Shakesperience 2019: Why Do You Continue to Participate in Shakesperience?

Katarina Margaret Baasner, double major in English and History and minor in Drama at Mount Allison University.

I loved being able to meet new people and develop friendships and connections and be able to be around others who have a similar passion for Shakespeare, theatre and literature. I also loved being able to learn from three amazing professors who definitely inspire me with their love of Shakespeare and learning. I love seeing all of the different shows, as attending theatre productions is one of my favourite things to do. I felt like I was right in my element during that week and that this is something that I was meant to do.

Yes, it did (change my views about Shakespeare). I realized even more that this really is something that I love and I feel like that I am meant to teach Shakespeare to my future students someday. This experience really just further reinforced my passion for Shakespeare and made me realize how important it is to educate others about Shakespeare and that this is something we should never stop teaching. Shakespeare is still relevant in 2018 as it was in the 1500’s. As we saw a variety of Shakespeare plays there are many different ways you can interpret Shakespearean work and it does not always have to be staged in the traditional setting.

(If you are considering going,) I would say that you would absolutely love this experience. It is completely worth it. This experience will be something that you would never forget. It will definitely be the one of the best weeks of your life. If you love Shakespeare, literature and theatre and love meeting new people then this trip is for you.

I definitely would (go again). This is actually my second time being part of the Shakesperience trip because I loved it so much and I wanted to be part of it again. I had such an amazing experience my first time going. There are always new plays every year and you are never seeing the same thing. I love meeting other people from different Universities and also Students of Life because you are able to learn so much from them and you are able to hear so many different perspectives, which is really cool. Who knows, maybe someday I will help plan Shakesperience.