We thought we'd share some of our personal thoughts with you throughout the semester as we work on Pirates of Penzance. This week, one of our teaching artists, Kendra, took a minute to reflect on how much fun the first class can be:

I love the first class of the semester. It's a little zoo-y as our ensembles reunite after a few months apart but the teens' energy and excitement for the work ahead makes it all worthwhile.

The promise of a new show is so much fun. There are new characters to explore, themes to discover and, especially with PIRATES OF PENZANCE, songs and dances to be learned. The first few rehearsals of a play are focused on "table work" and our class is no exception. We discuss each of the characters in detail and talk about the major plot points in the story before we get on our feet and work through the script.

Our teens have a lot of fun test-driving each character through games that we play in class like "Here to There" to "Musical Squares." Everybody has an opportunity to explore ALL of the characters, regardless of gender, age or whether or not they want to be cast in that role. One of the things I value about theater--and A.B.L.E--is that it allows us to step outside ourselves and try on someone else's shoes for a while.

This marks my 11th "first class," which is absolutely unbelievable when I stop and think about it. But I can't wait to dig in to PIRATES and everything that this new semester will bring! ~Kendra