The Young Shakespeareans program empowers underserved neighborhoods in South Los Angeles through partnerships with its public elementary schools. We throw down the gauntlet and set the bar high, inspiring each school’s 4th and 5th graders to reach beyond their own perceived limits in an experience that is demanding and magical.



In meeting the challenge of interpreting and understanding a Shakespearean work, the students employ their literacy skills and expand their self-confidence. Through exercises in self-awareness and presentation, they learn to reliably access and express their ideas and abilities. By mounting a theatrical production, they experience the demands and benefits of mutual respect and teamwork. The fusion of these elements creates an opportunity for “academics and arts in action” that is powerful, exciting, and formative.