A Company of Fools is Ottawa’s longest running independent professional Shakespeare company: our mandate is to produce innovative, entertaining and accessible shows based on the works of William Shakespeare.

Finding the Fools

Hotline 613-863-PLAY (7529)
E-mail info@fools.ca

(Grades 1-6; Select workshops for K-8)
A Company of Fools offers a variety of workshops tailored specifically for participants in elementary schools:

PLAYING WITH SHAKESPEARE (Half-Day Only; Grades 1-6)
IMPROVISATION (Half Day Only; Grades 1-6)
SHAKESPEARE STORY WORK (Full Day Only, Grades 1-6)
SHAKESPEARE CHARACTER PLAY (Full Day Only, Grades 1-6)
INTRODUCTION TO CLOWN (Half-Day Only; K-8)
INTRODUCTION TO MASK (Half-Day or Full Day Available; Grades K-8)

Max. No. Of Students: 30
Grade Levels: 1-6 (Intro to Clown & Intro to Mask for Grades K-8)
Half day: one session (2 hours) ; Cost:  $275 + HST
Full day: two sessions (4 hours) ; Cost: $375 + HST
Please note: Some of our workshops are available in half-day or full-day sessions only. For others, there is an option for either full or half day sessions.

To book a workshop for your school contact:
info @ fools. ca

PLAYING WITH SHAKESPEARE (Half-Day Only)
An introductory workshop that encourages students to have a good time investigating Shakespeare without getting stuck on heightened language. Using simple songs and rhythm games (Gds. 1-4) or modern music (rap, hip hop and the blues) and Shakespearean insults (Gds. 5 & 6), students will begin to play with and explore the language and of Shakespeare. By the end of the workshop, students will be familiar with some well known phrases and be able to impress their friends and family.

Curriculum Links:

  • Language and Reading: summarize and explain the main ideas and cite supporting details, draw conclusions, retell the story, or apply what they have read;
  • Oral and Visual: use tone of voice, gestures, and other nonverbal cues to help clarify meaning when describing events, telling stories, reading aloud, making presentations, stating opinions, etc.;
  • Drama: demonstrate an understanding of a character’s point of view through?o speaking in role, and through using body movement in role)

IMPROVISATION (Half-Day Only)
A dynamic introduction to the art of improvisation that connects students to their creative impulses. Through a variety of games and exercises students learn to create theatre spontaneously. Improvisation boosts self-confidence in students and provides skills in communication, team work, problem solving and creative thinking.

Curriculum links:

  • demonstrate understanding of ways of sustaining the appropriate voice or character (e.g., through language, gestures, body movements) when speaking or writing in role for different purposes (e.g., to entertain, inform, persuade);
  • recognize when it is necessary to sustain concentration in drama and dance (e.g., when they are performing in a largegroup improvisation over an extended period of time);
  • explain and demonstrate the use of different patterns in creating effects in drama and dance (e.g., patterns of pace and direction; symmetry);
  • describe the skills needed to perform in public

SHAKESPEARE STORY WORK (Full Day Only)
Students will create their own unique story book using themes from Shakespeare text, (a choice of texts to tie in with your topics). After being entertained with masks or puppets to introduce a synopsis of the story, students will have chance to discuss and explore these themes and contribute similar experiences in their lives. The Fools will rewrite the story using the collected student’s ideas and divide ideas into text for each page. The students will work in groups to create illustrations for the book pages OR the students will create tableaus to be photographed for pages of the book. The Fools will assemble text and images and produce a book for your class to enjoy.

Curriculum Links:

  • Language and Reading: summarize and explain the main ideas and cite supporting details, draw conclusions, retell the story, or apply what they have read;
  • Writing: through discussion and brainstorming, generate ideas for writing;
  • Oral and Visual: listen and react to stories and recount personal experiences;express and respond to ideas and opinions concisely and clearly; express and respond to a range of ideas and opinions concisely, clearly, and appropriately;
  • Creative Work: produce two dimensional works of art that communicate thoughts and feelings

SHAKESPEARE CHARACTER PLAY (Full Day Only)
An introduction to one of Shakespeare’s plays to explore character, language and behavior. The Fools lead your students through a variety of games and exercises that introduce them to the story and a chosen theme of the play. Students will explore key central characters through role play and descriptive language activities, by using costume and props and retelling the character story in their own words.

Curriculum links:

  • Language: talk about characters and situations in stories, and relate them to personal experience?
  • use tone of voice, gestures, and other nonverbal cues to help clarify meaning when describing events, telling stories, reading aloud, making presentations, stating opinions, etc.

INTRODUCTION TO CLOWN (Half-Day Only)
Students are introduced to different types of clowning as they play a variety of games and exercises that lead them to invent their own clown. Students will explore the idea of the clown a character who does all the things they wish they could, but are not allowed to (Gds. 1-3) and as a character who can behave outside of accepted cultural norms (Gds. 4,5,6). Students will explore a range of movement that identifies the character of their clown. Each student will earn their own nose after presenting one wonderful thing to their peers.

Curriculum Links:

  • describe some of the basic elements of drama and dance (e.g., time, space);
  • solve problems in various situations through role playing and movement in drama;
  • describe and interpret their own and others’work, using appropriate drama and dance vocabulary.

INTRODUCTION TO MASK (Gds. K – 8, 1-2 Sessions)
Using a variety of full face, half face and animal masks provided by the instructor, students will investigate ideas of taking on another character. Students will have the chance to explore their chosen mask by studying themselves in mirrors, making drawings and inventing life stories for their character. Masks of different styles and traditions from around the world are used in this mask workshop. Character stories can be recorded on storyboards or flickbooks and mask making can also be taught.

Curriculum Links:

  • describe some of the basic elements of drama and dance (e.g., time, space);
  • solve problems in various situations through role playing and movement in drama;
  • describe and interpret their own and others’work,using appropriate drama and dance vocabulary