The Bleak Midwinter Comedy Festival

Featuring COMMAND PERFORMANCE!
February 11, 13, 18, 19, & 20
"The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged" and "The Iliad, The Odyssey and All of Greek Mythology in 99 Minutes or Less" - both productions directed by Christian Heppinstall. Venue: Grant Frasier Little Theatre at Service High School.

Hamlet

Presented by The Young Shakespeare Company
Touring March 1-3, 16-19, 22-23 & April 9, 12-16, 19-21
For more information, call, email or fax us. Book by Dec. 15th and receive the discounted tour fee of $500 from $800!

Bring a full-length or one-0hour version of Hamlet to your school. Starring the actors of Alaska Theatre of Yough. YSC has toured Macbeth in 07-08 and Twelfth Night in 08-09, ATY actors train in Shakespeare workshops year-round in the Summer, Fall and Winter acting conservatories, and go on tour each spring. For your convenience in planning your tour of Hamlet, ATY has selected the dates above from which you can choose. Bring YSC to your schools for $800 in Anchorage-area; $900 in Girdwood, or from the Mat-Su Valley to Talkeetna, as well as Kenai & Soldotna; $1000 for Healy and Fairbanks, Seward and Homer. (The extra cost covers fees and rental milage.) YSC receives no government nor corporate funding and pays its way with the Booking Fee you pay. The actors are not paid, but receive school credit, and of course this wonderful educational experience. This tour comes with references from educators like yourselves who have enjoyed YSC tours.

The Young Shakespeare Company

Now in its third year ATY’s Young Shakespeare Company (YSC) will tour Hamlet to school audiences in Anchorage, Healy, Cantwell and Anderson. The YSC is Alaska’s only regularly-scheduled touring troupe of actors. In its premiere year—season 2007-2008-- the YSC garnered the 2008 Mayor’s Arts Award for its touring production of Macbeth. Twelfth Night was directed by ATY veteran and UAA theater student—Jonathan W. Minton (aged 22, Minton also directed The Merry Wives of Windsor for Feb. 2009). The script was been prepared by veteran actor and teacher Paul Schweigert (MFA Penn State).

The ATY-Denali Borough School Tour consisted of the 50-minute presentation of the play for school audiences. This was followed by workshops in acting, improvisation and theater games for the actor. Also included was the comic playlet of Pyramus and Thisbe from A Midsummer Night's Dream and the Five-Minute Macbeth. Peer-to-peer training is emphasized using ATY’s teen actors teaching their peers in these workshops, all of which occur under the supervision of ATY and the host school. ATY actors receive much training throughout the year in acting and in Shakespeare through Drama Center classes, Summer Conservatory (classes plus Festival of Plays performances) and the annual Main Stage production, the upcoming one of which is HamletApril 24th at 7pm in celebration of William Shakespeare's birthday that very day.

ATY’s Young Shakespeare Company was founded by Christian Heppinstall in 2003. The leading ladies of last year's tour of Twelfth Night, Maddy Klever (Olivia; Steller) and Morgan Mitchell (Viola/Cesario; Polaris), as well as Hunter Woofter (starring as Malvolio; Polaris) were among the founding members in 2003 and have stayed the course all of these years. ATY is proud to uphold these young actors to their peer audiences.  Cast age range: 12 to 18.

All of these points underscore ATY’s motto: Empowering Youth through Theater

Past Productions

The Reduced Shakespeare Company's
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged
Presented by ATY and Service High School Theater Department
Wednesday, November 4 to Saturday, November 7, at 7pm
Service's Little Theatre

A parody of the plays written by William Shakespeare with all of them being performed (in shortened form) during the show by only three actors,though six were used in this production. Typically, the actors use their real names and play themselves rather than certain characters. The fourth wall is nonexistent in the performance with the actors speaking directly to the audience during much of the play, and some scenes involve audience participation.