Chowgule College is an institution that on
an annual basis, pays homage to one of the literary greats. Chatting about the
history of the Shakespeare Festival, the driving force behind the project,
Assistant Professor Andrew Barretto says, “The annual Shakespeare Festival –
The Bard by the Mandovi 2015 was organised by the students of the Department of
English at Chowgule College. It was started by Professor Rajeshree Desai in the
year 2010, and since then it is celebrated every year. This is the
6th edition of the Shakespeare Festival.”
The event began in 2010 with only a few
schools participating in six events. The motive behind the event was to get
school students in touch with English Literature, in particular with the magic
of Shakespeare. This year, we saw over a 100 per cent turnout with 14 teams for
the 12 slots for the event! Schools and higher secondary schools compete with
enthusiasm and vigour to win the coveted overall rolling trophies and the
individual medals and trophies for each event. With over 300 students either
participating or organising, the event is truly festive. The events at this
year’s edition included Steal A Scene (adapted play performances), Friends,
Romans, Countrymen (Presentation Competition), The Bard (Poetry Recitation
Competition), The Shakespeare Soliloquy (Dramatic Monologue competition),
Mozaic! (Tile painting Event), Bedtime Shakespeare (Shakespeare children’s
Storybook creation) and Diorama Drama (the Shakespeare Diorama event).
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Andrew also believes that this event will
help the students in the long run. “The event is planned in such a way that the
students need to tackle certain topics and learn in the process. When they are
planning for the event, a small interaction with the teachers helps them to
gain knowledge about Shakespeare. As a common saying goes – ‘to present the
material, you should know the material’. This festival not only teaches the
students literature but also team work,” he says.
