Wanda's Picks Friday, May 17, 2013 Art Transforming Lives Special

Our program opens with Quinn DeVeaux. Quinn is from Gary, Indiana, has packed houses and astounded audiences in the bay area for years with his smooth and dirty spank you voice and cool melodic songwriting. First he started an early Chicago Blues band and then a New Orleans soul and gospel band. Both groups had audiences clamoring for more. Now he has combined it all in the Blue Beat Review a self-styled crossroads of his many musical roots. He and Meklit Hadero have a show Saturday, May 18, 2013, 8 p.m.with Bhi Bhiman at St. Cyprian's Church, 2097 Turk, San Francisco. Visit http://quinndeveaux.com

Hamlet (Luke Padgett);  Polonius (Johnathan Wilson)

Next Marin Shakespeare Company's founding managing director, Lesley Schisgall Currier joins us to talk about inmates at San Quentin State Prison who will have the rare opportunity to see fifteen of their peers performing in Shakespeare's problematic comedy "The Merchant of Venice," a play about commerce, love, revenge, and mercy.

Marin Shakespeare Company, which produces an outdoor summer festival of plays at Dominican University's Forest Meadows Amphitheater in San Rafael, also offers year-round arts education programs for students ages 5 to adult.

Under the direction of Currier and Suraya Keating, the San Quentin troupe has been studying this year's play, creating characters, learning lines, practicing fight choreography, and preparing for the performance for the past eight months. The lead role of Shylock will be undertaken by inmate Luke Padgett, who has appeared in previous S@SQ productions as Hamlet, Malvolio, Lysander, Mercutio, Don Pedro etc. Padgett is serving a life sentence for murder, arson and robbery. She is joined by former company member, Johnathan Wilson (JW) who speaks about the transformative power of art now that he is on the other side of the prison walls.  Music: Nina Simone, Leon Thomas, Meklit & Quinn.

Quinn DeVeaux, from Gary, Indiana, has packed houses and astounded audiences in the bay area for years with his smooth and dirty spank you voice and cool melodic songwriting. First he started an early Chicago Blues band and then a New Orleans soul and gospel band. Both groups had audiences clamoring for more. Now he has combined it all in the Blue Beat Review a self-styled crossroads of his many musical roots.

Next Marin Shakespeare Company's Lesley Schisgall Currier joins us to talk about inmates at San Quentin State Prison who will have the rare opportunity to see fifteen of their peers performing in Shakespeare's problematic comedy "The Merchant of Venice," a play about commerce, love, revenge, and mercy.

Under the direction of Currier and Suraya Keating, the actors have been studying the play, creating characters, learning lines, practicing fight choreography, and preparing for the performance for the past 8 months. The lead role of Shylock will be undertaken by inmate Luke Padgett, who has appeared in previous S@SQ productions as Hamlet, Malvolio, Lysander, Mercutio, Don Pedro etc. Padgett is serving a life sentence for murder, arson and robbery. She is joined by former company member, Johnathan Wilson (JW) who speaks about the transformative power of art now that he is on the other side of the prison walls.  Music: Nina Simone, Leon Thomas, Meklit & Quinn.


Surprise guest, Johnathan Wilson joins the conversation with Lesley. He is a former participant or company member of Shakespeare at San Quentin. The conversation is uplifting and speaks to the power of art to transform lives.

SHAKESPEARE AT SAN QUENTIN

Started in 2003.

Weekly Shakespeare Classes for Inmates.

Inmates rehearse a Shakespeare play for 8 months and give one performance.

The audience is made up of inmates and invited outside guests.

The inmates also write and perform autobiographical plays inspired by themes from the Shakespeare play.

This year, Marin Shakespeare Company has added a second class, to share this work with an additional group of men.

Shakespeare at San Quentin is led by Lesley Currier and Suraya Keating.

Suraya is a writer, actor, and director and also a licensed Drama Therapist.

Shakespeare at San Quentin also provides internships each year for students working on Masters degrees in

Drama Therapy; this year three interns are working with the program.

To see past performances visit: http://www.marinshakespeare.org/pages/outreach_SanQuentin-Videos.php

Visit http://www.blogtalkradio.com/wandas-picks/2013/05/17/wandas-picks-radio-show