Press Release: The Southeastern Teen Shakespeare Company (SetsCo), until this year a part of Pensacola Little Theatre’s Treehouse Theatre division, has incorporated as a non-profit and will be offering conservatory classes starting in September at the Pensacola Opera Center. “Students will learn techniques taught in professional actor training programs,†said Company Director Michelle Hancock, “with special emphasis on the skills necessary for playing Shakespeare.†Graduates of the conservatory program are eligible to audition for the Shakespeare Company, which performs throughout the year at local arts fairs and festivals. The Company has become a mainstay at Gulf Coast Renaissance fairs (Pensacola and Mobile) and also performs each year at the Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival and at Festival on the Green.
Created in 2005 by then Pensacola Little Theatre Education Director Katie McHugh and a group of students interested in learning about and performing the works of William Shakespeare, SetsCo has historically been primarily a performance company. However, Ms. Hancock and the new board believe that they can take the quality of the Company’s work to a higher artistic level by offering solid training to students who would like to join the company.
“There is a wide span between the abilities of students who have been in the Company for three or four years and those who enter without much training or experience,†Ms. Hancock said. “New members are often intimidated by the level of proficiency of returning members. The conservatory will ensure that all students accepted into the company have a foundation in acting and in Shakespeare and the confidence to use it.â€
In addition to performing in the area, SetsCo will also continue programs such as the Speak the Speech Contest, held every year in February; produce a full-length Elizabethan work during the spring/summer; and offer Shakespeare Camp in the summer. “We have been working and learning in Pensacola for the past eight years under the wing of PLT,†Ms. Hancock said, “but now it’s time for us to grow.â€
Registration is now open; classes begin September 9 and will be held at the Pensacola Opera Center. Information is available at setsco.org.
The Southeastern Teen Shakespeare Company is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing teens in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties with instruction and performance opportunities that lead to their significant growth as artists and community members.
Event: Conservatory Classes
Dates: Beginning September 9, 2013
Venue: Pensacola Opera Center, 75 S. Tarragona St.
Information: setsco.org
Email: southeasternteenshakespeareco@yahoo.com