|
Primary Source
of the Month
Playbill
for The Beggar's Opera, Williamsburg,
Virginia, ca. 1768.
CONTENTS
Theatre in Colonial Virginia
Primary
Source of the Month
Teaching
Strategy
Colonial Williamsburg Teaching Resources
Teaching News
Quotation of the Month
The
Next
Electronic Field Trip is
The Rare Breeds
April 13, 2006
NEW
2006-2007
Teaching
Resources Catalog
2005–2006 Electronic Field
Trip Scholarships
Games, activities, and resources about life in colonial America.
|
TOP STORIES
Theatre in Colonial Virginia
Broadway may be the center of musical theatre today, but the first theatre in British North America was built on the Palace Green in the colonial capital of Williamsburg, Virginia, in 1716.
Learn
More
Primary Source of the Month:
Playbill for The Beggar's Opera
This
month's primary source—a colonial
theatre playbill—advertises a Williamsburg
production of The Beggar's Opera.
This musical satire of pickpockets, thieves,
and scoundrels featured popular music
composed by Henry Purcell and George F.
Handel.
Learn
More
Teaching
Strategy: The Play's the Thing
As
the American colonies prospered, a growing
segment of the population had both the disposable
income and the leisure time to attend formal
entertainments. In
this lesson, students analyze an eighteenth-century
playbill, compare it to modern-day theater
advertisements, and design their own playbill
for Shakespeare's play The Tempest.
Learn More
Colonial
Williamsburg Teaching Resources for Your
Classroom Colonial
Williamsburg offers a variety of quality
instructional materials dealing with 18th-century
life, including:
- Encore! Music from the 18th-Century Theatre (enhanced music CD)
- Songs for a Revolution (lesson unit)
- Keys of the Palace (music CD)
- "I. Hardy" Playing Cards
- The Royal and Most Pleasant Game
of Goose
- The New Game of Human Life
Learn
More
Teaching
News
Colonial Williamsburg Podcasts
Did you know the Colonial Williamsburg Web site offers Podcasts? Also known as RSS feeds, these downloadable audio files feature special interviews and presentations available only to our Web users. Each Colonial Williamsburg: Past & Present Podcast is hosted by Lloyd Dobyns, a former TV correspondent for NBC News. New Podcasts are added every week!
Learn More
Oklahoma Colonial Day Literature Contest Winner Announced
Annie
Shell, an Oklahoma
City fifth-grader, was named the winner
of the 2006 Colonial Day at the Capitol
Literature Contest sponsored by the Oklahoma
Foundation for Excellence.
On
February 3, Annie was recognized for her
essay, "What It Means to Be an American,"
during Colonial Day at the Capitol. Thomas
Jefferson, portrayed by Colonial Williamsburg
historical interpreter Bill Barker, presented
Annie her award during the opening session
of the Oklahoma Legislature at the State
Capitol.
Learn More
Planning a Class Trip to Williamsburg?
More than just "field trips,"
interpreter-led study visits to the Colonial
Williamsburg Historic Area incorporate
teacher objectives with national and state
standards of learning. Blending history
content with active participation, interpreters
use historic buildings, primary sources,
and other 18th-century objects to teach
students about America's beginnings. Explore
the everyday life of and decisions made
by Williamsburg citizens on the eve of
the American Revolution.
Learn More
Quotation
of the Month
"All
the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players.
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many
parts . . ."
~ William Shakespeare, British dramatist
As You Like It, 1623 |
Volume
4, Issue 8 
Get a free vacation planner
Receive e-mail updates
Historic Triangle
