Advice for New Drama Teachers Series: Planning Ahead - Checklist

Our students performed 'Hamlet, Zombie Killer of Denmark' by Chris Stiles and it was a resounding success!!! Thank you so much to Chris Stiles and Theatrefolk!!! There were parts for all levels of actors and an excellent combination between contemporary jokes and original Shakespearean story and text. The actors and the audience loved every minute!!!

I was thrilled to find this version of Romeo and Juliet, and look forward to working on it. The length, and yet the quality of the edits in writing make it possible to even think about in our situation. Yea!

I greatly enjoyed directing 'A Lighter Shade of Noir' last year with my middle school theater students. It had everything I was looking for in a script for 6th, 7th and 8th graders: lots of parts for girls or parts that could be changed to female roles, action without lots of fighting, multiple character scenes that had things to do while other people were talking, a main story line but also sub-plots, links to school subjects (like literature and history), and most importantly - dialogue that I could stand listening to over and over in rehearsal that gave the students motivation to look deeper and deeper into their character development. I hope you write more for theater, especially children's theater. We need more good writing for these young actors. Sharon Boski