‘All The World’s A Stage’

East End Disability Associates brings “The Shakespeare Project” — a performance workshop exploring elements of comedy and tragedy in the plays of William Shakespeare — to the Vail-Leavitt Music Hall, 18 Peconic Ave, Riverhead, on Thursday and Friday, August 22 and 23, at noon.

“EEDA’s creative arts program provides individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities with the opportunity to nurture their passion for the dramatic arts in a professional environment,” said Lisa Meyer Fertal, the CEO of EEDA.

The most unique aspects of EEDA’s creative arts program include participants working alongside professional actors, dancers, directors, and theater designers. They receive acting, voice, and music classes taught by EEDA staff and professional acting teachers in studios. The program has performed four full-scale productions on the Gateway Playhouse’s mainstage, and featured their sets at the Vail-Leavitt Music Hall.

“The acting skills we are trying to teach are about expression, and how beyond just words, we use our bodies and our voices and our faces to communicate,” said Matthew Kuriloff, manager of the creative arts program. “With Shakespeare, you really have to hit those non-verbal cues to translate the story.”

bridget@indyeastend.com