Anti-Bullying Program

Shakespeare and Violence Prevention

In-school, Anti-Bullying Program | 6th grade

Designed by Colorado University’s Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence in collaboration with Colorado Shakespeare Festival, this anti-bullying curriculum uses a 50-minute abbreviated and modernized live performance of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” to open up a dialogue on day-to-day violence. Following the show, our teaching actors conduct hands-on anti-violence workshops in classrooms, connecting the play’s themes with student’s real-life, present-day scenarios, fostering empathy, critical thinking, and problem-solving.

Twelfth Night

The shipwrecked Viola, believing her twin brother drowned, decides to make a fresh start—dressed as a boy. Meanwhile, in the Countess Olivia’s household, everyone decides to play a trick on the haughty butler, Malvolio, by convincing him that Olivia is in love with him. When the joke goes too far, Malvolio promises his enemies, in his final lines of the play, to be “revenged on the whole pack of you.” What will Malvolio do next? What happens when a joke gets out of hand? This play raises questions about bullying, power imbalance, and the cycle of violence.

In the News:

East Oregonian 2016: The Bard Takes on Bullying

Bring Shakespeare Walla Walla’s Anti-Bullying Program to your school today!

A half day program includes:

Comprehensive study guide
50-minute performance (250 students max)
Brief post-show talk-back with actors
Three (3) 50-minute classroom workshops about violence prevention (30 students max per workshop)

A full day program includes:

Comprehensive study guide
50-minute performance (250 students max–a 2nd performance can be arranged in lieu of 3 workshops)
Brief post-show talk-back with actors
Up to nine (9) 50-minute classroom workshops about violence prevention (30 students max per workshop, held in three rounds)