Studying the Civil War, finding shared values
Under the umbrella of the National Civil War Project, a new method of scholarship and learning is taking root at the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.). High school students from the North and South are grappling with compelling issues and producing new theater as a result. Exploring themes of social justice, freedom, and civil rights, the students came together via Skype, researched the history of the Civil War through the lenses of the Emancipation Proclamation and the Gettysburg Address, and helped create a theatrical production called “The Proclamation Project.” At Harvard, an ensemble of 11 high school students worked to create a modern reflection on the Civil War under the guidance of Shira Milikowsky, Artistic Director Fellow at the A.R.T.; playwright Brendan Shea of A.R.T.’s education and community programs; and assistant director Jumai Yusuf ’16. (In the South, student collaborators at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, in conjunction with George Washington University, created...