Close and N.A. The audience participation idea sparked a lot of interest. To make a donation in support of Shakespeare at San Quentin,click here, Marin Shakespeare Company 415.499.4488 Forest Meadows Amphitheatre 890 Belle Ave. San Rafael, CA, 94901, Videos, Creative Writing, Success Stories. In it, I created a rap musical about my own experiences how I got involved in a gang, and why, and how that had led to my crime and my time in prison. We are considered volunteers (although our Teaching Artists are paid) because the CDCR does not hire us. There are other obstacles to be overcome, such as prison-wide lock-downs, men transferred to other institutions, and delays due to a variety of security situations. Shakespeare at San Quentin - VIDEO - Marin Shakespeare Company Shakespeare at San Quentin VIDEO Videos and Scripts of performances and interviews from San Quentin State Prison and Solano State Prison 2016 A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM at Solano Prison, May 19, 2016. Starting in 2003, Marin Shakespeare Company has offered weekly Shakespeare classes at San Quentin Prison. Some assignments were themed around friendship, loyalty, and self-care. Because, when you get sentenced, and youre introduced into reception, they have a process they go through to determine How serious of a criminal is he? Currier estimated the San Quentin Shakespeare program costs somewhere between $50,000 and $100,000 a year to cover all expenses. Marin Shakespeare Location PO Box 4053, San Rafael, California, 94913, United States Description Read More Industry Charitable Organizations & Foundations Organizations Discover more about Marin Shakespeare Robert Currier Work Experience and Education According to ZoomInfo records, Robert Currier's professional experience began in 1982. This project was made possible with support from Cal Humanities, a non-profit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. As a similarly spiritual person, I want you to know Im praying for you. Most, but not all, of the men in this group are military Veterans. To read articles about Shakespeare for Social Justice on our Blog, click here. LeMar was a scared kid who went along with things and, yes, I know I am LeMar, but I like Maverick because Im not that same person, anymore. Poise is a graduate of Shakespeare at San Quentin, now working to make the world a better place through music and inspiring youth. How much of a threat? In that, they have Levels 4, 3, 2 and 1. Im an open book now because Ive learned that if I tell the truth now, I dont have to worry about any lies later. One man shared that he felt like hed been through a war and survived it. SOMS is a computer program that tracks everyone about someone who is incarcerated, including where they are supposed to be at any time. . Food purchased at canteen is not a luxury for some men who do not get enough nutrition from the regular prison diet. Shakespeare at San Quentin - Larkspur-Corte Madera, CA - Inmates to perform popular comedy "Twelfth Night" for their peers on Friday as part of Marin Shakespeare Company's outreach program. Address 1 Main St, San Quentin, CA 94964 Beds 5247 County Marin Phone 415-454-1460 View Official Website San Quentin State Prison is for State Prison offenders sentenced up to twelve months. California has announced it will close this prison by 2025. I was sentenced to 25 years to life. The weekly classes began last fall and included drama therapy techniques combined with acting instruction. Today, after 15 months without setting foot inside a prison, we returned to San Quentin to teach our first class. If youd like more information, or would like to help support this work, please contact Lesley Schisgall Currier at Marin Shakespeare Company. Infectious disease is an ongoing concern at San Quentin. History Watch is written by Scott Fletcher, a volunteer at the Marin History Museum, marinhistory.org. They came to the conclusion that, if your brain isnt fully developed, then how can you make a fully developed decision in a strenuous situation like I like the ones that a lot of us find ourselves in? Instead we say people who are incarcerated, and people who have survived incarceration rather than formerly incarcerated person or ex-con. We put the person first, which is particularly important in a society that has a practice of locking up so many people and treating them as if they are sub-human. Healed people heal people. Id like to be able to, at some point, take care of them instead of them always taking care of me. January 23, 2019 by Wayne Boatwright The cast of the SQ's Shakespeare Parallel Play Nine original skits put modern personal trauma and healing on full display this past October. This brought up the topic of audience response to the actors work. If you would like to use these playlets in performance, please contact Lesley Currier at management@marinshakespeare.orgWe hope you find this material useful, and we welcome your feedback and comments. This time, the topic chosen was violence against Asian Americans. But, yeah, I had 25 years to Life, so I started off with a lot of points. They allowed me a second chance at life. Prison Bridges - a 12 minute video about Shakespeare at San Quentin and the healing power of arts in corrections, by David White (2012) Marin Shakespeare Company PLAYING FOR GOOD Forest Meadows Amphitheatre, Dominican University of California - 514 Fourth Street, San Rafael. Back One man who works in the kitchen talked about how some outside caterers were brought it and it was great for him to work with them because they treated him like a human being. Typically, when you work in the kitchen, there is a lot of emphasis on making sure knives are not mis-used and other safety concerns. A little less harsh, but its still up there. Shakespeare offers many opportunities to explore human motivation, interpersonal interactions, and deep thinking about the human condition. ), its, its a lot, you know? Friday, May 1, 2020 - Richard III at San Quentin, Marin County. Throwback Thursday at Marin Shakespeare Company! And it wasnt only in that moment. TH: Thanks so much for your time, Maverick. But, really, anything, to tell you the truth. Marin Shakespeare Company 415.499.4488 Forest Meadows Amphitheatre 890 Belle Ave. San Rafael, CA, 94901 One actor spoke about how what he has to say is going to be intense, and he doesnt want to be censored. 2012 ~ Autobiographical Stories from San Quentin inspired by Hamlet 2011: KTVU Twelfth Night 2009: More Marin 2008: The California Report To make a donation in support of Shakespeare at San Quentin, click here Especially at the age of 19. In January of 2023, California deactivated this prison. Made With Love At San Quentin State Prison. Below, is the main yard, Education and Media centers, more housing units, baseball field, basketball courts, and tennis court. Suraya brought skills as a licensed Drama Therapist to the program. Go ahead and just state my real name first, then from there on, call me Maverick. Derek talked about how amazing it was to have a group like this where we could process; there was nothing like that for him at Corcoran, which he described as a different level of oppression. Trying to its a lot. Anything in the helping field would be great. Now, on the inside, I was the facilitator for a lot of self-help groups so anything in wellness or working with the kids cause thats really my wheelhouse, you know: Trying to allow other people to learn from my mistakes. Performance begins at 10 am and will last approximately 2.5 hours including Q&A; please plan to arrive no later than 8:30 am. The program could suffer consequences as well. San Quentin State Prison, Marin Starting in 2003, Marin Shakespeare Company has offered weekly Shakespeare classes at San Quentin Prison. Typically, the Wednesday group is taught by Suraya Keating, but her schedule wouldnt allow her to return until August, and we didnt want to wait to get started. So, they created this bill which said that people 24 years or under, at the time of their offense, would be seen by a different committee than others applying for parole. Were all people with similar fears and challenges, trying to live our best lives. We included a lot of reflection questions and lots of ideas for self-care: breathing, stretching, meditation, and more. As inmates at San Quentin State Prison, Rodney "RC" Capell, "Losdini" and Chris Marshall are far from innocent youth trapped in the throes of a bad foster care system. LeMar Harrison, or "Maverick" as he identifies himself, is a musician, lyricist, actor, and father. After we checked in, we released some energy by playing Sound Ball, a game of tossing energy with sound around the circle. My love and my loyalty is to Marin Shakes forever, for what they did. And all these same elements were major factors for me in committing my crime! By Perry Guevera, Assistant Professor of English In 1989, a small yet valiant troupe of actors imagined staging Shakespeare's greatest We were able to make it ours, setting it to familiar music and rhythms. We had the ball become Covid itself, then our collective resiliency, then our collective love. They had created a fully developed script based on their personal stories which was slated to be performed in a few weeks when Covid hit. Close Youth Correctional Facility. We have been grateful to the support of the California Arts Council, William James Association, Cal Humanities, the Rosenberger Family Fund, and Santa Clara University for their support. After a brief round of Appreciations, we ended class. There are strip searches, confiscation of personal belongings, and daily indignities that can be seen as an abuse of power. Many prisons are built in areas of toxicity where the water quality tests as unsafe. Some of us have grown up in relatively safe neighborhoods with parents who were able to provide for our basic needs and give us a decent education. But the Shakespeare program transcends racial lines and a whole plethora of things that are not acceptable in the prison culture. Marin Shakespeare Company has offered programs in 14 California State Prisons and Alameda Juvenile Hall. May of 1996, to be exact. Others have grown up in poverty or worse, with parents facing overwhelming challenges, and an abiding lack of hope for a better future. Uh Thank you! They said, You make sure to go make a difference, and do that with the youth! And I said, Yes, Maam.. This is a phenomenon specific to San Quentin. Only people serving life sentences go before the parole board. People getting ready to go before the parole board gather Support Letters to help make the case that they are ready to be released from prison. COVID continues to hinder the programing at the prison, but the company managed to stage three performances before live audiences in December 2021. Images included in History Watch are available for purchase by calling 415-382-1182 or by . I repeated a point Ive made with this group in the past: These men have a tremendous platform to educate the world about things that are important to them. Interview with LeMar Maverick Harrison: Returned Citizen, and former Shakespeare at San Quentin actor, Interview Conducted by Trevor Hoffmann, Marin Shakespeare Company. To see videos of Shakespeare performances, Stories from San Quentin performances, Veterans plays, Creative Writing from the Inside, and photographs, and to hear actors discuss how Shakespeare has changed their lives, click here. TH: But, talk about pressure, though! At Marins Community School, we paired Returned Artist Eric Abercrombie with four students who worked one-on-one by zoom on creative projects. They sent the video to the men inside San Quentin. Though busy with an ongoing search for regular employment and a firm foundation for his life outside of prison, Maverick was kind enough to offer his time to Marin Shakespeare for an interview. By Lesley Schisgall Currier Today was our first day back with the Acting for Veterans group. In 2003, Marin Shakespeare Company started Shakespeare at San Quentin. Now that Im not incarcerated in prison anymore, I still want to go back to the humans that are inside to sit with them and say, Look, we can do this, said Meza. To find out about how to train to work with our programs, click here. One actor talked about how desalination efforts around the world were working, and also creating useful salt as a useful by-product, while helping the oceans. I really want to thank them for giving me the opportunity to do something that I and my son can be proud of. In 2013, inmates at San Quentin prison rehearsed and performed the play THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, directed by Lesley Currier and Suraya Keating of Marin Shakespeare Company.Simultaneously, the men created a "Parallel Play" -- their own autobiographical stories, inspired by the themes in THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, told through theatre, and directed by Suraya Keating. One of the men enjoyed being in the tents sent up on the main yard, because he was able to see the stars at night, an experience he had not had in years. Those three-hour workshops allowed actors and outside guests to get to know each other, and work together in small groups to create scenes, statues, poems, songs, and dances around a theme like parents or forgiveness. We couldnt hug, although we wanted to very much. Clickhere to view 2015 videosfrom San Quentin: Julius Caesar Macbeth Theatre of War, an original theatre piece created and performed by incarcerated veterans from Veterans Healing Veterans from the Inside Out, under the direction of Lesley Currier. TH: Before we finish, is there anything you feel Ive left on the table, or any other point or topic that I havent thought to touch on? Marin Shakespeare Company 415.499.4488 Forest Meadows Amphitheatre 890 Belle Ave. San Rafael, CA, 94901, Videos, Creative Writing, Success Stories. Maverick: So, I have always been musically inclined; Ive always wanted to be, you know, a rapper. He calmly pushes the words forward. I shared that after the murder of George Floyd, theatres had been challenged by We See You White American Theatre and others to look at our practices in order to root out inequities in the theatre field. Venues; View Online; Past Productions; Education. We spent the pandemic creating "alternative programming" for the 14 California state prisons, Alameda Juvenile Hall, and Marin's Community School where we work Some get half-time and only have to do 50%. Our H-unit Acting Class gives men on H unit an opportunity to explore their self-expression, creativity, and teamwork. I am no help, and there is a palpable pause before we both try again. Go To Past Event from Shakespeare in Prison held on July 15, 2019 Marin Shakespeare Company's Shakespeare in Prison program originated in San Quentin in 2003 and has since expanded to include 13 facilities throughout the state. I believe that if prison staff were trained to support the R, if they believed that their job included helping people who are incarcerated to learn how to live productive lives, that prison staff could feel a lot better about their work and reduced the negative outcomes of working in a prison. TH: Got it. Situated in the knee-jerk liberal Bay Area, it is usually served by hundreds of outside volunteers each day who provide dozens of different programs. We did a modified Boal exercise where we identified an issue. And you gave me your time today and I appreciate that more than you know. Trevor Hoffmann: Hi, Maverick! Then the prison stopped the acting program from sending in videos, so the program started sending in educational packets, to enhance the mens creative skills. For the past few years, in addition to performing a Shakespeare play, the men have written and performed autobiographical stories inspired by the themes in the plays. So, when my wife had company picnics, and people asked about me, rather than have an awkward moment, she was able to say, My husband is a performing artist go to Youtube, check it out! So, it gave me something to be proud about. The geography of San Quentin allows for individual liberties as well. The 55,000 people in the U.S. sentenced to Life Without Parole (LWOPs), will never have the opportunity to go before a parole board. Classes include check-ins, theatre skill-building exercises, Shakespeare study, rehearsal, and reflection. In 2023, both facilities will be closed. I was part of a group called The Richmond Project Im from Richmond and the Mayor used to come in because, at the time, Richmond was at war with itself. One of the men was delighted to report that a friend of his had heard someone performing a Letter to the World he had written as part of the Creative Writing from Inside video wed made. We will reconsider our policy of one Marin Shakespeare Company letter per year, and discuss with our Teaching Artists if they feel they have the capacity to write additional letters. "Macbeth" was its first offering at California State Prison, Solano thanks to an Arts-in-Corrections grant. Marin Shakespeare Managing Director Lesley Currier, 48, started the donation-funded prison acting project eight years ago. The theatre they create is recorded and shared on YouTube. Now, part of that was due to a law being changed and the narrative of prisoners and what a prisoner is. They are moving testaments to power of Shakespeares inspiration. by Lorena Paredes The San Quentin Experience by Nicole Collopy San Quentin's Message: Love by Eric Abercrombie, who they all know, is mentoring youth in writing and recording original music as part of our theatres program for system-impacted youth at Marins Community School. Sierra Conservation Center, Jamestown Starting in 2020 through 2022, we offered a Shakespeare program for this prison in Tuolumne County. We talk about our feelings. I suggested Rauch might teach a Drama Therapy class for youth in foster care; he didnt know if he would be able to do that but when I suggested he co-teach with one of the Drama Therapists who facilitate our classes at San Quentin, I think I actually saw his eyes become a little starry, as he imagined a future for himself he had never envisioned before. At other prisons, if youre not on the roster, you cant be in the room for class. The cast used a script adapted by Robert Currier,. I also asked someone to be prepared to say stop when the scene got to a place where one of the characters could make a different choice. Maverick: Now, in the part of the play when the Senators stabbed and killed Caesar, Marc Antony gets left alone, speaking to the body. Level II inmates. Hopefully, one day the CDCR will use SOMS for this purpose. July 15, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. Show Caption. We discussed whether we would want to choose a theme for our performance. Throughout the last 6 years, he has been a regular member of Marin Shakespeare Company's Shakespeare class at San Quentin State Prison. Maverick: To tell you the truth, drama therapy pretty much saved my life. You have all my hopes that things continue to improve and that you are able to keep establishing that foundation. Tue 22 Jun, 2021 Returning to San Quentin Post-Pandemic - June 18 (day three) Written by Lesley Currier Published in Social Justice / Prison Programs by Lesley Schisgall Currier Today was the first day back for the Friday Shakespeare group. Ironically, that evening, my husband and I had dinner with old friends, who raise grass-fed beef. He was a lot stronger than I was. As we waited for more men to join the group, I asked what the men thought about Juneteenth becoming a federal holiday the day before, with today the first official national celebration. Maverick: Absolutely. Maverick: Well, in that, Trevor, theres something you should know about me: I have a belief that there is freedom in transparency. And at O. H. Close Youth Correctional Facility, Dameion and I led a weekly class that resulted in a performance of Langston Hughes poems, as well as a visit and information-filled conversation with members of the Returned Citizens Theatre Troupe, actors who have survived incarceration who tell stories of importance through theatre. Maverick: Well, youre there now, and thats what matters! To make a donation in support of Shakespeare at San Quentin,click here, Marin Shakespeare Company 415.499.4488 Forest Meadows Amphitheatre 890 Belle Ave. San Rafael, CA, 94901, Videos, Creative Writing, Success Stories.

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