Teaching Will ─ What Shakespeare and 10 Kids Gave Me That Hollywood Couldn't

After the waning of her successful acting career, Mel Ryane found herself creatively adrift and proposed creating an after-school Shakespeare program at a local inner-city public school. Loaded with an armory of theatre craft but devoid of professional teaching skills, she launched The Shakespeare Club on high hopes, goodwill, and the romantic ideal of inspiring young lives. A comedy of errors but inspiring throughout Teaching Will is a story for teachers, volunteers, actors, and parents—as well as anyone who's ever had to let go of a dream.

Following a distinguished career as a classically trained actor onstage and in film and television, Mel Ryane has found a new artistic home in the written word with her memoir, Teaching Will: What Shakespeare and 10 Kids Gave Me That Hollywood Couldn't. Mel became a professional actor during her teens in her native Canada, then followed her career to New York City and to theatres across North America. After applying her skills to coaching actors on major studio and network projects, Mel was accepted into the Directing Workshop for Women at the prestigious American Film Institute. She subsequently wrote a screenplay that advanced to the semifinal round in the Motion Picture Academy's Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition. Mel travels across the country teaching "From Page to Podium: Reading Your Work Aloud," a workshop that helps writers find their public speaking voice. She also offers school workshops introducing Shakespeare to students. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their dog and cat. -