The Year Shakespeare Ruined my Life

Alison Green is determined to be class valedictorian in her senior year, so to boost her chances, she agrees to co-produce the school play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. To her dismay, the whole complicated and demanding job lands in her lap, her only guide a chaotic red binder, and, like the play she is producing, Alison’s year is full of foolish mistakes and misdirected love.
In The Year Shakespeare Ruined My Life, author Dani Jansen takes a lighthearted look at the quirks of life and love in a modern high school. Alison, who is gay but not fully “out”, has a crush on Charlotte. Jack, her oldest buddy, has feelings for Alison. Alison’s best friend, Becca, is crushing on Jack. And then there is the rocky romance between artsy Zach and Ben who hides his sexuality behind misogynistic comments. One might think there are too many relationships to keep track of in a quick YA read, but Jansen handles the love complexities deftly, and, as with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as the curtains close, “all is mended”.

School theatre stories are often told through the eyes of an actor, but The Year Shakespeare Ruined My Life highlights the complex job of the behind-the-scenes managers who pull the production together and often receive little of the credit. Alison, who is a perfectionist and has a gift for talking people into projects, ropes in Goth Girl Jenny as set designer, visionary fashion boy Zach as costumer, the hardware store owner as set builder, as well as her sister, Annie, and best friend, Becca. Then there is Mr. Evans, the drama teacher, whom Alison describes as well-meaning but “clueless about the world in a way that made me despair for our education system”. His naivete means Alison must deal with cost overruns, threatening phone calls from a rival theatre company, hostile audiences and the artistic temperaments of her cast and crew. Of course, with so many personalities to manage, and with her own anxiety about scholarships, romance, grades and the golden allure of the valedictorian trophy, Alison makes hilarious and foolishly bad decisions that lead to complications.

The novel is entertaining as a light read, but it also reflects deeper truths. The diversity of characters is represented as part of the reality of modern high school. Alison struggles with what it means to be “out” – her family and best friend know, but no one else – and it creates conflict in her relationship, but the gay and pan-sexual characters are accepted by her peer group as part of normal diversity. Students deal with issues of race as well – Jack, who is a talented actor, has never been cast in a lead role because he is of Korean heritage. Yet inclusive forces prevail, and most students accept racial and gender preference differences without an issue.

Alison is torn between her desire to please and her drive for perfection, and the challenge of balancing all her responsibilities pushes her almost to the breaking point. Some of her crises seem somewhat contrived, and she stresses over issues that seem irrelevant, but anxious adolescents often create huge drama from small problems, and Alison’s stress is credible as well as amusing. Her experience eventually allows her to accept life as it comes. In her scholarship essay that forms the epilogue, she says, “I’ve learned that if I feel let down now and then by not meeting my own expectations, I won’t fall apart.” (p. 290)

Though the story about the production of a play makes it an obvious choice for theatre kids, other teens will also appreciate The Year Shakespeare Ruined My Life for its humour, broad representation of diversity, and affirming life lessons.