“To be or not to be: that is the question.” – Hamlet
But how about to act, or not to act? In Mrs. Rebecca Gambardella’s freshman English classes, students aren’t just reading the infamous Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare, they are acting it out.
Learning Shakespeare in class is not a new thing, but acting it out is.
“We’ve always read it aloud in class, and I thought it would be more fun if we started acting it,” Gambardella says. “It’s a lot more engaging for the students and for me.”
And that’s not just an assumption.
Freshman, Reese Longoria says, “I think it’s a fun way to interact with everyone in your class, and it makes the class go by quickly.”
More than that, learning this way actually has its benefits.
“Acting [Shakespeare] out in the classroom helps with public speaking because it gives you a fun way to talk about it more than just, like, reading a script. You can actually express what you’re talking about,” Longoria says.
In addition, freshman Charlotte Toon has different reasons for liking how it’s taught. She states, “I think learning this way is beneficial to me especially ‘cause it’s written so long ago. I think we can learn older topics easier and understand the material better.”
Gambardella agrees.
“I also think that when the students become the character, they involve themselves in a story and a deeper level than if they were just to read it,” Gambardella says. “They actually become it.”
However, Gambardella didn’t have students pick their parts based on character names. She had them choose based on the characters’ personality traits.
For example, Longoria got chosen to play Capulet, the father of Juliet. “When we were being assigned parts and we didn’t know who it was, I thought that the description was fitting, but then once I saw who it was, I was kind of surprised.”
Similarly, Toon was selected to play Montague, the father of Romeo. She says, “I was a little surprised when I got my part, but I think it’s a good way to get out of your comfort zone.”
Whatever the part, and whatever the scene, Gambardella’s freshman English classes are striving to do Shakespeare some justice in their acting skills and have fun while learning all their content.
