Vote Zack Finacchio ’21 the ESU National Shakespeare Competition People’s Choice Winner

Zack Finacchio ’21 has reached the English Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition (ESU NSC) semi-finals – and you can help make him the People’s Choice Award winner!

Watch Finacchio’s performance (below) of Shakespeare’s Sonnet 95 and a monologue by “Edgar” from “King Lear.” Text NSC29 to 212-818-1200 to vote for Finacchio in the ESU NSC People's Choice Award winner. You may only vote once, additional votes will not be counted. Voting will close at midnight on Friday, April 23. Text charges may apply.

Finacchio said he was “immensely moved by the vulnerability” of Edgar’s monologue. “To me, the most exciting part of theatre is the ability to deeply empathize with another person or character and in the process, stand a bit taller, speak a bit more clearly, and live a bit more freely,” he explained. “Edgar’s monologue is so enthralling because not only does it allow me to step into another character’s shoes to wrestle with insecurities, but the monologue itself is centered around transformation and the very goal of acting.”

The sonnet, he noted, “balances the darkness of my monologue with a much cheerier subject matter, but it is simultaneously connected at its core. . . . [it] dives into the idea of loving somebody else so intensely that it becomes dangerous, which allows me to both showcase my more optimistic acting chops and, when partnered with my monologue, to more deeply analyze the connection between intrapersonal and interpersonal love.”

The ESU NSC is a performance-based educational program serving grades 9-12. Since 1983, the competition has engaged more than 360,000 young people. Approximately 2,500 teachers and 20,000 students in nearly 60 ESU Branch communities participate each year. The ESU NSC has been recognized by the Globe Center (USA), the Children's Theatre Foundation of America and the American Academy of Achievement.

For additional information, please contact Lisa M. Gillard Hanson, director of Public Relations, at lgillard@lawrenceville.org.