Shakespeare in Action

Shakespeare in Action is a Toronto-based, multi-racial Shakespearean theatre company for young audiences. The company aspires to enhance the arts and education by bringing Shakespeare's plays to children and students across Toronto. Founded in 1988 by Artistic Director Michael Kelly, Shakespeare in Action offers a wide variety of programming for students, teachers and the community, including in-class workshops, mainstage productions, summer programs and more. In 2009 the company became the Artist Company in Residence at Toronto's Central Commerce Collegiate Institute. The company also partners with TD Bank and the Toronto Public Library to produce the Shakespeare for Kids Library Club, a free program where children learn how to act out Shakespeare's plays themselves.

Shakespeare in Action seeks to inspire audiences of all ages, and believes that Shakespeare can and should be accessible to everyone, regardless of age, race, education or sociology-economic background. The acting company is diverse and multi-racial.

The company focuses on demystifying Shakespeare’s language by the characters in today’s world and encouraging students to attach themselves to the stories within the play. The company’s main stage productions use Shakespeare’s original text, and their workshops and youth programs help students to work through the text, often through group performance, inspiring them to think about the historical background of the plays and the process behind production. The company's workshops and other programmed use Shakespeare's language as an opportunity for students to learn by doing.

Shakespeare in Action is a non-profit organization registered with the Canadian Revenue Agency. They operate under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Actors' Equity Association, hiring only professional actors, and have memberships with many professional organizations including the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres, the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts and Theatre Ontario.

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