2017 TLAB Scholars Present Reports to the Membership

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From left to right Cynthia Hutsell(Oxford), Sheri Hjelm (Oxford), Gabriella David's (theGlobe), Gail Chase (the Globe), Nancy West (Oxford) and Reta Jackson, Scholar Chair.

One member of the audience at the Central Florida Branch's November 13^th meeting told me, "I expected the ESU event to be informative, but I found it inspirational! Congrats on such an inspiring group of teachers. I envy their students and applaud these teachers…." I think everyone will agree that Cynthia Hutsell, Nancy West and Sheri Hjelm reporting on their experiences at Oxford this summer and Gabriella Davids with Gail Chase explaining how the Globe Theater's program impacted their teaching was an outstanding program. The key word of the afternoon was "transformative."  Each teacher demonstrated the importance of being a life long learner and how that translates in her classroom. We will hear from James Brendlinger, who attended the Creative Writing program at the University of Scotland in Edinburgh, at a future meeting as James had a bout with the flu bug. Our Branch is so fortunate to have such amazing scholars. And everyone wanted to see Gabriella's poem that she wrote in famous iambic pentameter, so here it is:

If 'ere someone had told me I would be
Memorizing prose to play King Lear
And acting on a stage across the sea
I'd laugh, or perhaps, just run away in fear

Speaking to crowds has long been my demise
Preventing me from sharing my ideas
But now I know the methods of disguise
That give me strength in speaking to my peers

When I was chosen for this scholarship
I thought perhaps it was a grave mistake
As much as I had hoped and longed and wished
Reality was much harder to take

The plane took flight and far behind
I left My safety bubble and my former self
For days I pondered, unsure and bereft
Till transformation in my heart I felt

Impossible was it to turn my head
From the energy and enticement of the stage
My inner appetite for acting soon was fed
A new chapter started with a turn of page

Our group was soon by life and friendship bound
For extra time together we all yearn
The days were filled from sun up to sundown
With plays, rehearsals, and all there was to learn

On weekends we explored old London town
Immersed in history and cultures deep
When skies turned grey and British rains fell down
The pubs became the learning place we'd keep

The teachers moved us all and helped us see
What power Shakespeare's words can have on lives
How his plays live on in modern reveries
And why we still speak in his form of rhyme

Gabriella Davids, 2017 Scholar at London's Globe Theater

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