Forty-five students from the Honors Program and the English department attended a February performance of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis.
This is the eighth year of a collaborative relationship between the Honors Program and English department to sponsor a trip to the Guthrie. The annual event began in 2003 as an initiative of the Honors Program and its student council. Paul Homan, associate professor of modern languages, has co-organized the trip since its inception, and Verena Theile, assistant professor of English, has been involved since 2008.
The chartered bus trips were underwritten with funds from the English department, Honors Program and dean of arts, humanities, and social sciences. The contributions have broadened participation by substantially reducing ticket and travel costs for each student. To make the most of the experience, arrangements are made each year so that, in addition to seeing a performance by one of the country’s most respected theater companies, students can participate in a talk-back session with the actors following the play. The students can ask the actors questions about the play, their interpretation, the director’s vision and other aspects of the performance.
Past performances NDSU students have attended include “Henry V” in 2009, “Macbeth” in 2010, “The Winter’s Tale” in 2011 and “Julius Caesar” in 2012.
NDSU is recognized as one of the nation's top 108 public and private universities by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education.