Hollywood Black Film Festival 2009

RAPPING WITH SHAKESPEARE is a modern day hip-hop version of Shakespeare's tales that explores the lives of five South Central Los Angeles' teenagers attending Crenshaw High School. The student's personal stories subtly parallel Shakespeare's archetypal characters:- Myles, an intelligent and talented student taking his journey to leadership in the way of Henry the Fifth.- Adam, an intelligent and basketball leader, is a "fish out of water". He's the only white student attending Crenshaw High School. This coming-of-age journey reveals Adam's struggle in maintaining his identity. Also, like Henry the Fifth.- Joanna (Hamlet), an attractive 17-year-old foster child trying to deal with the horror of rape, incest and imprisonment. - Emmanuel and Estephany (Romeo and Juliet), their families extremely dislike each other but the teenage couple continues to believe that their love will prevail.- RAPPING WITH SHAKESPEARE also examines how a popular English teacher, Andy Molnar uses the students' popular culture, hip-hop/rap to access Shakespeare. He teaches how the lyrics are put together poetically and how it involves urban themes to form cultural and social identities - themes that inspire and provide a bridge for students to learn classical literature. RAPPING WITH SHAKESPEARE is a colorful, compelling and dramatic tale of the young people of Crenshaw High School as they struggle to achieve their dreams while coping with the universal teenage problems of violence, sexual relationships, insecurity, loneliness and embattled, mercurial identity.