This is a unique opportunity for us to bring in guests from the outside and an amazing chance to see how inmates benefit from the experience of channeling their passion, time and energies into art, in this case live theater, in the chapel at San Quentin Prison.
Working with director Suraya Keating from the Marin Shakespeare Company over the past year, San Quentin actors explore Shakespeare’s themes in their own lives and the lives of those around them. This process helps to foster trust, empathy and community among men from a variety of ethnic and social backgrounds who otherwise may not have had the opportunity to associate with one another. The drama class also provides a model of positive risk-taking, commitment and discipline by performing for their fellow inmates.
This production is made possible by the Marin Community Foundation via a that we must match dollar for dollar. Donations are most welcome – click here. Even the smallest donation gets doubled and makes a huge impact on the men who are inspired to develop their creative spirit, which is all the more powerful in the dispirited environment of prison.
“Shakespeare actors are role models within the San Quentin community, demonstrating that even behind bars men can continue to set goals, learn new skills, and become better human beings,” according to Marin Shakespeare’s Managing Director, Lesley Currier.
MERCHANT OF VENICE is scheduled to begin at 11:15 am on Friday, June 15. The performance will last approximately two hours, with a question-and-answer session following.
There are a limited number of people who we can invite to attend. If you would like to attend, email info@WilliamJamesAssociation.org. If we don’t know you, and you have a special reason for wanting to attend, please let us know. We apologize in advance if we are unable to include you.
"The community stagnates without the impulse of the individual.
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