A Student Matinee Performance of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, 2024. Photo by Hannah Jo Anderson.
Engaging Learners of All Ages Through Timeless Poetry
Contact Education Coordinator Erin Milleville for more information.
APT’s educational programming inspires students to revel in words. We serve over 10,000 students annually with a variety of programs, both on the APT campus and in the classroom. Our programs support educators with tools and techniques to foster students' exploration of - and delight in - language.
Learn more about all APT Education has to offer from David Daniel, APT Core Company Actor and Director of Education.
APT Education in 2024
STUDENT MATINEE SERIES
In 2024, more than 5,800 students and educators from 90 schools traveled to experience a performance up the Hill or in the Touchstone. Students and educators attended William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing and King Lear in September, as well as Nathan Alan Davis' Nat Turner in Jerusalem in October.
POST SHOW DISCUSSIONS
After the show, students and educators stuck around to ask actors and other professional theater makers about the play they just watched, or any other curiosities the performance inspired.
FALL WORKSHOPS
After the final bow of student matinees, 6 APT Teaching Artists traveled to 22 schools across Wisconsin to work directly with students and unpack Shakespeare's Much Ado and King Lear. Over two weeks of classroom time, our Teaching Artists worked with 1,320 middle and high school students.
RESIDENCY PROGRAMS
In 2024, APT traveled to 21 schools to bring powerful, interactive residencies to 3,409 students through programs like The Potency of Poetry and the Words Between Us residencies. APT Teaching Artists traveled from Eagle River to South Beloit, Milwaukee to River Ridge, visiting 14 counties around the state.
And much, much more...
APT Education Collaborations in 2024
APT Community Engagement
APT's Community Engagement department partnered with APT Education on many projects designed to bring student groups backstage and experience the wide variety of careers in the arts. Groups from Overture Center's Arts Career Exploration Spotlight (ACES) and Seeding Equity (featured in this The Cap Times article) joined members of our Education team on tours of the workshops and facilities that help make APT so magical.
Children's Theatre of Madison
In July, 32 young artists and workshop leaders from Children's Theatre of Madison (CTM)'s Shakespeare-class joined APT for a backstage tour of the theater spaces and shops before staying for an evening performance of Much Ado About Nothing.
Fine Arts Weekend
In September, over 100 high school students and teachers from across Wisconsin visited APT for a weekend of shows, including the world-premiere The Virgin Queen Entertains Her Fool, Dancing at Lughnasa and Ring Round the Moon through Fine Arts Weekend. While here, students and educators participated in workshops led by APT artists and took a tour of the grounds.
First Stage Academy
Based in Milwaukee, First Stage's Young Company made their annual pilgrimage to APT for a week of shows and workshops, including an opportunity to do a monologue audition work session with APT's artistic team.
Promega Corporation
APT Education worked with the Madison-based, bioengineering leader Promega Corporation to develop a workplace model of The Words Between Us residency for corporate spaces. Our Teaching Artists led discussion-based workshops focused on the principles of listening and building understanding.
Wisconsin Governor's Conference on Tourism (WIGCOT)
APT Education Director David Daniel and APT Artistic Associate Alys Dickerson opened for Dr. María Rosario Jackson, Chair of the National Endowment for the Arts at the Wisconsin Governor's Conference on Tourism in March. Together David and Alys curated and read a poem structured around text messages sent to them by event attendees about Wisconsin.
More to Come in 2025
For more information about APT's Education Department, please email education@americanplayers.org, or visit americanplayers.org/programs/education.
Credits:
APT Education, 2024