SLAM GOES DIGITAL

THE PROGRAM

Teams representing high schools from across the Chicago region worked together through the fall semester to explore and interpret the work of Shakespeare—and to celebrate the power of their own voices in the Theater's fourth annual Chicago Shakespeare Slam. Due to the ongoing impact of COVID‑19, the SLAM program goes remote this year—and culminates in a collaborative, recorded production of Hamlet, to be streamed online in two unique performances on consecutive evenings, Wednesday, January 13, and Thursday, January 14. Each night, a different cast presents its own Hamlet.

In a world gone wrong, Hamlet wrestles with betrayal, alienation, and self-doubts. His journey is one that has had special resonance to students as they attempt to cope with the many unanticipated ramifications in their own lives facing a global pandemic and the struggle for racial justice and equity.

A series of filmed workshops, accompanied by school rehearsals (largely remote, as well), and live video conference gatherings are preparing the teams for their role in this year’s program. Each team rehearsed, performed, and recorded its contribution to the SLAM community’s unique staging of Hamlet. Their recorded scenes will tell the story of a Hamlet inextricably bound to students' own stories as their lives collide with history in the making.

The Chicago Shakespeare Slam is, more than anything, an ensemble program—building community, both among the members of a school’s team and between the teams participating across the entire region. Together, participants have the opportunity to dive deep into a shared text—and do so through an infinite number of lenses crafted out of students’ own imaginations.

2020 Participating Schools

Education Team

Marilyn Halperin Director of Education, Ray and Judy McCaskey Chair
Jason Harrington Education Outreach Manager and Chicago Shakespeare Slam Program Director
Sara B.T. Thiel Public Humanities Manager
Matt Hawkins Senior Instructor
Kevin Long Senior Instructor
Aurora Real de Asua Chicago Shakespeare Slam Creative Lead
Cage Sebastian Pierre Chicago Shakespeare Slam Creative Lead