7 Years of Shakespeare

As part of the Montrose commitment to teaching core texts of the liberal arts, girls read at least one work by the Bard each year. 
Each May, the M&M building serves as Montrose’s Globe Theater, where middle and upper school girls recite soliloquies, act out scenes and trade Shakespearean insults. 
 
While one goal of the Merrie Month of May is to have fun with the 500-year-old texts, the rich liberal arts curriculum invites students to grow in practical wisdom. The readings, dialogue about the readings, individual coaching, and performance opportunities help girls build the habits of mind, heart and character essential for human flourishing in and outside of the classroom. 
 
“The themes that Shakespeare develops force us to consider the essential questions, the ones that help us understand ourselves and others,” said Barbara Whitlock, Upper School Director at Montrose. The school's in-depth academic approach allows the time and space in the classroom for students at every grade level to consider these questions.
 
One recent alumna, Anna Sheehan ‘21, placed second in the U.S. for her performance in the annual English Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition in April 2021. Representing the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the ESU’s Boston branch, Anna delivered dramatic interpretations of Robin from A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Sonnet 2. 
 
Anna credits her Montrose education in helping her achieve her goal: “I thank every teacher who ever urged me to dig deeper in a text, to clarify my thinking, and, beyond the classroom, to empathize with and reach out to other people. It’s the others-centered attitude that Montrose fosters that allows me to understand people a little bit better, and when your environment leads you to understand people, there’s no limit to what you can uncover in a monologue, in a scene, or in the richest verse of Shakespeare.”
 
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An independent school for girls in grades 6-12
Inspired by the teachings of the Catholic Church