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During the first weekend of October 2017, 19 Oakton Drama students and the Oakton Drama Teacher, Ms. Vanessa Gelinas, attended  the Shakespeare Drama Festival in Ashland, Oregon. The entire trip was organized by Ms. Gelinas. The trip was first introduced to students at the beginning of last year, and anyone who was a drama student last year was eligible to attend. While the Oakton students and teacher were at the festival, they got to attend four plays, multiple workshops, and participate in a  discussion with the cast members from one of the plays.  

Although this was a Shakespeare festival, the first play that the Oakton students experienced was a rendition of the Odyssey. Shiva Zarean (12), one of the attendees, described the rendition as entrancing. This version of the play was much more bright and vibrant than one might have expected it to be. Since the play was presented at an outdoor theatre, the night sky added the perfect backdrop for the play.  “In the beginning of that play, the lights went dark for like a scene and in that moment there was a shooting star, and it was just the most magical thing ever,” said Zarean. In addition to the Odyssey, Oakton students also attended Shakespeare in Love, Henry the Fourth Part One, and Merry Wives of Windsor. Every play they attended was packed with people who had also traveled to attend this festival.

While at the festival, Oakton students also attended three workshops: stage combat workshop, masks in movement workshop, and a general acting workshop. Zarean said, “They were all really different, and they were all really awesome.” The stage combat workshop and the masks in movement workshop were both taught by a professor from Southern Oregon University. The masks in movement workshop taught students how to not view the mask as a limitation when acting, and how to portray emotion when a mask is covering one’s  entire face. The general acting workshop was more focused on storytelling and incorporating body movements into the words. Zarean said, “All of the workshops were all really helpful in their own ways.”

Zarean believes that the trip was very beneficial and gave her the opportunity to learn more about how to act the part of a shakespearean character. Zarean said, “It helped me come out of my shell with shakespeare because I watched different plays and I realized that it helps the audience understand it more when you are really putting it into your body and just like acting it out.” If she had the opportunity to, she would definitely go on this trip again.