June 9, 2026
VIROQUA, Wis. — It was an atypical end to the school year for English students at Westby High School, when a group of thespians from the Viroqua Shakespeare Festival brought swords and smiles to the classroom for a stage combat workshop before summer break.
The Viroqua-based Shakespeare troupe made two other visits to the Westby English department earlier this spring, sharing insights about acting and performing Shakespeare, as well as mock stage combat, before returning this week to end the school year with a bang — and a parry.
Liam McGilligan and Antonio Horn, the actors playing Tybalt and Romeo in this year’s Viroqua Festival production of Romeo and Juliet, visited along with Stanton Davis, the theater company’s resident fight choreographer and vocal coach.
The workshop began with a safety briefing before students were handed épées and sabers. Participants learned the importance of keeping blades pointed downward and observing stage combat etiquette, including thanking fellow performers when receiving a sword. After practicing several individual maneuvers, students paired up to learn a brief fight sequence.
“I’m a college professor, so I work with students preparing to enter this field professionally,” said Davis, who works for the Northern Illinois University theater department during the year. “I’ve also worked around the country, from Baltimore to Arizona, with kids as young as 7 or 8 years old on these skills. We could spend years on this stuff. Today, I just hope they get a little insight into how actors and stunt people take these texts and stories from the page to the stage.”
Some students stayed for the whole session, while others cycled in and out to complete other assignments and end-of-year activities.
All in all, nearly four dozen Westby students participated in the stage combat workshop as part of their English class curriculum.
“We want to thank Steve Michaels, Principal Bothe, and Mrs. Derks, Mrs. Thomas and Mr. Nelson from the Westby English department for welcoming us,” said McGilligan, artistic director of the Viroqua Shakespeare Festival, now in its fifth year. “This was absolutely a treat, and we have been delighted to visit the classrooms this spring. Like Stanton said, I hope our instruction has given these kids an additional perspective as they continue to study and read Shakespeare and classical theater.”
The Viroqua Shakespeare Festival will present Romeo and Juliet June 25-28 at PrairieWind Park in Viroqua.
Shows are at 7 p.m. each night, except for a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, June 28. Patrons are encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket and a picnic. Live jazz music will be featured before the show June 26.
More information is available on Facebook or at https://thoreaucollege.org/viroqua-shakespeare-festival/.
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