Southwest Shakespeare Company Inc

On the second saturday of every main stage shakespeare production, dr.susan willis, dramaturg of the alabama shakespeare festival and professor at the university of alabama, teaches a daylong seminar on the play we are producing. These fun and interesting seminars are open to the public, free to season subscribers and usually full of educators who take what they learn back to their classrooms. Most of them earn 10 recertification hours from their respective school districts. This is yet another means by which we educate our patrons and make shakespeare more accessible.

There are schools and communities that cannot, for a variety of reasons, come to the mesa arts center to see our full-length productions. For these interested parties, we have developed a touring show of no more than 90 minutes that is generally performed by a cadre of eight performers. In addition to the performance itself, these actors often provide a workshop prior or after the performance giving the students more information about shakespeare, his life and times. Every season southwest shakespeare company produces a professional season of at least five classical plays for season subscribers and the general public that includes three to four works of william shakespeare and/or one to two works selected from the classical repertoire. These productions are produced using the finest local and regional artists and designers, augmented by nationally-respected professionals from around the country. Only the highest of standards are aspired to in these productions, in sets, lights, costumes, and other production values. Our company was named by get out magazine as best theatre in phoenix for 2005-6, and has received numerous arizoni theatre awards for excellence, including five best production of the year awards, and numerous "best actor" awards.