For Immediate Release 
Further information: Contact Joseph Giomboni 
Public Relations Office, (570) 208-5957  

March 20, 2017 – King’s College Theatre Department will host the inaugural George P. and Giovita Maffei Family High School Shakespeare Competition on Saturday, April 22, in the George P. Maffei II Theatre. High school students will participate in acting and writing competitions for cash prizes by presenting material from Shakespearean literature in various artistic forms. 

The Maffei High School Shakespeare Competition empowers participants, cultivates artistry in language, develops the art and craft of acting, creative writing, and understanding of William Shakespeare. 

The writing competition and registration deadline is Tuesday, April 18. Monetary prizes will be awarded for the top three winners in three categories: Monologue, Scene, and Writing. The awarded cash prizes for the Monologue and Scene competitions are $1,000 for first place, $500 for second, $250 for third; Writing Competition: $400 for first place, $200 for second, $100 for third.

The competition is designed for high school students to experience the excitement of live performance and/or hone their writing skills while learning the works of William Shakespeare with direct evaluation by theatre and literary professionals. Any student of a public, private school, or home school in ninth through twelfth grade is eligible to participate in the competition.

The basic registration fee for each competitive event is $15, but it has been waived this year. In the Acting Competition, students can choose to perform a Shakespearian monologue and/or a scene from one of The Bard’s plays. In the Writing Competition, students will submit a 1,500-word essay based on a selection of given writing prompts. Students may participate in all three competitions.

King’s has offered theatre productions for local audiences since 1950. The George P. Maffei II Theatre is located in the Administration Building on North River Street. For more information on the competition guidelines or to request a registration packet, please contact M. Sheileen Godwin, Chair, Department of Theatre at King’s College, at (570) 208-5377 or email sheileengodwin@kings.edu.  

King’s College Theatre Department's George P. and Giovita Maffei Family High School Shakespeare Competition features prizes for writing and performing the Bard’s monologues and/or scenes. The competition will be held on Saturday, April 22, in the George P. Maffei II Theatre.