Festival by the Marsh offers summer musical theatre workshop

Fun-filled musical theatre workshops will be offered for local youth as part of this year's Festival by the Marsh (running July 7 to 19).
From July 13-18, young people high school aged and over will work on an edited version of the hit Broadway musical Kiss me Kate, a musical comedic retelling of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. The week will consist of learning theatre, singing, and dancing skills, and rehearsing for full costumed performances on July 17 and 18.
Kiss me Kate will be presented in conjunction with the festival's full production of The Taming of the Shrew (which runs July 9-19 at Mount Allison swan pond), and other events including a panel on Shakespeare's portrayal of women.
Workshop instructors are Brian Hawkes and Francesca Barnett-Cowan. Both Hawkes and Barnett-Cowan are well known to local audiences for their performances with Black Tie Productions, Garnet and Gold, Windsor Theatre, and Festival by the Marsh. Hawkes was also a member of Live Bait Theatre's 2008 Christmas dinner theatre cast.
"The acts of singing and of acting are as natural as breathing and being alive --and they bring joy and fulfillment to people of all ages, all around the world,"?says festival director Ron Kelly Spurles.
"We invite you to join us this summer for a week of musical theatre skill learning and performance -- share your joy in musical theatre with us this summer."
For further information or to register, please visit the festival website www.festivalbythemarsh.ca, or contact festival@mta.ca or (506) 364-2179. Spaces are limited, and are filling up so early registration is advised.
From July 6-10, the festival is also offering a workshop for children aged five to 12 in conjunction with the town of Sackville's Summer Quest program. Visit the town's website or contact the town for further details on that workshop.