Just coming down from a terrific high watching the East Gloucester Elementary School 5th Grade class work their wonders with the Bard and his “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Like a lot of schools, our kids have an annual play and this year, not without some conflict and parental angst, the decision was made to perform Shakespeare. Would the kids get it? Would they rise to the challenge? Would it be too hard for a bunch of 10-11 year-olds to do much more than parrot the words? Would they have fun? Well… the simple answers are: yes, yes, no, most definitely yes. Not only did the kids get it, they ATE IT UP… they devoured it and came back for more.
Now I’m not just saying this as a proud parent of a kingly Oberon or a roguish Puck, though I am most definitely that, I’m saying it as someone deeply proud of the profoundly hard work these kids put into their performances and the months of learning lines, learning to act, learning to deal with the complexities of Shakespeare’s verbal gymnastics… and then to deliver on each of four performances… it was a terrific thing to witness.
