By AMY O’KELLY
Students will entertain onlookers with performances of their favorite Shakespearean plays and sonnets in “Shakespeare on the Quad” Thursday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Marigold Quad.
“Shakespeare on the Quad” provides the opportunity for anyone to perform their favorite Shakespearean scene, soliloquy or sonnet anyway they choose to, said Sariah Batt, 21, a junior from Provo majoring in anthropology.
No specific requirements or restrictions are set for the performances, she said.
“Shakespeare on the Quad” offers academic and cultural enrichment on campus, Batt said. People can stop to watch a scene or two on their way to classes or come with blankets and watch for as long as they’d like, she said.
“I think it’s a fun idea. A figure as important to academia as Shakespeare ought to have a day reserved in his remembrance,” said William Shakespeare, lecturer of English. April is Shakespeare’s birth and death month, so it is a good time to do this, Shakespeare said.
“Shakespeare on the Quad” has been running every spring for about three years and was founded by Blue Key, a service society on campus, said Rogan Ferguson, 24, a senior from Great Falls, Mont. majoring in art and president of Blue Key. Blue Key works to enhance the campus community through service and cultural events, Ferguson said.
“‘Shakespeare on the Quad’ is something we do to celebrate English heritage and raise awareness of Shakespeare as a part of that heritage,” he said.
Although the works of Shakespeare are available today through several film and theater productions, many students do not take the time to appreciate them, he said.
Shakespeare’s plays have a depth to them in much the same way as the scriptures do. A person can read a Shakespeare play and get something new from it every time, he said. “I hope ‘Shakespeare on the Quad’ will raise new interest in Shakespeare so people will want to explore his plays,” Ferguson said.
This year’s event will include audience members being invited to do cold readings where they will perform their interpretation of various Shakespearean scenes such as the balcony scene in “Romeo and Juliet,” he said. Also, the Garrens Comedy Troupe will perform a five-minute sketch, and the “Quill and Sword” club will present dances and fighting demonstrations from the Shakespearean period.
“Last year’s performances were really neat because many were funny. People really get into it,” Batt said.
“Shakespeare on the Quad” will be on the Marigold Quad, which is located south of the Checkerboard Quad. Anyone interested in watching or participating is welcome.
