Shakesperience is a an immersive learning experience that turns the Stratford Festival, in Stratford, Ontario, into our classroom. This is an intensive field study course designed to take students on a deep dive to understand the inner workings of North America's largest repertory theatre. Shakesperience 2025 will take place from June 23-28 (departing Stratford June 28). The first part of the course will be online, with readings and micro-lectures in advance of the in-person experience. Then we will meet in person to study, learn, watch, listen, and engage in the process of making theatre in Stratford, Ontario. We will watch five plays, engage in post-show discussions with actors, meet with directors and education associates, connect with dramaturges and academics. This is — at its heart — a transformative experiential learning course, so we will participate in workshops like learning a song and dance in the morning and then watch the musical in the afternoon. We have unprecedented back-stage access to the theatres — peeking behind the scenes with close up views of the sets, the “Voms”, and so much more! Enjoy an insider peek into the costume warehouse where we can see first-hand how the magic is created and dress up in some of the fabulous Stratford costumes! This truly is a once in a lifetime experience.
​
During our time in Stratford we will watch five plays:
Macbeth
As You Like It
The Winter's Tale
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Forgiveness
​
We will participate in specially designed, immersive workshops, such as:
• Learn a song and dance!
• Learn how to stage fight!
• Work with a dramaturge to unpack a scene
We will have full access to the festival with backstage tours:
• The costume and archives warehouse
• Set change and private tour
We will meet with the creative and business teams to understand how the festival operates:
• Meet with directors, actors, costume designers, dramaturges
• Participate in lobby talks, attend the meet the festival events, spend time with special guest speakers
• Participate in a post-show chat for ALL of the Shakespeare plays
​
PLUS enjoy a special luncheon and a final Banquet with an Alumni Reception!
Shakesperience 2019 Impact Report
​
2024 Shakesperience Professors:
Dr. Jessica Riddell is a Full Professor of Early Modern Literature at Bishop’s University and holds the Stephen A. Jarislowsky Chair of Undergraduate Teaching Excellence. As founder of the Hope Circuits Institute (HCI), she drives systems-change in higher education, focusing on governance, leadership, and student success. In a landscape rife with indictments of broken systems, her work invites people across the post-secondary ecosystem to co-create blueprints for meaningful rewiring that centers justice, equity, and access. Her 2024 book, Hope Circuits: Rewiring Universities and Other Organizations for Human Flourishing (McGill-Queen's Press), offers a roadmap for this transformation. A recognized leader, scholar, and educator, she serves on multiple boards and has received numerous awards and grants for teaching and leadership, including the 3M National Teaching Fellowship (Canada's highest recognition of educational leadership), the D2L Innovation Award (the highest recognition of innovation in partnerships), and the Forces Avenir award (Quebec's highest recognition of teaching excellence in higher education).
​
Dr. Shannon Murray is a Full Professor at the University of Prince Edward Island Shakespeare, John Bunyan, John Milton; children's literature, especially Early Modern English children's literature; Janosz Korczak, learning communities, active learning, and the senior-year experience. She is a recent recipient of the Chrsitopher Knapper Lifetime Achievement Award and a former coordinator of the 3M National Teaching Fellowship.
Dr. Lisa Dickson is a professor of English specializing in Renaissance Literature and Literary Theory. Her current research focuses on the relationship between beauty and violence in art and literature, with particular emphasis on the representation of violence in Renaissance Drama. She is a 3M National Teaching Fellow and a recipient of the UNBC Excellence in Teaching Award (2007). Much of her service to the University community is dedicated to promoting and supporting effective teaching and learning. For example, she is a member of the Foundation Year Curriculum Program Committee at UNBC and serves on the 3M Fellowship Council Executive Committee at the national level.