About the Program
Florida Rep's Education Programs have grown exponentially in the past five years and are overseen by Education Director Jamie Carmichael. The program continues to grow under his creative and innovative direction. Associate Producer Carrie Lund laid the foundations tens years ago, and it was under former Associate Director Bari Newport that the current program began to take shape. Some of Newport's original plays for kids about Thomas Edison and Dr. Seuss are still talked about today, and her influence in the formation of the many different components of the Education Program is unparalleled.Since then, the Rep staff has continued to cultivate and adapt the education program, and has created a very active and sought-after education arm of the Florida Repertory Theatre. Education at the Florida Rep now offers programming for kids and adults, performance opportunities and is active all year long.
And now, at the ten-year mark, Florida Rep stands ready to move into the next decade. The Education Program is poised for greatness as it moves forward as the only program of its kind in Southwest Florida, ready to break new ground by bringing theatre its most important audience.
Education is Electrifying at Florida Rep
Education at Florida Rep is a multifaceted program that features: Children's Touring Theatre, a Saturday morning Lunchbox Theatre Series, onsite theatre classes, in-school theatre residencies and Camp Florida Rep – the region's most popular summer camp for kids ages 5 to 16.
The 2007-2008 season is not only the theatre's Tenth Anniversary, but also a landmark year for the Education Program for three reasons.
Zap! by Eric Coble
For the second consecutive season Florida Rep has commissioned a new play to premiere as the centerpiece of the Children's Touring Theatre Program and the Lunchbox Theatre Series. In partnership with the Lee County Electric Cooperative (LCEC), Florida Rep will present Zap!, a play written for Lee County about the history, safety and conservation of electricity.
Eric Coble was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and bred on the Navajo and Ute reservations in New Mexico and Colorado. His scripts have been produced Off-Broadway, throughout the U.S. and on four continents. This prolific and award-winning playwright is a member of the Cleveland Play House Playwrights Unit, where he writes for several nationally broadcast radio programs and has three screenplays in the labyrinth of Hollywood.
Three Great Plays for Kids in a New Space
For the first time ever, the Education Department will offer three Children's plays in its Touring Theatre Program and Lunchbox Theatre Series. In addition to Zap!, Florida Rep is pround to present Ms. Courageous, a play about some of the world's most famous pioneering women in the field of science — Marie Curie and Elizabeth Blackwell, and The Mischief Makers, a playful look at the world's most nefarious tricksters.
Also new this year, The Lunchbox Theatre gets a new home in the River District, and the Brick Bar will be transformed into the Brick Bar Theatre every Saturday morning from January 5 to May 10. Florida Rep and the Brick Bar partner to offer an alternative to morning cartoons with Live Theatre in a new and inviting setting for kids and parents!
Romeo and Juliet and the Chico's World Classic Initiative
The fall of 2007 marks the first in a series called the Chico's World Classic Initiative, a program meant to keep the classics alive on the stage for the benefit of Lee County's youth. With the help of Chico's Charities and the Foundation for Lee County Public Schools, Florida Rep will produce a world classic every season, and will bring students from each of the twelve Fort Myers high schools to the Arcade Theatre at no cost to the student. On September 14, 2007, a modern adaptation of William Shakespeare's masterpiece, Romeo and Juliet produced by The Classical Theatre of Harlem, will open at Florida Rep as the first play presented in the Chico's World Classic Initiative.
