ATC & Quadna Bring KING HENRY V To Students At Guthrie 3/26

Arizona Theatre Company is partnering with Quadna Incorporated of Phoenix to bring Teach for America corps members and 600 of their students to The Acting Company/Guthrie Theater production of King Henry V on Thursday, March 26 at 10 AM. King Henry V is presented by Arizona Theatre Company at the Herberger Theater Center in downtown Phoenix for five performances only, March 26-29.

Teach For America is the national corps of outstanding recent college graduates and professionals of all academic majors and career interests who commit at least two years to teach in urban and rural public schools and become leaders in the effort to expand educational opportunity. The Phoenix-area schools involved in the student matinee performance of King Henry V are Isaac School District's Pueblo Del Sol Middle School and Roosevelt School District's John R. Davis School.

The employees of Quadna Incorporated annually select a nonprofit community organization with which to be involved through hands on community service and fundraising. The 35 year old company has "adopted" two schools affiliated with Teach for America for the past two years, and is funding the 600 tickets for Pueblo Del Sol and Davis School students and teachers to attend King Henry V. Quadna's Phoenix branch manager, Bob Ingraham, considers the sponsorship with Teach for America to be not only vital to the future of the community, but also mutually beneficial. "Quadna employees want to give back to the community, and can see the results firsthand through working in the classrooms with Teach for America". Through fundraising efforts by the employees, Quadna hopes to make this commitment an annual event for students of their TFA schools. Linda "Mac" Perlich, a member of the Teach for America Phoenix Board of Directors, sees the upcoming ATC production as a great way to expose students to live theatre and bring Shakespeare to life. "This is a superb example of an out of the classroom quality learning experience!"

The Acting Company is providing pre-show extension workshops to help students examine the play's themes and relevance before they attend the performance of King Henry V, thanks to a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts' Shakespeare for a New Generation program. Following the full-length performance of King Henry V, students will also have the opportunity to ask questions and interact with the artists in the show.

BrIan Holman, program director for Teach For America-Phoenix, said, "We are eager for students to both enjoy this cultural experience that will make their Language Arts classes come alive, and awaken in them an even deeper appreciation for the arts and the rewarding experiences that come from hard work and an exceptional education."

CLICK HERE to download a detailed fact-sheet with more information about the schools, teachers and artists involved in this collaboration.

For more information about King Henry V, visit www.arizonatheatre.org or call (602) 256-6995.

For more information about Teach For America, visit www.teachforamerica.org or call (800) 832-1230.