Over the years, Padua’s Shakespeare class has grown tremendously and earned itself a prominent reputation in the community as well as amongst the Padua student body. One of the classes meets daily as an exchange class with the Salesianum boys; the other meets in accordance with our ever-changing schedule. The class consists of learning excerpts and sonnets from some of Shakespeare’s most renowned plays and performing them before various audiences.

Each year Padua’s Shakespeare class attends the Delaware Shakespeare Festival. The Delaware Shakespeare Festival is a day for teens from all different schools across the state to come together and share their love of Shakespeare. Each school selects a play to perform at the Festival. This year, Padua will be performing the Twelfth Night, a play about two twins who are separated from each other after an accident at sea not knowing that the other survived the shipwreck. The Delaware Shakespeare Festival is not a competition — it’s simply a day for teens to get together and share their love of Shakespeare and have fun showing off all their hard work over the past few months.

Padua’s Shakespeare class also does a lot for the local community. Each year, the Shakespeare class visits Christ the Teacher elementary school to work with the children. The students get to teach the children about Shakespeare and many of them love the opportunity to interact with the children. Also, each year Padua has elementary children from Preschool to 4th grade visit Padua for a day full of Shakespeare fun. Padua’s Shakespeare students work with the children and help the kids put on a play of their own.

Padua’s student body is very supportive of the Shakespeare class. Each year the class also sets aside one day to perform an excerpt from a play before the student body and teachers/faculty. The class always receives positive feedback from their various audiences. It is highly encouraged that all students come to support the Shakespeare class the last week of February when they perform a scene from the Twelfth Night in Roberto Hall. Also, Shakespeare students would love for students to come to the Delaware Shakespeare Festival on February 26, 2012 to join in on the experience.