2012 Shakespeare Monologue & Scene Contest

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Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest

This popular winter event attracts more than 1,000 students annually to perform the works of William Shakespeare on stage at the O'Reilly Theater. The contest is open to students in grades 4-12. Students may enter the monologue contest, scene contest, or both. Students compete in the upper division (grades 8-12) or the lower division (grades 4-7). Contestants present their pieces on the Public's main stage in front of a panel of judges. Those who advance to the final round of the contest have the opportunity to perform at the Showcase of Finalists. All participants receive a contest t-shirt and a voucher for two complimentary tickets to a Public Theater production. The Public also offers free orientation sessions for first-time participating teachers and their students.

Congratulations to our 2011-2012 Shakespeare Contest Winners

LOWER DIVISION

Emily Basset, Winchester Thurston School

Rosalind, As You Like It

Dominic Skeele & Emily Appel, Slippery Rock Area Elementary School

Elizabeth & Richard, Richard III

UPPER DIVISION

Sara Williams, City Charter High School

Helena, A Midsummer Night's Dream

Tal Kroser, Pittsburgh CAPA

Launce, Two Gentlemen of Verona

Matthew Ruppert, Ben Jackson, Micah Ruppert, Penn Hills Home School

Fluellen, Pistol, Captain Gower, Henry V

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 2011-2012 SHAKESPEARE
MONOLOGUE AND SCENE CONTEST FINALISTS

LOWER DIVISION MONOLOGUES

Elliot Pullen_________________________________________________Trinculo
Home School The Tempest

Emily Bassett_________________________________________________Rosalind
Winchester Thurston As You Like It

Charlotte Bush______________________________________________Trinculo
Hope Academy The Tempest

LOWER DIVISION SCENES

Dominic Skeele & Emily Appel____________________________Elizabeth & Richard
Slippery Rock Area Elementary Richard III

Anna Porter & Elizabeth Stater____________________Mistress Page & Mistress Ford
Blackburn Study Center Merry Wives of Windsor

Lexi Feldman & Caroline McDonough___________________________Juliet & Nurse
Boyce Middle School Romeo and Juliet

Heather Walter & Tyler Schmitt__________________________Antipholus & Dromio
North Hills Junior High A Comedy of Errors

UPPER DIVISION MONOLOGUES

Sara Williams_______________________________________________Helena
City Charter High School A Midsummer Night's Dream

Tal Kroser________________________________________________ Launce
Pittsburgh CAPA Two Gentlemen of Verona

Laura McCarthy____________________________________________ Imogen
North Allegheny Senior High School Cymbeline

Christa Lerch_______________________________________________ Pheobe
Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School As You Like It

Jonathan Veres______________________________________________Henry
Thomas Jefferson High School Henry V

Katherine Heidengren______________________________________ Lady Percy
Beaver County Christian School Henry IV, Part II

Kathryn Griffin_____________________________________________ Phoebe
Canon McMillon High School As You Like It

Larry McKay________________________________________________ William
Allderdice High School Henry V

Olivia Gill___________________________________________________ Helena
Carson Middle School All's Well That Ends Well

Evan Stiger_________________________________________________ Hamlet
Freedom Area High School Hamlet

Marin Exler_________________________________________________ Phoebe
Carlynton Middle School As You Like It

Lucy Sedor-Franzak_________________________________________ Constance
Bethel Park High School Richard II

Callee Bradley________________________________________________ Portia
Winchester Thurston Upper School The Merchant of Venice

Jordana Rosenfeld____________________________________________ Malvolio
Pittsburgh CAPA Twelfth Night

UPPER DIVISION SCENES

Matthew Ruppert, Ben Jackson ___________________________Fluellen, Pistol
& Micah Ruppert & Captain Gower
Penn Hills Home School Henry V

Nikki Davis & Daren Kossar____________________________ Ophelia & Hamlet
Shaler High School Hamlet

Keith Backensto, Elisha Carleton__________________ First Clown, Second Clown
& Grayson Quay & Hamlet
Beaver County Christian School Hamlet

Maria Ignelzi & Armand Ignelzi _____________________________ Juliet & Nurse
Aquinas Academy Romeo and Juliet

Markella Williams & Isaac Miller ________________________Benedick & Beatrice
Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School Much Ado About Nothing

What People are Saying about the Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest

"Students sometimes view Shakespeare as remarkably dull and inaccessible. But Shakespeare Competition participants know better. They search out the perfect scene: the drunken sandbag dual, the washed ashore coffin containing an undead beauty, bad actors putting on a play to impress royalty. Then they bring that scene to life, filling the characters with quirks and peccadilloes, defining action (swordfights, swoons, stumbles, the arched eyebrow, the pregnant pause), then action with words, well-enunciated words that can actually be heard by the judges. It's creative. It requires teamwork. It's a whole lot of fun, and not for the faint of heart."

- Peg Boyd, Parent

"The staff's commitment to introducing Shakespeare to a younger generation is enormously inspiring. The individual attention paid to each and every performance [during the contest] is remarkable. Kids develop an appreciation for classical theater, and they enjoy it. I've gained wonderful memories, friendships, and performance opportunities that I will never forget."

-Lara Hillier, Shakespeare Contest participant and four-time winner

"The Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest has been, without doubt, the highlight of my entire theater experience in junior high and high school. I have learned more about the performing arts from my participation in the program than from any other source. Pittsburgh Public Theater dedicates a lot of time and effort to the education of young people."

-Simon Brown, Shakespeare Contest Participant and Winner

"To be able to get up and perform on the amazing O'Reilly stage is a cool thing all by itself. But then you add Shakespeare to that! Although the language is old, Shakespeare could never get old--not when the stories are still relevant and there are kids like me participating in the Shakespeare competition. This competition is a wonderful opportunity for students to truly try something new."

-Meggie Booth, Shakespeare Contest participant

For additional information on Shakespeare or for a

complete text of his plays, check out these links:

_{^{Folger Shakespeare Library}}^{_{The Plays of William Shakespeare Vocabulary Glossary}}^{_{Guide to Online Schools Shakespeare Li}}^_brary^{_{Open Source Shakespeare}}^{_{Shakespeare's Monologues}}^{_{Shakespeare Birthplace Trust}}^{_{The Royal Shakespeare Company}}

Many thanks to the sponsors of the
Annual Shakespeare Monologue & Scene Contest.

Richard E. Rauh

Additional support is provided by
Dominion Foundation
Federated Investors Foundation, Inc.

Pittsburgh Public Theater