Introducing The Old Globe Classical Directing Fellowship, led by the Globe’s Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, a leading Shakespearean scholar, author, and director. Four directing fellows—Daniel Jáquez, Delicia Turner Sonnenberg, Sam White, and LA Williams—will participate in the pilot session of this new initiative. They will be in residence from Tuesday, January 22 through Friday, January 26, 2019.

As one of the leading Shakespeare theatres in America, the Globe presents four full productions of the Bard’s plays annually, and Shakespeare is central to the theatre’s nationally renowned arts engagement programs. All of this work exemplifies the Globe’s values-driven commitment to making theatre matter to more people, a commitment that expresses the Globe’s view of theatre art as a public good. This commitment and this view require the Globe to think about the future of the American theatre and to train artists whose work will embody the values we champion. We can make a contribution not only to our own work but also to the field at large by expanding the ranks of exciting Shakespeareans ready to make theatre at the Globe’s level of excellence. This Classical Directing Fellowship will broaden our professional artist-training work, now centered on The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program, which focuses on actors. This year’s Fellowship will pilot the program, and our hope and expectation is that it will evolve into an ongoing part of the Globe’s artistic life.

The Fellowship will focus on Shakespeare’s text, how it is put together, and how it works in the imaginations and voices of American actors. In master classes, Edelstein will present a series of techniques that the Directing Fellows will then employ in rehearsals with a company of professional actors. The work will culminate in a private presentation on Saturday. After that, all involved will debrief and broaden the conversation to some larger questions about Shakespeare, American culture, and the director’s art and life. Throughout the week, in addition to the artistic work, Directing Fellows will meet with members of the Globe’s staff in many departments, and with representatives of the San Diego theatre community beyond the Globe. They will gain not only a set of specific tools to use in directing Shakespeare, but also a sense of the community in one of America’s most dynamic theatre towns. In exchange, the Globe will have the chance to begin a conversation with a group of gifted artists with so much to offer this theatre.