ANNA HANSEN

At 12 years old, I was yearning for a group of friends, for a sense of a team, and I hoped that this is what I would find with The Upstart Crows of Santa Fe. I had no experience with Shakespeare and I was a bit wary about adjusting to the Bard’s language, as well as to the other people in the group. However, there were only a few other actors in that first workshop and I made an instant connection with both of them. As for the language, I quickly grew to understand the seemingly strange words and the images; I was able to connect with the characters and feel what they felt. Today, at 14 years old, I still have this connection with my fellow actors (whose numbers have grown) and the language, which still remains as beautiful to me as it did in that first workshop.

Joy Farkas

I started performing Shakespeare when I was six. At this time I wasn’t a particularly good actor, nor could I “speak the speech” all that well. But at six I was living in a family of thespians who were actively doing the plays and had begun building my connection and love of the stories and the language. During this time my ear became attuned to a language I would come to love later in my life. With the language came communities and friendships that I hope will last my entire life.

Shakespeare has given me a greater appreciation of the beauty, complexity, and ambiguities of what it means to be human.

Olivia White

So here’s a fact: I’m shy. I always have been and, to a certain extent, probably always will be. So perhaps it is a little strange then that theater has become so vastly important to me. I mean, for most of my life I was the kind of person who was terrified of simply ordering food in a restaurant. There was no way I was ever going to stand on a stage, in front of people, and recite 400-year-old words. But, well, here I am.

I made the choice to start performing Shakespeare early in 2015 when I heard of a youth Shakespeare company launching a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I decided I would go to the introduction and see what it was like, and that was it. No promises. But since then I’ve acted in four productions. Since then I’ve memorized perhaps too many Shakespearean words. Since then I’ve met so many wonderful people and made so many amazing friends. Since then I’ve stepped out of the box I was hiding in my whole life. Since then I’ve smiled more. Since then I’ve laughed more. Since then I’ve talked more. Since then I’ve been, simply, happier.

But here’s a catch: I almost didn’t join. The day of the introduction, I chickened out. I decided it was much less scary to stay home and do nothing. I wouldn’t have to talk to people, I wouldn’t have to take any risks. I could continue living my normal, Shakespeare-free life. No effort, no stress, no problem. But, luckily, my mother wasn’t having any of that and she forced me and my brother to attend the introduction. Today, I can’t begin to describe how glad I am we went.

Acting has transformed my life. I’ve grown into myself through theater, and Shakespeare’s fascinating language and riveting plots have only made my journey that much more rewarding. True, it has only been a year and yes, I am still rather shy. But I can confidently say Shakespeare changed my life and changed it for the better. A future where I am not performing Shakespeare isn’t a future I’d find appealing. Not anymore.

Sterling White

When I was 16, my mother dragged me and my sister to an introduction to A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the Upstart Crows. Within two weeks I fell in love with acting and with Shakespeare’s work, and I can distinctly remember, after the first night of performances (I played Lysander), deciding that this is what I want to do for at least most of my life.

Since then I have done several more productions (including The Winter’s Tale, Julius Caesar, and assorted scenes) and my fascination with the world of Shakespeare has only grown.

The word “Shakespeare” is scary to younger people; it carries connotations of complicated and difficult language, suited only for scholarly adults. This is completely untrue.

Through my work with the Crows I have realized that Shakespeare truly is something for everyone, and that includes kids! For me, that is something that I absolutely love about Shakespeare—the universality. And the language is just so rich and wonderful, so many of the lines work perfectly and slide off the tongue with elegant ease. Once I got hooked on Shakespeare, I realized my life would never be the same again.

Zoe marriner

"I love being a member of the Upstart Crows of Santa Fe. When I first saw the Crows they were doing A Midsummer Night’s Dream and my mom had forced my brother and I to go, but by the time we were in the car on the way home I’d found I had actually enjoyed it. My brother joined the company in the next show and I watched from the sidelines as he got cast, memorized his lines, and performed. In the next production I ran lines with him often enough that by the time they performed A Winter’s Tale I knew most of Antigonus and in the workshop that spring, I joined the company.

 One of the main reasons I enjoy the Crows is the community; there are no auditions and no stars. Every show is very much a team effort; you’ll be performing one night and working on stage crew the next. The backstage is all run by the kids who help make sure everyone gets to their entrances on time and that the people that are supposed to have swords have them. In King Henry IV, part I, when almost everyone was sick, the kids who weren’t even in that production showed up to help and we made it all work.  The Upstart Crows are special in that they do Shakespeare with ten to eighteen year-olds, and everyone actually knows what they’re saying and understand the play thanks to our director, interns, apprentices and fellow actors. By the end of a show most of us know other’s lines, not just our own and when we go to see a show we’ve done there’s often a lot of muttering if they cut a line or mispronounce anything.

When you join the Crows for a play you’ve joined the company and the community.