harrison Washburn, 10
A Cobbler … Teddy Lukas, 12
Julius Caesar, a general … Simon Manfredi, 11
Casca, a Conspirator … Arrow Hudson, 13
Calpurnia, wife to Caesar … Pierra Rozen-Nowac, 13
Marc Antony … Alexander Gumpert, 12
A Soothsayer … Harrison Washburn
Brutus, friend to Caesar … Kairo Pontell, 12
Cassius, a general … Hannah Gumpert, 14
Decius Brutus, a conspirator … Veronica Sefrioui, 13
Cicero, a Senator … Pierra Rozen-Nowac
Cinna, a conspirator … Dash Kirkley
Lucius, Servant to Brutus … Harrison Washburn
Metellus Cimber, a conspirator … Katya Pontell
Trebonius, a conspirator … Teddy Lukas
Another Conspirator … Pierra Rozen-Nowac
Portia, wife to Brutus … Veronica Sefrioui
Servant to Caesar … Katya Pontell
Artemidorus, devotee to Caesar … Pierra Rozen-Nowac
Servant to Antony … Pierra Rozen-Nowac
Servant to Octavius Caesar … Katya Pontell
The Citizens … The Ensemble
Cinna, the Poet … Arrow Hudson
Octavius Caesar, successor … Pierra Rozen-Nowac
Lepidus, one of the Triumvirate … Simon Manfredi
Clitus, aide to soldier … Katya Pontell
Claude, the Poet … Arrow Hudson
Titinius, a soldier … Dash Kirkley
Messala, friend to Brutus … Veronica Sefrioui
Pindarus, bondsman to … Cassius Arrow Hudson
Cato, a soldier … Arrow Hudson
Dardanius, servant to Brutus … Teddy Lukas
Strato, friend to Brutus … Simon Manfredi
Julius Caesar Production Team
Julia Walker Wyson, director
Kila Packett, director
Addison Templeton, Artistic Associate
J. Bailey Burcham, Technical Assistance
Special Thanks to
Zissy Rozen @zissyspaine – Prop Design
And to the Parents of our Players for their invaluable support and encouragement throughout the process
Shakespeare Youth Festival
Julia Walker Wyson, Artistic Director
J. Bailey Burcham, Executive Director
Shakespeare Youth Festival: LA 2020
Join us March 7 through March 29
We are heartbroken to announce that, due to COVID-19 restrictions, our 2020 season was cut short …
All performances will take place at the Lounge Theatres
6201 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90038
Comedy of Errors
What would you see if you really looked?
A broken family involving identical twins seeks each other out two decades later and takes a roller coaster ride from hell before hitting the jackpot.
Shipwreck. Twins. More Twins. Witches, gold and angry wives.
Saturday, March 7 at 2 pm
Sunday, March 8 at 2 pm
Saturday, March 14 at 2 pm
Sunday, March 15 at 2 pm
Twelfth Night (or What You Will)
If only love were under your control.
The Bard Normalizes Dysfunction while having a few laughs.
Saturday, March 7 at 6 pm
Sunday, March 8 at 6 pm
Saturday, March 14 at 6 pm
Sunday, March 15 at 6 pm
Troilus & Cressida
The tangled web that happen when love and war are intertwined.
Greeks and Trojans in Love. Oh My. Love.
Fight. Love. Lose. Grieve. Rest. Repeat.
Saturday, March 21 at 2 pm
Sunday, March 22 at 6 pm
Friday, March 27 at 7 pm
Saturday, March 28 at 2 pm
Measure for Measure
Never delegate.
Friday, March 20 at 7 pm*
Saturday, March 21 at 7 pm°
Sunday, March 22 at 2 pm*
Saturday, March 28 at 7 pm°
Sunday, March 29 at 2 pm* & 6 pm°
* the Justice Cast ° the Mercy Cast
This program is supported in part by a grant from:
Help support Shakespeare Youth Festival: LA
Producing a theater festival costs money, and registrations and ticket sales cover only a portion of those costs. Your donation helps us keep the cost of tuition and registration low, makes the experience of performing in the Festival available to any and every child in Los Angeles, and assures that we can perform in a real theater, with lights and sound, dressed in beautiful costumes!!
Two Shakespeare Comedies
TWELFTH NIGHT
This play makes both the actors and the audiences very happy … and we strive to please you every day. With a hey, ho, the wind and the rain!
COMEDY OF ERRORS
Two identical twins and their two servants (also identical twins) are separated in a ship-wreck. When, years later, they all show up in the same town, mistaken identities abound.
SATURDAYS – 3:00 PM TO 5:00 PM
Rehearsal begins: October 12th
Winter Break: December 15 – January 5
Potential additional rehearsals *
Sunday, February 23; Monday, February 24; Wednesday, February 26; Thursday, February 27; Sunday, March 1; Monday, March 2; Wednesday, March 4; Thursday, March 5
* Please note: we will not rehearse all of these dates. Once the shows are cast, we will publish a final rehearsal schedule for each show. To assist us in scheduling, please note any conflicts with these two weeks in the space provided in the registration form – thank you!
Performances: March 7 & 8, March 14 & 15
Rehearsal location – World City Center (3911 W Adams Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016)
Tuition: $625
We believe that every child who is drawn to this work should be able to participate, so we offer a variety of scholarships – click here for the application form and guidelines. Please do not hesitate to apply!
This class is full – to be placed on the waiting list, please email losangelesdramaclub@gmail.com
Troilus and Cressida
This play (like Cymbeline) is not on the Greatest Hits list, but we love it! T&C tells the story of the “heros” of the Trojan War (Achilles, Agamemnon, Hector, and others less well known). It swings wildly between bawdy comedy and epic tragedy, and the audience is not always sure how to feel about its complex characters!
Yet another instance where Shakespeare truly wrote into the future, this play is packed with issues that are very relevant to a middle school/high school cast. While we will treat them in a manner appropriate for the ages involved, parents should be aware that the play involves some mature topics, and we suggest reading a synopsis, and discussing any concerns with us prior to registering.
SATURDAYS – 1:00 PM TO 3:00 PM
Rehearsal begins: October 12th
Winter Break: December 15 – January 5
Additional rehearsals (tentative):
Sunday, February 23; Sunday, March 1; Monday, March 9; Wednesday, March 11; Monday, March 16; Wednesday, March 18;
Performances: March 21 & 22, March 28 & 29
Rehearsal location (tentative) – World City Center (3911 W Adams Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016)
Tuition: $625
We believe that every child who is drawn to this work should be able to participate, so we offer a variety of scholarships – click here for the application form and guidelines. Please do not hesitate to apply!
REGISTER
Measure for Measure
Laws that tread just a little too far into people’s personal lives. Sanctimonious officials who, behind closed doors, are guilty of the same sins they decry. Constant debates on whether people are hopelessly debauched … or just trying to live their true selves. Shakespeare truly did write into the future!
We can’t wait to explore this knotty play with our teens – it’s the first time LADC has tackled it!!
While we will treat them in a manner appropriate for the ages involved, parents should be aware that the play involves some mature topics, and we suggest reading a synopsis, and discussing any concerns with us prior to registering.
TUESDAYS – 4:30 PM TO 6:30 PM
Rehearsal begins: October 15th
Winter Break: December 15 – January 5
Additional rehearsals (tentative):
Sunday, February 23; Sunday, March 1; Thursday, March 12; Thursday, March 19
Performances: March 20, 21 & 22, March 27, 28 & 29
Rehearsal location – Catch One (4067 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90019)
Tuition: $625
We believe that every child who is drawn to this work should be able to participate, so we offer a variety of scholarships – click here for the application form and guidelines. Please do not hesitate to apply!
This class is full – if you’d like to be placed on the waiting list, please email losangelesdramaclub@gmail.com
The Tempest – with New West Charter
Join us for one of Shakespeare’s most magical plays!!
A shipwreck, a mysterious island, kings, sprites,
monsters, power grabs … and repentance!
Tuesday, June 4
Thursday, June 6
at 7:00 pm
Lyric Theatre
520 N. La Brea Ave, Los Angeles 90036
Suggested Donation: $10 at the door
Shakespeare Youth Festival 2019
WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE…
March 9th through March 31st, 2019
All performances are held at the Lyric Theatre – 520 N. La Brea, Los Angeles 90036 (map)
As You Like It
Two worlds…Power-hungry Duke Frederick runs his kingdom on paranoia and mistrust – his reign is dark and oppressive. His brother, Duke Senior fled that world (to save his life), but left his daughter behind. When the two Dukes’ daughters, along with their trusty jester, escape to follow him to the Forest of Arden, it’s like they’ve landed in Oz – they discover a colorful Carnival of eccentric artists just looking to love and be loved!
Saturday, March 9 at 2 pm
Sunday, March 10 at 2 pm
Saturday, March 16 at 4:30 pm
Sunday, March 17 at 2:00 pm
RESERVE TICKETS
Cymbeline
You have probably not seen Cymbeline, and if you have, you have NEVER seen our Cracked Fairy Tale Version, complete with a two-foot high Storybook and all sorts of other surprises. Mistaken identity? Of course. Girls dressed as boys? Duh. Long lost family members reuniting? Aren’t there always? Young love torn apart by class issues? Hello?! Machiavellian tricksters? Goes without saying. Epic Battles? Um, yeah …Jupiter descending from Olympus in the last act last to lay it out? Have you met Shakespeare?!
Saturday, March 16 at 1:00 pm
Sunday, March 17 at 5:00 pm
Saturday, March 23 at 4:00 pm
Sunday, March 24 at 1:00 pm
Henry IV
Henry IV (One and Two) is so much more than a History Play – it’s really a Humanity Play: a day in the life of the Haves and Have Nots, a King’s regrets from his sickbed, Good Son/Errant Son/Redeemed Son, a Father’s Cowardice, a Son’s Overcompensation, Substitute Families, the funny, bittersweet antics of Pub Life… and those Spell-Casting, Tree-Hugging Welsh…come on! Our Elder Players (age 14-17) are by now, quite excellent at this stuff, as some have been at it since age six. Come witness these young masters – for some, it will be their last performance with LADC before heading off to college.
Saturday, March 23 at 12 noon
Sunday, March 24 at 4:30 pm
Saturday, March 30 at 2:00 pm
Sunday, March 31 at 2:00 pm
Shakespeare at GALA
It’s the Battle of the Sexes!!
Four young men decide to make a pledge to avoid young women … for the sake of becoming more intellectual and contemplative? Really? Any chance that could work? When four young women arrive on the scene, maybe, just maybe, the young women could actually inspire them to become better men. A whole pack of hilarious and crazy characters (including more females roles than pretty much any other Shakespeare play!!)
Read more about Love’s Labors Lost here!
For more than 10 years, Los Angeles Drama Club has been working with Los Angeles youth ages 6-17 from all backgrounds. We use the exploration and performance of Shakespeare’s work to foster self-esteem, creativity, literacy and excellence in every aspect of our Players’ lives.
We begin rehearsals on February 7th, so don’t delay!!!!
Thursdays from 3:30 to 5:30 pm
Starting February 7th
Final Dress Rehearsal TBD (May 14 or 15)
We will also be scheduling one weekend rehearsal, and several small group/private rehearsal sessions.
Performances (tentative): May 16 & 17
Tuition: $200.00
(We believe that every child who is drawn to this work should be able to participate, so we offer a variety of scholarships – click here to apply for a scholarship. Please do not hesitate to apply!)
Please email losangelesdramaclub@gmail.com with any questions ….
We look forward to working with you!