It’s Shakespeare season again!  The 2010/2011 season of the Hunts Point Children’s Shakespeare Ensemble has started, with a whole cast of fresh new faces.  Check it out on HPAC’s facebook fan page, or start to get to know them below: 

Samantha Padilla is from the Bronx, and she is Puerto Rican. She is doing the ensemble because it is interesting. She loves Shakespeare, poetry and acting. She loves acting because it lets her act out other peoples’ emotions and actions. She sees the Ensemble as a way to make acting easier for her if she chooses to pursue it.

Luis Martinez is from the Bronx, but was born in Manhattan. He likes to express himself through Shakespeare, and also has fun while doing it. He looks forward to meeting new people.

Marilyn Gonzales is from the Bronx and loves Shakespeare. At first, she didn’t know anything about Shakespeare, but knew quite a bit about acting (she’s been acting since first grade). She found Shakespeare interesting because she learns words she never heard of before. As a returning cast member, she hopes to have a big part in this year’s ensemble.

San Miguel Oquendo, a Bronx resident, thinks Shakespeare will be a great new start for him. As a first time cast member he hopes to gain experience in acting.

Angelique Taveras was born in Hunts Point, and came to the ensemble because it allows her to do things other kids would not be able to do. She is looking forward to meeting new people and having new experiences.

Rodrigo Avila is from Mexico and hopes to be the best actor there is in the entire ensemble. In his second year, he hopes to pay better attention and to get the lead part. He has been learning English since he came to the United States when he was 2 years old, so he figures he should learn Shakespeare’s language as well.

Alayah Medina was born in New York, and likes to perform Shakespeare. She enjoys the way she is able to express herself through the characters she plays and the performances she puts on. She hopes that the Shakespeare Ensemble will help her to realize her dream of becoming an actress someday.

Brandon Diaz joined to be an actor. Born in the Bronx, he hopes to focus his attention on his acting skills and concentration. He has dreams of using his skills to become an actor in the near future.

Jose Caceres, who was born in Manhattan but resides in the Bronx, wants to be in Shakespeare to get his name out there. He hopes to make his teachers, family and friends proud. He hopes the Ensemble will help with his future academic success, and he knows it will strengthen his chances of getting into college.

Kelsey Martinez was born in California and loves to perform. She hopes this experience will help her to become a professional actress.

“To me, this symbolizes everything that is good about Hunts Point,” Stephen Ritz, a local community member who came out to march in the parade.  “Today symbolizes community spirit, togetherness, and banding together.”

The parade was filled with local residents and community groups who support Hunts Point and the upward turn it has recently undergone.

“I’ve heard about what Hunts Point was,” said Michaela, the first person ever to give a “State of Hunts Point Address.”  She was one of two winners of a essay contest to see who would give the speech. Michaela is lives outside of Hunts Point, and the other winner resides within the peninsula.

“I know that some of my friends are scared to walk all the way down their blocks, but every time I’m here I am consumed by everlasting experiences and opportunities.”

People looking for change came out in force, and this was especially apparent amongst the community groups that have sprouted up on the peninsula. HPAC was joined by The POINT, the Bronx Charter School for the Arts, Project HOPE, the Bronx River Alliance, and the Bronx Classic Riders in the parade.

Fish Parade Video

HPAC was handing out pairs of free, environmentally friendly blue jeans to anyone who wanted them all day.

“We get to give out information to other women,” said Samantha Serrano, a member of WOMEN.  The group is a part of the POINT that disperses information and organizes groups to help foster women’s and LGBTQ rights within Hunts Point.  “ We get to tell them that there is somebody who is understanding.”

The parade marched through local streets, gathering marchers as it went along.  When the parade stopped in Barreto Park, the festivities began.

“I’m here with my friends and extended family to celebrate the joy, hope and vision that is Hunts Point in the new millennium,” Ritz said. “I’ve lived through the worst, and I am so excited about the best, which is yet to come.”

“This is our hope for the future,” he said.

City Year unites young people of all backgrounds for a year of full-time service, giving them the skills and opportunities to change the world. As tutors, mentors, and role models, these young leaders make a difference in the lives of children and transform schools and neighborhoods across the United States and in South Africa.

In the South Bronx, City Year corps members serve in schools as tutors, mentors, role models and leaders of after-school programs. They serve with PS 48, PS 75, PS 333/335, MS 302, MS 424 Hunts, The Point CDC, and HPAC. Through City Year’s service model – called Whole School, Whole Child – diverse teams of full-time corps members work to help improve student attendance, behavior and course performance – which research confirms are indicators of a student’s likelihood of graduation from high school.

The Whole School, Whole Child model maximizes the ability of corps members to help students and schools succeed and it allows corps members to provide the right interventions to the right students at the right time through:

• academic support
• attendance monitoring and incentives
• positive behavior support
• after-school programming
• in-school programs and activities such as assemblies and celebrations that improve the overall school environment