This is the VOA Special English Education Report.
这里是美国之音慢速英语教育报道。
In the American state of Massachusetts, some teenagers who break the law are sentenced -- to Shakespeare.
在美国的马萨诸塞州，一些青少年触犯法律后被判演出莎士比亚剧。
ACTOR: "A kingdom for a stage ... "
演员："A kingdom for a stage ... "
Twelve young actors rehearse the opening of "Henry the Fifth." They started meeting three and a half weeks ago. They have less than two weeks to go before they must perform the play for the Shakespeare in the Courts program.
12名年轻演员正在排练《亨利五世》的序幕，他们三周半前开始集中排练，这时距离他们在法院节目中演出这场莎士比亚剧还有不到两周的时间。
Fifteen-year-old Tim was not a fan of William Shakespeare. He is here for a violent crime -- assault and battery.
15岁的蒂姆并不是莎士比亚迷。他在这里演出是因为殴打这种暴力犯罪行为。
TIM: "You know, the judge sentenced me here, so my first thoughts were kinda, you know, uh, this is kinda, Shakespeare's not my thing. You know, plays, kinda, you know, I'd rather not. But it's a lot easier than picking up trash, you know, and doing that, so, you know, I gave it a try."
蒂姆：“你知道，法官判我到这里来演出，我的第一感觉是，嗯，有点这么想，莎士比亚官我什么事？我一点也不喜欢戏剧。但是，它比捡垃圾轻松多了。所以，我决定尝试一下。”
And he discovered there is a lot to like about the English writer who died in sixteen sixteen.
随后他发现这位1616年去世的英国戏剧家有很多让人喜欢的东西。
KEVIN COLEMAN: "So everyone has a sword?"
凯文·科尔曼：“每个人手中都有剑了吗？”
TIM: "Assault and battery and you hand me a sword in Shakespeare? I didn't think that was going to happen, not at all. I'm glad they trust us, though."
蒂姆：“我暴力犯罪，在莎士比亚剧中你还递给我一把剑？我原本认为这绝不可能发生，一点都不敢这么想。然而，我很高兴他们信任我。”
The young actors return the trust and respect that director Kevin Coleman shows them. They clearly enjoy working with him -- and with Shakespeare.
这些年轻演员回报了导演凯文·科尔曼对他们的信任和尊重，他们显然很喜欢同他一起工作--当然还有莎士比亚。
KEVIN COLEMAN: "If you present it to them in a way that engages their imagination, that engages their playfulness, that engages their willingness, they come alive."
凯文·科尔曼：“如果你能以一种满足他们的想象力，满足他们爱玩的天性，满足他们的意愿的方式将莎士比亚剧带给他们，他们就会活跃起来。”
Kevin Coleman is education director for Shakespeare and Company, a theater group in Lenox, Massachusetts. Many years ago, the principal of the local high school came to him to develop a theater program for the school.
凯文·科尔曼是马萨诸塞州伦诺克斯莎士比亚剧团的培训主管。多年前，当地一所高中的校长找到他，让他为学校开设戏剧课程。
That principal, Paul Perachi, later became a juvenile court judge for Berkshire County. He wanted to copy the program, to help the teens in court develop self-esteem and communication skills and better control their anger.
这位名为保罗·佩拉希的校长后来成为伯克郡少年法院的法官。他希望复制该课程，以帮助触犯法律的青少年培养自信和沟通技巧，以及更好的自控能力。
More than two hundred kids have been sentenced to Shakespeare. The program is ten years old. And it has received a lot of recognition, including an award in two thousand six from the White House.
超过200名青少年被判演出莎士比亚剧。这项课程已经历经10年，并得到了各方面的认可 -- 包括一个2006年白宫授予的奖项。
Paul Perachi left the court last year at seventy, the age when judges in Massachusetts must retire. But Shakespeare in the Courts is still going strong under the direction of Kevin Coleman.
去年，70岁高龄的凯文·科尔曼离开法院，马萨诸塞州的法官到这个年龄必须退休。但是在凯文·科尔曼的指导下，该法院的莎士比亚课程依然运作顺利。
KEVIN COLEMAN: "We're not there to fix them. So will they get into trouble after they've done this program? Sure, because they're adolescents. Will they get into as much trouble? No."
凯文·科尔曼：“我们的目的不是改造他们。参加这个课程后，他们会不会再出问题？当然，因为他们是青少年。但是他们还会不会再出这么多问题？当然不会。”
Fifteen-year-old Tim already sees a change in himself. He says he has more patience to get through long scenes.
15岁的蒂姆已经看到了自己的变化。他说，在进行漫长的演出时他更有耐心。
Paul Perachi says all the hard work is clear in the final performance.
保罗·佩拉希说，在最后演出时，所有的努力都将得到回报。
PAUL PERACHI: "You got family members, parents, siblings, grandparents, friends. A lot of these kids invite their teachers, of all people, to come in. And their lawyers. And the relatives and the teachers and all are proud of these kids. So everybody's got big smiles and flowers for the kids and little gifts."
保罗·佩拉希：“你重新得到了家人和朋友。这些孩子中的许多人都会邀请他们的老师，包括他们的律师在内的所有人来观看他们的演出。所有人都为这些孩子感到骄傲。每个孩子都收获到微笑，鲜花和礼物。”