Midsommer Flight Announces Professional Development Program for Directing Classical Theatre

Midsommer Flight, the professional not-for-profit theatre company that has been bringing free Shakespeare to Chicago parks since 2012, will offer a new professional development initiative for theatre directors in Chicago who want to hone their skills in directing the classics. The company's Artistic Director, Beth Wolf, (pictured) announced the new initiative, called "Directors Flight," today. The goal of this new program is to promote, cultivate, and inspire classical directing talent in Chicago.

Wolf explains her inspiration for the program. "Looking around Chicago, I recognized that there are few opportunities outside of MFA training for directors to hone their craft. Acting classes are everywhere, but directing classes are few and far between. There are also limited opportunities for directors to work on Shakespeare plays -- as ubiquitous as Shakespeare seems to be, the reality is that only a few storefront theatres produce Shakespeare regularly, and so there are few chances for emerging directors to gain the skills and experience to do it really well. Midsommer Flight is uniquely positioned to share all that we have learned since our founding in 2012. I'm so excited to find both emerging and established directors who are passionate to learn more about Shakespeare."

Directors Flight is now accepting applications to fill five director slots in the first year of the program. Spanning from November 2019 through April 2020, the initiative will offer various workshops led by Ms. Wolf and other members of the company's ensemble as well as guest artists and experts and will cover topics ranging from abridging Shakespeare's text for performance, rehearsal strategies, working with Fight/Intimacy/Music directors, casting processes, and more. The program will culminate in a workshop performance of a full Shakespeare play, for which each of the five directors will direct one act. It is important to the company that participating directors get the chance to showcase their work at the end of the process.

Equally important to Midsommer Flight is the financial accessibility of this training. Instead of a tuition-based model, Midsommer Flight has opted to pay each director a small fellowship stipend for their participation. Midsommer Flight is interested in cultivating talent from all backgrounds, orientations, and abilities.

Directors interested in applying for the program should visit the company's website at www.midsommerflight.com for more details; the deadline to submit is September 16.

Others interested in supporting this exciting new initiative can make an individual donation at midsommerflight.com/get-involved/donate or contact info@midsommerflight.com for sponsorship opportunities.

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