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Lesson Plans
Lesson Plan 1:  Creative Writing                                         

Why say it simply when you can jazz it up, Shakespeare Style?
Shakespeare never took the easy way out when he wrote.  He tried to make even the most
commonplace statements elegant and poetical.  

Read the quotes from the plays below and try to figure out the simple meaning of the lines.

1.        The iron tongue of midnight hath told twelve.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Act v. Sc. 1.

_______________________________________________________________________  


2.         A goodly apple rotten at the heart:
O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!
The Merchant of Venice. Act i. Sc. 3.

_______________________________________________________________________

3.        And he will make the face of heaven so fine
That all the world will be in love with night,
And pay no worship to the garish sun.
Romeo and Juliet. Act iii. Sc. 2.

________________________________________________________________________

4.        Night’s candles are burnt out, and jocund day
Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain-tops.
Romeo and Juliet. Act iii. Sc. 5.

________________________________________________________________________

Write your own Shakespearean version of the statements below:

It is very cold outside.

________________________________________________________________________

The night was dark and stormy.


________________________________________________________________________

The dog would not stop barking at the cat.

Lesson plan 3 -  
Hut Hut!  How is Theater like
Football?   
     Grade level:  6-12

Producing a play takes many people with different skill
sets.  If you look at the jobs that make up a football team,
you will find a coach, a quarterback, regular players and  
special teams.  Players set aside many hours of practice
to prepare for the big game.
Theater is not so very different.  Look at the pairs of jobs
below then draw a line from the football jobs to the theater
job that most closely match.

Coach/Director
A football coach can be compared to the director of a
play.  The coach plans the strategy, picks players and
calls the plays during the game.  The director in a
Theatrical production selects the play to be performed;
she picks the actors and directs them throughout the
rehearsal period.

Quarterback/Lead Actor
In football, the quarterback is the lead team member.  He
sets the example for the entire team and carries the
game through his quick wits and knowledge of the
opposition.  The Lead Actor in a play carries the weight of
having the most lines and usually carrying the largest
emotional or physical burden of the play.  

Football players/Actors
Members of a football team follow the coach’s directions;
memorize plays and practice in order to hone their
football skills.  They occasionally study ballet or yoga to
build stamina and flexibility.  Actors in a play take direction
from the director.  They memorize their lines and learn
their blocking (which movements go with which lines in
the play) they learn new skills like Fencing, dance,
singing and foreign accents.

Special Teams/Technical Crew
Special teams in the game of Football such as kick off
teams, punt return and the field goal teams all have very
specialized jobs.   They must be practiced and ready to go
at a moment’s notice. In a play, the Technical Crew is
made up of the Sound, Lighting, Construction, Costume
and Hair/Make-up crews.  Each crew learns specialized
jobs and a play cannot be performed without these crews
working in unison with the actors and the director.  

Referee/Producer
The referee’s job is to make sure that the game goes
according to the rules of the game.  Referees need to
learn the complex rules of the game and enforce them
without playing favorites.  A Theatrical Producer’s job is to
make sure that the play is following the budget set up for
the play.  A budget is the amount of money set aside to
pay for everything from the actor’s pay, the costumes,
theater rental, and technical staff.  The producer needs to
make sure that the entire cast and crew follow the rules of
the budget so that the play makes money.

Draw a line from the Football job to the
matching Theater job.

Football                           Theater  
Coach                                Producer
Punt Return                       Lead Actor
Quarterback                       Actors
Referee                              Director
Football Players                 Sound Director
Click here for
Lamb's
Much Ado About
Nothing
Teacher Resources
for Shakespeare from the
Folger Shakespeare Library

Click here to go to the Folger
Teacher Resources
Lamb's Tales from
Shakespeare.  Classic
retelling of the stories
from Shakespeare's plays
for children
Click here for
Lesson Plan
Click on the box to the right for Mp3's of
The Globe Theater's 2007 production of
Much Ado About Nothing. This excellent
educational resource contains inverviews
with actors, the director and actual
MP3's of the performances.
Signet Classic
Teacher's
Manual
to Much Ado
About Nothing
Click
here for
the PBS
site
Click the box to the left to access
the excellent website from Public
Broadcasting System.  This site
includes multi media and lesson
plans
Click here for E
Notes' Study
Guide
Click the box on the right to link to the
E-Notes site.  It contains a complete set of
study materials, lesson plans and quizzes
for Much Ado About Nothing.
Ye Olde Education Page
Ye Olde Extra Credit                                Ye Olde Resource Center
Click on the box to access
the
Teacher's guide to the
Signet Classic Edition of
Much Ado About Nothing
Sign up here to bring your class to the
Miami Shakespeare Festival
Bustin' it
Big Willy Style
Free School Shows
10:30am to noon
Now...Two shows:
Thursday, January 15
Peacock Park in Coconut Grove
&
Thursday, January 22
Florida Memorial University
Miami Gardens
Attention Teachers:    
Space is limited. Sign up now.

Bring your students to the FREE Schools Field Trip
in January.  Pick either the Coconut Grove or Miami
Gardens location and register for your spots.

This fast paced and entertaining morning with
Shakespeare Miami will encourage your students
discover more about classical literature as we bombard
them with scenes from Shakespeare, exploration of
literature and just plain fun.

Grades:   
Middle School:  Advanced Language & Theatre Arts
High School Language Arts and Theatre Arts
Gifted 6th Graders
only if there is one chaperone per 10 students

Plays Covered:
Othello
Macbeth
Romeo & Juliet
Much Ado About Nothing

Jobs in the Theatre Covered:
Actor, Director, Producer, Lighting and
Sound Directors,  Crew Positions,
Electrician, Costume and Set Designers.

Fun Stuff:
Student participation
Sword fighting/ stage combat demonstration
Q&A with Cast and Crew
Students receive:  
Free VIP area passes for them and their
families to attend the free mainstage production
of Macbeth.

Click here for Locations and Directions
The 2009 Production is MACBETH
Good Things to be aware of:

Students should bring a towel or low lawn
chair to sit on.  We don't provide chairs and
all seating is on the grass.  Some teachers
bring a roll of trash bags to spread on the
ground in case it is still damp.

You are encouraged to bring your lunches
and enjoy a picnic lunch after the show.

Teachers who do not supervise their
students will be hung by their thumbs
then asked to leave with their group.
MACBETH
RAP
 
By Colleen Stovall

There was a Scottish brother
by the name of Macbeth
He wore a giant helmet
and he had terrible breath

He was loyal, he was good,
he was a thug for his king  
And he never even wondered
what tomorrow would bring

When the Scotts had a turf war
against the Norway gang
He chopped them and he stabbed them
Macbeth blew them all away

He was out on the moors
just a washing off  the gore
he saw the Wyrd Sisters,  
And said “these aint no ho’s”
They look weird, they got beards
they got creepy kinds of bodies

The sisters say  - Macbeth you know
this ain't our hobby
We look into the future and yours looks kind of
tight
Hang on you freaky Scotsman
cuz you’re going for a ride

You’re the thane of  Glamis - now don’t you frown,
you'll be the Thane of Cawdor
then You're gunning for the crown

Now Macbeth loved his wife
like Adonis loved Venus
Lady M loved Macbeth
because he had a big……….sword
Mmmm love to love ya baby
Mmmm love to love ya baby

Lady M was kind of loco
she wasn’t right in the head…
but everybody knew that she was super bad in
bed.  
Mmmmm love to love ya baby
Mmmmm love to love ya baby

Macbeth wrote her a letter and told his wife
That the witches had predicted
that his future was bright
She was happy she was psyched
she was totally down
She wondered how she’d look
when she was wearin’ the crown

King Duncan came to visit
and she made her move
Macbath you big old dummy
better get in the groove
You’re a wussy, you’re a baby,
your’re a terrible wimp,
Get your daggers -  kill the King -  
and you're my number one pimp.
Mmm love to love ya baby
Mmm love to love ya baby

King Duncan he was murdered
and his sons became afraid
so Malcom went to England
he could  fight another day

Now Macbeth was the King
but he wasn’t really thrilled
He was worried about Banquo
and if  he should be killed.

The witches were just grooving
they  was gettin kind of bored
so Macbeth went back to see them
and he  took his big sword

They were chantin they were cookin
they were beatin on they drums
By the pricking of my  thumbs
something wicked this way comes
double double toil and trouble
fire burn and cauldron bubble
mmmmm love to love ya baby

They said he was invincible
and couldn’t come to harm
he wouldn't get killed
by any man to woman born

He wouldn’t loose a battle
til the woods got up and walked
and he know he was safe
unless Lady M  talked

Lady M was going  crazy
cuz her hands she couldn’t clean
All that blood was buggin her
and only made  her scream
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Well Macbeth went into battle -
thinking he was safe
Lady M took the short way down
and landed on her face
AAAAaaaa.  Splat. Ouch.

Now Macbeth lost his mind
when the woods began to move
A thousand bushy soldiers
were a humping to the groove

Malcom went to battle -  
for defeat he was preparin’ him
Malcom not of woman born,
Cuz he was born cesearian

Macbeth you big old dummy
now you totally dead
Who's the  King of Scotland now?
He Just chopped off  yo head
Mmmmm love to love ya baby
Mmmmm love to love ya baby
Advanced Students
Questions about the set:

Why do you think the Director chose to put two water elements on the stage?  
What scenes in Macbeth are about water?  

What is the only color on the stage?  Why?


Look at the initial stage design to the left.  
How is the initial design different than the actual stage design?  
List three elements that are different than the initial design
List three elements that are the same as the initial design.

The waterfall is falling from approximately 20 feet into a pit in the stage deck.  Come
up with an idea to muffle the noise of the water as it hits the ground from 20 feet in the
air.

After seeing the production, spend some time to Design your own set for the play.
A mock up of the initial stage design is above

Using the theme of water, the stage's main feature is a
20'  infinity waterfall.  The simple design has red fabric
columns topped by propane torches.  A center platform
slides over the 'river' to be used as a bed, a banquet table
and a platform for the throne.  

The river is used by the Witches as their cauldron,
for battle scene drownings and of course, for
Lady M's famous hand-washing scene.

The main stage is bare, permitting free movement of the
actors and plenty of room to swing those broadswords.  
Our stage is low to the ground to accomodate audience
members at ground level.
Designing the set
Lesson Plans and
Advanced Lesson Plans are below.  
Scroll down for the advanced lesson plans.
NOTE:

Our website has been spammed by bots using our
email forms.  Sigh...
Please email us:  
shakesmiami at gmail dot com
(please put this in the proper email format)
include:
Name
Grade level,
Special interests,
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Which show you are attending.
Contact information
Thanks so much.
These programs are made possible by the Miami Dade
county department of Cultural Affairs, The Mayor of Miami
Dade County, The Cities of Miami, Miami Beach and Miami
Gardens and corporate supporters.