One of the most common questions people ask me is: "Why classical theatre?"

By studying the classical styles, we open ourselves up to the most complicated forms available. Whether it's the saturated language of Shakespeare, the elegant verse of Moliere or the physical demands of Commedia dell'Arte, these styles are hard to understand and complex to master - which means they're great challenges for advanced kids, and full of rich material.

By learning how to crack into these difficult texts, and how to listen for things like rhythm, alliteration, reversals, nuance, tone and specificity, kids get a real workout for their imaginative and analytical skills (and usually a physical workout as well, the way we do things). These forms teach the good stuff: the real acting skills that require practice and dedication.

And this good stuff resonates so well with the outdoor setting in which we do our shows. It's a dense environment: you can't shut out the sound of the crickets and focus the audience's attention solely on the words you're saying. You have to compete with the surrounding environment, and to do that, you need to have powerful things to say and a powerful way to say them.

Jeanne

Elena Day as The Green Bird in Cirque du Soleil's La Nouba.

It's not too late to register for our one-day workshop in clowning, but it will be soon!

The High School section of this workshop meets this Saturday!

About the Instructor
So, who is this Elena Day person? Well, you can read her impressive bio on our website, or you could just watch this video for Cirque du Soleil's La Nouba. The face you see on the homepage? That's Elena. The first thing you see in the video? Elena. And you'll see her character - The Green Bird - throughout the rest of the video. Elena created the character for Cirque when this show was first made, and still plays her a lot at special events.

In the world of Circus, performing with Cirque du Soleil basically means you're at the top of your art form. We're thrilled to have such a talented performer and teacher sharing her skills with our community!

Skills you can use
Clowning isn't just about hitting people in the face with pies. It's about presence, spontaneity and finding the fun in everything. It's something that any actor can learn from - and is downright essential for some actors. For instance, if you're interested in Commedia Troupe this summer, you should TOTALLY take this course.

So, don't delay any longer: register today!

First Session High School Ensemble gets fired up.

It's that time of year again. We've staked a claim to the second week of December, and we need your help to reach our goal!

Starting Monday, December 5th, the spirit of TPE goes global. Every day is a new chance to show your spirit, and every day is a chance to raise more money than any of the other ensembles from this summer! Sell sonnets, Shakespearean insults, baked goods or whatever else you can think of at your school or community center. Then, on Sunday, December 11th, come to the Winter Showcase, watch your friends, and stay after to find out who raised the most. The highest fundraisers get TPE prizes and appreciation.

In the last two years, some TPEers have gone above and beyond for this event. Jeremy and Zophia Pryzby babysat and donated the money they made. Kari Barclay sold cookies and baked goods. And Jeffrey and Ellie Robb have, frankly, owned this event for two years running, mobilizing their family and friends, and by selling sonnets and Shakespearean insults in their school.

Daily Events: Visit our Facebook Page to see a list of ways to show your spirit throughout the week, including wearing the TPE colors, dressing as your favorite character, and using Shakespearean insults on your friends!

Romeo and Juliet at the Synetic Theatre Company.

Join us for one of our upcoming field trips to see the kinds of adventurous, beautiful, ridiculous and sometimes insulting things people do with Shakespeare's scripts. Whether we like it or hate it, it's always fun to see what new direction someone will take Shakespeare's plays.

Coming up, we'll go to see two of these efforts: the film Anonymous (premise: Shakespeare didn't write any of his plays) and Synetic's Romeo & Juliet (premise: it doesn't matter who wrote the words, because we're not going to use them anyway). If they're good, we can rave about them afterwards; if they're lousy, we'll talk about why, and how they SHOULD have done it (which is always the best part).

Note: Anonymous is PG-13, and we're going to stick to that; you need to be in high school in order to come see this movie with us. It's a great get-together opportunity for Alumni as well!

Come along with us!

Second Session Middle School Takes a Walk, Ensemble-style

TPE got a lovely article written about it recently in the Fairfax Times by David Siegel. It's a great article, because it not only goes into what we do, but why we do it. If you've ever been in the position of explaining TPE to a friend and thought, "yeah, teenagers doing classical theatre outdoors: I wonder how Jeanne came up with that," then you might find that this article answers some of your questions.

Click here to read the article.

Want more? We compile the things that people write about us on our Press Page!

Traveling Players is happy to announce that it has receieved a grant for $22,500 from the Arts Council of Fairfax County to go toward its general operations in 2011-2012. The Arts Council has been one of TPE's most generous supporters, consistently awarding grants to Traveling Players every year since 2006-2007. This is a resounding testament to the artistic and educational quality of Traveling Players, and we are very honored to have the Arts Council's support.

The Arts Council is the recognized voice of the arts in Fairfax County, dedicated to fostering a dynamic and diverse local arts presence and participation. They ensure that artists and the arts thrive by providing vision, leadership, advocacy, funding, education and capacity building.

As we head toward the end of the year, you can help us reach our end of the year goal and add your support to the Arts Council's.

Click here to support our troupes.