The Los Angeles Drama Club has successfully built an ongoing artistic community of children/youth who, through the creative process of “putting on a play” have found a passion, a purpose, and a safe place to express themselves and gain self-worth from their collective accomplishments. We use the diverse themes of Shakespeare, universal to the human condition, to shed light on the consequences of our choices.
Our Players tell stories, decode the language, improvise, role play, and rehearse. All this culminates in a public performance. Through these practices, the students organically develop a personal relationship with the play and its characters. In this process, we build literacy, communication skills, self-esteem and a strong community spirit.
The branches of our growing tree include:
Shakespeare in the City - We are developing an on-going Young Performing Arts Troupe in the West Adams/Mid-City area. Through free and low-cost classes and workshops, we are identifying and nurturing young motivated performers and providing them with the space to experience the camaraderie of an arts community, the skills to meet the challenges of the creative process, and the opportunity to develop a new sense of assurance, autonomy and self-motivation.
This program is made possible by your support – find out how you can become a part of our mission!
The Willful Minors - Our youth ensemble brings Shakespeare on site to under-served schools, hospitals, senior centers, public spaces, libraries, and wherever there is a need for the inspiration that art can bring to a community.
Again, we depend on volunteers and donations to keep this program alive – please click here to learn more!
Shakespeare Youth Festival LA (SYFLA) - This is our Repertory Season. Each year, we rehearse and perform 3 plays to benefit our community, our children and our city. We keep our ticket prices low, so that the Festival is accessible to as many people as possible. Special performances for school groups widen our reach. We are proud to be the introduction to Shakespeare for many Los Angeles young people … and adults, as well.
While box office revenues provide some support, your donations help build the walls of the taverns and castles, put swords and sceptres in the hands of our heroes, and place crowns on the heads of our young kings and queens – join us!
The Asylum - When not preparing for a performance, students learn new artistic tools, take creative risks, and develop their emotional and cognitive muscles using the modality of theatre games and improvisation. We are proud of our unique curriculum. In addition to our improv classes, Play-Acting for Social Justice teaches cultural sensitivity, compassion, and awareness of personal and social injustice in their schools and in the world, and provides our Players with the solutions and tools to become empathetic activists. Shakesprovisation combines the foundation of our classic Improv classes with the characters, stories and words of William Shakespeare, creating a living laboratory for our Players to experience the thrill of a new form of expression.
We invite teachers, educators, activists, youth arts professionals, and others in the arts, education and public service arenas to attend and participate in our Asylum classes. We intend for The Asylum to be a creative oasis in our city.
Your support will help us reach out to a wider community, through scholarships, special workshops, and more – get involved!
