News and Events > Press Releases > November - December 2007

Poughkeepsie Day School Mounts Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet December 3, 2007 Contact: Sandra Moore, director of development and communications (extension 110) Note: Due to anticipated wintry weather, the 2 pm matinee, scheduled for Sunday, December 16, is canceled.

Poughkeepsie, NY - Poughkeepsie Day School will present William Shakespeare's beloved play, Romeo and Juliet, Friday and Saturday, December 14 and 15 at 7 p.m. and on Sunday, December 16 at 2 p.m., in the school's James Earl James Theater, 260 Boardman Road. Free and open to the public, the performances are the culmination of a semester-long exploration of Shakespeare's language and theatrical conventions in the school's annual Shakespeare Central Study course.

Central Study (CS) is a unique component of the academic program at the town of Poughkeepsie independent school. Through CS, students in grades seven through twelve have the opportunity to choose from a variety of interdisciplinary courses, which meet for large blocks of time and combine group work with independent, in-depth explorations. According to Liz Vinogradov, upper school head, students in CS "learn to apply critical and analytical thinking skills and team work skills in situations similar to future work life." As a result, they "develop abilities in leadership, initiative, self-direction and time management."

Shakespeare CS teacher Mike Foley has invited local high schools to the play and added a special Sunday matinee this year to encourage student attendance. In a special letter sent to schools' English departments, Foley said, "We are excited about the prospect of staging what is arguably the best-known and most beloved of Shakespeare's plays. Certainly, it contains some of the most beautiful poetry in the canon, and it is hard to imagine a work more relevant to adolescents." In past years, the Shakespeare CS has mounted productions of As You Like It, Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Comedy of Errors and Measure for Measure.

Poughkeepsie Day School has been developing educated citizens with a passion for learning and living since 1934. The school opened with a record enrollment of 352 students in September. It seeks to promote curious and independent learners: critical thinkers who know how to ask questions and solve problems. Respect, responsibility and collaboration are among the hallmarks of the PDS school community. Typically, each year one-hundred per cent of the school's seniors who apply to college are admitted. For more information on the performance, contact the communications office (845-462-7600, extension 110).

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