Coming to America: The Works of William Shakespeare in Early

Coming to America The Works of William Shakespeare in Early American Culture (and today) followed by a reading of Romeo and Juliet NEH Picturing Early America: People, Places, & Events 1770-1870 Leslie Means 2010

John Quincy Adams Ward (1830–1910) William Shakespeare 1870; this cast bronze 28 x 11 x 11 in

Essential Questions • How has Shakespeare become part of American culture? • Should Shakespeare be a central part of school curriculums? Do his works contain timeless messages and universal truths?

Who should use this unit plan… Someone teaching a unit about the development of the performing arts in America.   Someone teaching about the influence of important literary figures.   Someone teaching any one of Shakespeare’s works.  

This unit was designed to be adapted to classrooms with students in middle or high school.

Knowledge Goals Students will know about: • The facts surrounding the Astor Place Riot and events surrounding performances of Shakespeare in American history. • The centrality of Shakespearean performance in American society in the 1750s, 1820s, 1840s, and today. • The universality of the themes of Shakespeare's works. • The structure of a Shakespearean sonnet.

Skill Goals Students will be able to: • Find connections between historical events and the arts that were popular at those times. • Interpret primary and secondary source documents. • Find arts information online. • Analyze Shakespearean texts. • Use artwork from a time period to understand the human perspective.

Connection to the Curriculum English Language Arts Massachusetts Frameworks

• 9.5 Relate a literary work to artifacts, artistic creations, or historical sites of the period of its setting. • 9.6 Relate a literary work to primary source documents of its literary period or historical setting. • 11.5 Apply knowledge of the concept that the theme or meaning of a selection represents a view or comment on life, and provide support from the text for the identified themes. • 11.7 Analyze and compare texts that express a universal theme, and locate support in the text for the identified theme. • 12.4 Locate and analyze elements of plot and characterization and then use an understanding of these elements to determine how qualities of the central characters influence the resolution of the conflict.

Connection to the Curriculum continued English Language Arts - Massachusetts • 14.4 Respond to and analyze the effects of sound, form, figurative language, and graphics in order to uncover meaning in poetry: • figurative language (personification, metaphor, simile, hyperbole) • 18.4 Develop and present characters through the use of basic acting skills • 19.22 Write and justify a personal interpretation of literary, informational, or expository reading that includes a topic statement, supporting details from the literature, and a conclusion. • 19.25 Write poems using a range of poetic techniques, forms (sonnet, ballad), and figurative language. These frameworks span all levels 5-12. Additionally there are many cross–curricular connections within this unit plan.

Connection to the Curriculum National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) • Standard 1 • Standard 2 • Standard 3 • Standard 4 • Standard 5 • Standard 11

Unit Part 1 A look at how Shakespeare became part of American culture and who determines what becomes popular in theater. Part I is designed to support Part 2 – a reading of Romeo and Juliet

In class activity

Introductory Activity: Pre-reading (One class 48 minute period) • England’s influence seen in America • Complete pre-reading worksheet • Discuss students’ perceptions of Shakespeare. • Discuss the use of the enrichment board throughout this unit. • Taylor Swift “Love Story”, New Moon cover, “star-crossed lovers” from the Hunger Games series.

A Pretty Little Pocket-Book, intended for the Amusement of Little Master Tommy, and Pretty Miss Polly. . . . London: J. Newbery, 1760. Early Printed Collections, The British Library

"Cooke's Circus" Edinburgh: James Brydon, 1840. Poster. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress

John D. Battin Jr. and Peter Fritz, sculptors Washington Monument Commemorative Stone: Dramatic Profession of America 1853 installed 1889

John Quincy Adams Ward Shakespeare Memorial in Central Park, NY commissioned 1864 Funds raised by a production of Julius Caesar (with actors Edwin and John Wilkes Booth)

William Ordway Partridge Shakespeare Memorial in Lincoln Park, Chicago 1888

Introductory Activity: Pre-reading (One class 48 minute period) • England’s influence seen in America • Complete pre-reading worksheet • Discuss students’ perceptions of Shakespeare. • Discuss the use of the enrichment board throughout this unit. • Taylor Swift “Love Story”, New Moon cover, “star-crossed lovers” from the Hunger Games series.

Activity 1: Hallum & The American Company (1750s) (One class period) • Shakespeare in Early America. Have students read the excerpt from the Shakespeare in America website. (notes) • Access student’s prior knowledge about the settling of America. • Playbills • Students write a journal entry about seeing Shakespeare, from the perspective of a British colonist. • Shakespeare during the latter half of the eighteenth century • Portraits of Washington, Adams, and Jefferson compared to King George III • Summary of the Bard in revolutionary America from Shakespeare in America website. (notes)


Gilbert Stuart 1755-1828 George Washington (Lansdowne Portrait) 1796 Oil on canvas National Portrait Gallery

Gilbert Stuart American, 1755 - 1828 John Adams 1800/1815 oil on canvas

Gilbert Stuart (painter) American, 1755 - 1828 Thomas Jefferson 1821 oil on wood

Allan Ramsay 1713-1784 King George III (in coronation robes) 1761-62 Oil on canvas National Portrait Gallery


Activity 2: The African Company (1820s) (One class period) • Read a description of the African Company from Howard University’s Fine Arts Walk of Fame (notes) • Discuss controversy (notes) • Read excerpt from Act V, scene 3 The Tragedy of King Richard the Third. Discuss the effects on the audience. • Write a letter to a friend about the experience, from the perspective of an African American. • Discuss the path of the African Company (notes)

James Hewlett as Richard III

Ira Aldridge as Othello


KING RICHARD III A thousand hearts are great within my bosom: Advance our standards*, set upon our foes flags Our ancient word of courage, fair Saint George, patron of England Inspire us with the spleen of fiery dragons! Upon them victory sits...


Activity 3: The Astor Place Riot (1849) (One class period) • Differences in American and British theater • Read the excerpt about the Astor Place Riot from Lawrence Levine’s Highbrow/Lowbrow. (on handout) • Complete handout on Astor Place Riot

Charlotte and Susan Cushman (the Cushman sisters) in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. 1846

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre Left: earliest know sketch of the interior Below: reconstructed exterior

Chatham Garden Theatre New York 1823

Bowery Theatre New York 1856

Compare &

Contrast

Compare &

Contrast

A European view of Americans at the Theatre Box at the Theatre by Auguste Hervieu, from Trollope, Domestic Manners of the Americans A view of the clientele at a New York theatre (most likely the Park) in 1831.

John Lewis Krimmel (1786-1821) From Nightlife in Philadelphia An Oyster Barrow in front of the Chestnut Street Theater 1811 Watercolor and graphite on white laid paper

Left: 19th century British theatre-goers at the Drury Lane, Convent Garden Below: American theatre patrons at the Park Theatre in New York.

Activity 3: The Astor Place Riot (1849) (One class period) • Differences in American and British theater • Read the excerpt about the Astor Place Riot from Lawrence Levine’s Highbrow/Lowbrow. (on handout) • Complete handout on Astor Place Riot

Activity 3: The Astor Place Riot (1849) continued… (One class period) • Letter to Macready from pre-reading activity • Summarize Levine’s description of Macready’s second attempt to perform. (notes) • A brief essay on a modern-day comparison to the Astor Place Riot incident.

The Astor Place Riot 1849

Forrest as Macbeth

Macready as Macbeth

Activity 3: The Astor Place Riot (1849) continued… (One class period) • Letter to Macready from pre-reading activity • Summarize Levine’s description of Macready’s second attempt to perform. (notes) • A brief essay on a modern-day comparison to the Astor Place Riot incident.

Activity 4: Shakespeare’s changing reception in America (One class period) • Effects of the Astor Place Riot • Is there are difference between high and popular literature, art, music? • Political cartoon activity

Final Assessment – Check for Understanding (Ungraded) Town Hall Meeting Based on what you’ve learned about how Shakespeare’s works came to America, should his plays be a permanent part of American culture today and in the future?

Activity 5: Town Hall Meeting (One class period) • Town Hall Style meeting for or against Shakespeare in America. Group 1 – citizens at the Astor place Riot – fans of Macready (against) Group 2 – citizens at the Astor place Riot – fans of Forrest (you decide) Group 3 – actors from the Grove Theater – (for) Group 4 – spectators at the Grove Theater – (for) Group 5 – Early American colonists – (you decide) Group 6 – students in 2010 (for) Group 7 – students in 2010 (against) • Groups will receive their assignment but will not share their role with other groups. Each group will be given 2 minutes to state their case (uninterrupted). Then the floor will be open to discussion. Students should be taking notes while others are talking so they can rebut.

Unit Part 2 A close reading of Romeo and Juliet uses several versions of the play both original and modernized. Romeo and Juliet: Folger edition No Fear Shakespeare edition Graphic novel by No Fear Shakespeare

Previous to Class 1 - Who is Shakespeare Web Quest. • Use at least three sources and cite using MLA style (suggested sources) http://www.bcps.org/offices/lis/models/meetmrs/ studentresources.html http://www.pbs.org/shakespeare • Complete worksheet “Getting to know Shakespeare.”

Class 1 – Shakespeare and Sonnets • Read the Prologue and identify key words • Look at a well known Shakespearean sonnet and discuss the rhyme scheme and style. http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/xSonnets.html • Interpret Sonnet 130 – “My mistress’ eyes” http://www.shakespeare-online.com/sonnets/130.html

• Write a chorus for Anne Frank’s Diary in the form of a sonnet. Use sonnet format and rhyme scheme. • Watch video clip of the Prologue http://www.mefeedia.com/movie/10899005

Class 2 & 3 – Act I • Read Act I : scenes 1-4 from No Fear Shakespeare discuss/ questions • Read Act I : scene 5 from Folger’s edition. (Romeo and Juliet meet for the first time) Discuss the events. Then pull out Romeo’s lines. Does this qualify as a sonnet? Provide evidence.

Class 4 & 5 – Act 2 • Read Act II: scene 1 in the graphic novel version of Romeo and Juliet and discuss • Teacher read aloud Act II: scene 2 (balcony scene) from Folger’s edition. • Complete close reading worksheet (group 4 – advanced /group 6 – remedial)

• Figurative Language Charades • Finish reading Act II in the graphic novel.

Class 6, 7 & 8 – Act III • Use modified script to act out Act III: scene 1 • Read remaining scenes from No Fear Shakespeare • Courtship(Romeo & Juliet, 19th century America, today) • Begin plot diagram • Story board one scene from Act III in groups

Jerome B. Thompson, American 1814-1886 A Pic Nick in the Woods of New England 1855 Oil on canvas

Cephas Thompson, American 1775-1856 The Frightened Girl 1810 Oil on canvas

Class 6, 7 & 8 – Act III • Use modified script to act out Act III: scene 1 • Read remaining scenes from No Fear Shakespeare • Courtship(Romeo & Juliet, 19th century America, today) • Begin plot diagram • Story board one scene from Act III in groups

Class 9 & 10 – Act IV • Read Act IV: scenes 1 and 2 in the graphic novel Discuss what students’ fears would be if they were Juliet about to drink the vile. What do they think of the plan? •  Read Act IV: scene 3 – Juliet drinks the special poison. Read the scene aloud from the Folger edition. List as many of Juliet’s fears as you can find. Are there any you had in common? •  Finish reading Act IV in the graphic novel and discuss. • Fill in the plot diagram.

Class 11 - 14 – Act V • Break students into three groups to act out all of Act V. Students can use either of the No Fear Shakespeare editions but must read the scene from Folger’s. Give students 2-3 class periods to prepare their own written script including stage directions. Group 1 – Act 5: scene 1 (3 parts) Group 2 – Act 5: scene 2 (2 parts) Group 3 – Act 5: scene 3 (14 parts) • Fill in plot diagram and discuss.

Assessments • Explain the reference to Romeo and Juliet from Seinfeld. (season 2 – “The Heart attack”)

• Turn your plot diagram into an essay and illustrate for each Act. • Find instances of comic relief during serious moments. Create a three column chart of the character, relief, and serious event. • Discuss the importance of casting in Shakespeare’s plays after reading a criticism by John Quincy Adams. • Critical Thinking Questions - (a) What should Romeo and Juliet have done, instead of what they actually did, at three or more points in the play? (b) Could Romeo and Juliet have triumphed—if they’d had good advice? (c) Would Mercutio have helped them had he lived?

Enrichment Plan an Elizabethan wedding for Romeo and Juliet Look at book covers for Romeo and Juliet and how they’ve changed over time. Choose three covers and compose an essay with images about the cover choices. Finally create your own cover for Romeo and Juliet. Listen to this clip of a speech by Robert Kennedy at the DNC following the assassination of JFK. Prepare a presentation for the class to explain why he chooses to quote certain lines from Romeo and Juliet. Research the Globe Theatre (Theater) and build your own Globe Theatre. Write up a description of the various parts that would be found in that theatre. Know the names of stage locations and present your model and description to the class. Be prepared to field questions.

Bibliography • Book Sources Bank, Rosemarie K. Theatre Culture in America, 1825-1860. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1997. Print. Britsol, Michael D. Big-time Shakespeare. London: Routledge, 1996. Print. Frick, John W. Theatre, Culture and Temperance Reform in Nineteenth-Century America. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Print. Hackett, James Henry. Notes and Comments upons Certain Plays and Actors of Shakespeare, with Criticism and Correspondence . New York: Carleton, Publisher, 1863. Google Books. Web. 21 July 2010. . Rankin, Hugh F. The Theater in Colonial America. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1960, 1965. Print. Taubman, Howard. The Making of the American Theatre. New York: Coward McCann, Inc., 1965. Print.

Bibliography Continued • Web Sources "Education." Shakespeare in American Communities. National Endowment for the Arts, 2010. Web. 21 July 2010. . John Bull & Uncle Sam: four generations of British-American relations. Library of Congress, 30 Dec. 2005. Web. 21 July 2010. . Saunders Thompson, Denise D., dir. Fine Arts Walk of Fame. Howard University, 2001-2008. Web. 21 July 2010. . "Teach and Learn” and “Discover Shakespeare." Folger Shakespeare Library. N.p., 2010. Web. 21 July 2010. .

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