Garden Grove’s Shakespeare Festival: The Tempest Rages

Last year I was a freshman in a highly academic private high school. When my English teacher announced to our class that we were going to be reading Shakespeare, most of the class groaned, yet my eyes lit up.

I inquired which of Shakespeare’s works we would be studying, and when I found it to be “Julius Caesar” I was ecstatic. The reason for this was that I had seen a remarkable performance of “Julius Caesar” at the Grove Theatre.

In the days following I was able to answer most of the questions the teacher asked, and I had a superior understanding of the text. As I read the timeless passages of Brutus, Cassius and Julius Caesar himself, I felt as though the words were coming to life.

I remembered the terrific portrayal of the ancient Romans by the Grove’s actors and actresses, and while most of the students struggled through the play and hated the class, I found “Julius Caesar” to be interesting and entertaining. On the final exam I scored one of the highest grades in my class while many others were left far behind.

If it had not been for the Grove’s production I would have been hopelessly lost, like so many others, during my class’s lessons on Julius Caesar. I have given my financial support to the Grove’s excellent work, and I hope Mayor Williams and the Garden Grove City Council will rethink their positions.

REBECCA WOOD

Fullerton