Three young Bermudian stars are on the rise thanks to drama scholarships from the Bermuda Shakespeare Schools Festival (BSSF) committee.

Rowan Vickers, 20, Marcus Smith, 18, and Brittney Wall, 17, are the latest recipients of the annual scholarship awarded to former participants of the festival, which aims to stimulate greater awareness of theatre and performance of Shakespeare’s plays. The scholarship goes to students who are studying the dramatic arts either at the university or workshop level in Bermuda or abroad.

Mr Smith, who is graduating from Saltus Grammar School this month, took part in two festivals and also won a dance award at the last Caribbean Schools Drama Festival in Barbados. Several Bermudian students from the BSSF took part in the Barbados festival in December 2013.

“I was inspired to try drama after my parents took me to New York and we saw Shrek The Musical,” Mr Smith said. “I used to watch the movie a lot and thought Shrek couldn’t get any better, but the musical made it so much better. When I saw it, I imagined myself performing the different characters on stage.”

Mr Smith will be studying drama at the Tish School of the Arts at New York University in New York.

Rowan Vickers is in his final year of a Bachelor of Fine Arts programme at the prestigious Juilliard School in New York. This is his third time receiving the scholarship. He took part in the first festival in 2008.

BSSF steering committee member Jo Shane, said: “While Rowan and Marcus are at different stages in their studies, they share some outstanding characteristics. “Each has consistently pursued their love of drama to an extremely high level, seeking diverse opportunities for performance and steadily challenging themselves to develop new skills and understanding of the dramatic arts. They have done this while maintaining high academic standards and making myriad contributions to their schools and the community.”

Mr Vickers said the festival was important and helped to expose Bermuda’s young people to the delights of the stage.

“Shakespeare plays need to be heard and seen rather than read,” he said. “Giving a kid a text of Shakespeare in English class is like giving someone a musical score and saying listen to this. The Shakespeare Festival is a great opportunity for the youth of Bermuda to not only witness Shakespeare, but also to be a part of something that is really special.”

At Juilliard he is constantly performing and exploring Shakespeare’s work. He just finished taking part in a Shakespeare repertory that involved Shakespeare’s Richard III and As You Like It.

“That was very exciting,” he said. “My ultimate goal, when I finish university, is to make a life in the theatre. It is a tricky thing, but the school does a lot of good stuff. Fingers crossed and we’ll see what happens.”

Mr Vickers said the scholarship was greatly appreciated as the cost of school in the United States is “madness”.

“Every penny counts,” he said. “The Shakespeare Festival has been very kind to me over the years so, I am very much indebted to them.”

Miss Wall is graduating from the Bermuda High School for Girls and will be attending Mount St Vincent University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. However, she will receive her scholarship next year upon admittance to a drama programme.

“A teacher at BHS got me interested in drama,” said Miss Wall. “I was having so much fun, and it was probably my favourite class ever. Doing the Shakespeare Festival helped me to get on stage and do something that I have never done before. The money will help a lot.”

For more information about the BSSF find them on Facebook under www.facebook.com/BermudaShakespeareSchoolsFestival.