Award-winning theatre company Sport for Jove, in partnership with The Hills Shire Council, is inviting students from The Hills to work with professional actors on a Shakespeare production.
Exit, Pursued by a Bear is a new work, conceived and directed by industry directors from Sport for Jove, whose experience includes productions with Bell Shakespeare, Sydney Theatre Company and Queensland Theatre Company.
The play will be made up entirely of successful student actors and will become the curtain-raiser to the professional outdoor Shakespeare in the Park season at Bella Vista Farm this Christmas - now an extremely popular annual event in the local calendar.
Hills resident and Artistic Director of Sport for Jove, Damien Ryan, said acting Shakespeare might just change the life of a Hills student.
“Shakespeare’s universal themes and dazzling language are recognised as essential to any good education but, as with vegetables, the things that are good for us don’t necessarily add up to fun,” Mr Ryan said.
“But as any great teacher knows, Shakespeare comes to life on its feet, not behind desks, and Sport for Jove is seeking to prove that Gen Y can love Shakespeare with this exciting new initiative.”
Mr Ryan said: "The Second Age Project takes its name from the famous ‘seven ages of man’ speech in Shakespeare’s comic classic ‘As You Like It’. The ‘second age’, says the Bard, is ‘the whining school-boy, with his satchel and shining morning face, creeping like snail, unwillingly to school’.
“The irony is that 400 years after the phrase was coined, it is Shakespeare’s books that are weighing down that satchel,” Mr Ryan said.
Hills Shire Mayor, Dr Michelle Byrne, is encouraging young people to give the project a go. “If you love acting, having fun and creating something as part of a team, you’ll love this fantastic opportunity,” Mayor Byrne said.
“Bringing Shakespeare to life in the beautiful surrounds of our Shire’s treasure, Bella Vista Farm Park, will be a memorable part of any student’s school years,” she said.
Auditions: Sunday, September 22. Cost: for those selected to participate in the production, a $150 fee applies to fund costumes, sets and props and the Directors’ work. Phone Bernadette on (02) 9439 5683 for details or email: bernadette.ryan@sportforjove.com.au
