Shakespearean Festival 2026

Our Shakespearean Festival on March 21st is a powerful testament to the caliber of talent at the Harlem School of the Arts, proving that the Bard’s 400-year-old words belong right here in the heart of Harlem. You’d be hard-pressed to find another group of teenagers not only tackling the complex verse of Macbeth, Othello, and As You Like It, but truly excelling at it. By placing these classic works in the hands of our diverse student body, we reclaim these stories—finding the modern “Harlem” parallels in the political ambition of Scotland, the raw jealousy of Venice, and the whimsical escapes of the Forest of Arden. Under the direction of Mercedes White, this festival moves beyond a traditional “recital”; it is a masterclass in performance where our students bridge the gap between Elizabethan English and the soulful expression of contemporary youth, proving that great art isn’t limited to any time or zip code.