“A lot of English classes teach Shakespeare like it’s just a book that you read from. Experiencing it and watching it play out on stage is so different – that’s how it was meant to be shown. Camp Bill gives kids that experience of really living Shakespeare.”
– Camp Bill Graduate
Camp Bill is a series of fun and interesting programs offered every summer. Students can sign up for one-week acting camps where they will be introduced to Shakespeare’s works, practice basic acting concepts, and play fun improv games with new friends. They can also participate in a 3-week “production intensive” camp where middle and high school students create their own full productions. In these 3-week camps, teaching artists direct students not only in rehearsal and performance, but to design and build the set and costumes for their production! There’s something for almost every age and level.
In summer 2020, Production Intensive camps moved online and created short films of Shakespeare’s plays. Students worked with teaching artists to practice the language and rehearse scenes as usual, but then scouted locations, created storyboards and shot lists, and filmed their scenes in socially-distant ways, ultimately stitching together their videos to create complete films.
Check back in the spring for more information on what might come in 2021!
If we're going virtual...
We will be working together to dig into a Shakespeare play and create a video multimedia performance, all in just three short weeks. We will be exploring the text, acting for the camera, learning some sound and costume design, and flexing our creativity to come up with a variety of ways to tell Shakespeare’s stories using the media and materials available in our homes.
But through it all, we will be trying to stay true to those things that make Camp Bill special – connections with friends and teaching artists, the power of Shakespeare’s works, and the magic of sharing these stories.
Camp Bill VIRTUAL Production Intensive
For students entering grades 6-10
Show: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
- Dates: July 5-23, 2021, M-F
- Times Online: 10-11:30am & 2:30-4:00pm (approximately)
- Price: $500 full price, $250 discounted (for families financially impacted by COVID-19)
- Enrollment Deadline: June 18, 2021
- Location: Online Only
- Age: For students entering grades 6-10
Camp Bill VIRTUAL Teen Production Intensive
For students entering grades 9-12
Show: Macbeth
- Dates: August 2-20, 2021, M-F
- Times Online: 10-11:30am & 2:30-4:00pm (approximately)
- Price: $500 full price, $250 discounted (for families financially impacted by COVID-19)
- Enrollment Deadline: July 16, 2021
- Location: Online Only
- Age: For students entering grades 9-12
If we're able to gather indoors in person...
Dive deep into designing, rehearsing, building, and performing a classic play in just three weeks! You’ll learn nearly every aspect of creating a stage play and have fun doing it. You’ll learn and master Shakespeare’s language, audition for parts, play theatre games, sew costumes, paint the set, and work with other students to create a full performance. We’re all doing it together, so every student will perform and work on technical elements of the show that will be performed three times for audiences.
Camp Bill Production Intensive - In-Person
For students entering grades 6-10
Show: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
- Dates: July 5-25, 2021, M-F 10am-5pm
- Performances: July 23 at 4:30pm, July 24 at 2pm, and July 25 at 7pm
- Price: $840
- Enrollment Deadline: June 18, 2021 (max enrollment 14)
- Location: Seattle Center Armory
- Age: For students entering grades 6-10
Camp Bill Teen Production Intensive - In-Person
For students entering grades 9-12
Show: Macbeth
- Dates: August 2-22, 2021, M-F 10am-5pm
- Performances: August 20 at 4:30pm, August 21 at 2pm, and August 22 at 7pm
- Price: $840
- Enrollment Deadline: July 9, 2021 (max enrollment 12)
- Location: Seattle Center Armory
- Age: For students entering grades 9-12
Please note: In the comments section during checkout, please include your student’s name and date of birth.