On Thursday, February 26, Lincoln Middle School will be hosting the Portland Stage Company for a touring performance of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at the school. After the performance, students in grades 6 – 8 will engage directly with the actors and the play’s text in interactive workshops that put Shakespeare’s language into the hands and mouths of students.
The touring performance by Portland Stage, one of Maine’s largest professional, nonprofit theaters, is part of its Directors Lab educational program, in which professional actors perform a 50-minute adaption of a Shakespeare play, following by a talkback. “Directors Lab puts Shakespeare’s language into the hands and mouth of the students, empowering them to be the artists, directors, and ensemble with the power to interpret the text and produce meaning,” according to Portland Stage’s website.
The Portland Stage visit to Lincoln is funded by a $1,500 Equity and Innovation Grant that Lincoln performaing arts educator Dana Legawiec received from the Foundation for Portland Public Schools (FPPS). FPPS provides up to $1,500 for PPS staff-led projects that foster classroom innovation, enhance learning and advance equity.
“We are excited and grateful for this grant to bring Portland Stage to Lincoln!” said Legawiec. “Hosting a profesional theater company for both a performance and workshops durig the school day creates a unique and layered opportunity for all our learners. This opportunity also aligns with multiple student-centered goals outlined in the Straegic Plan, “Legawiec noted. “It supports the Equity goal through access to the arts for all students. “In addition, students experiencing the thrill of live perfomance and working with theatre professionals from the local community to elevate their voices, choices and creative expression aligns with the goal of Whole Student. Finally, by experiencing Shakespere ‘on their feet,’ students gain a sense of confidence and ownership over Shakespeare’s poetic images as they grapple with the elevated language, which accords with the goal of Achievement.”
Lincoln Middle School is located at 522 Stevens Avenue, Portland. The performance begins at 9:20 am.