Published: August 25, 2008 02:38 pm            

JHS thespians already at work

Special to The Progress

Shakespeare is alive and well in East Texas. Well, at least it will seem that way when the Jacksonville High School Curtain Club, under the direction of Theater Arts instructor Shirley Grote, presents their production of Hamlet.

The performance dates have not been finalized, but the current plan is for sometime in late October. The cast met Aug. 18 for their first “line run” rehearsal.

The parts have all been cast; the players have studied their lines all summer; and now it’s time for the work of stage production, costumes, dress rehearsals and learning how to best infuse the performances with the nuances that have made the play a timeless classic.

“We’re really excited to be bringing one of Shakespeare’s most time-honored plays to the Jacksonville community,” Grote said. “We are trying to get more community involvement this year. The students are taught to take the audience members on a journey through their acting, and we really would like to see more people come out and be a part of that.”

The troupe will convene several times a week after school to master their parts and be able to live up to the audience’s expectations.

“It’s exciting to be doing something on stage that we have studied academically for the last few years and now to see it start to come to life,” said cast member Kaitlyn Turney, a JHS senior.

        

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