Posted by Howard Richman on July 03 2008 at 11:23:48:
The following appears in today´s Carlisle Sentinel:
Young Shakespeareans join Summerfair rosterHowardAfter months of preparation, a group of home schoolers is eager to introduce Shakespeare to Carlisle’s Summerfair this weekend.
“It’s definitely something that I think people will enjoy,” Deb Imholte says.
A Dickinson Township resident and homeschool mother who directs the AGAPE Drama Club, Imholte says Shakespeare’s comedy contains humor not just in the verbal sparring between partners Benedick and Beatrice but also in several side plots.
“It’s very, very funny the way it plays out,” Imholte says. But below all the antics runs a serious undercurrent about the nature of love that attendees may find themselves relating to, she says.
The drama club has been around in various forms for about 10 years, Imholte says, and right now consists of about 20 students ages 12 to 19. A few are high school graduates who came back and rejoined the club.
“We usually do two productions a year,” she says, explaining that the club typically performs a contemporary Christmas production and a Shakespeare play for churches, extended families and the homeschool community in general. “To be doing it for a different group, and especially performing outdoors, are both new challenges for them.”
But, Imholte says, the students are very excited about the opportunity and have been working hard since February.