Murderers, Fugitives, Thieves --
Shakespeare would have loved these guys.

This is the story of the profound journey of a prison theater troupe seeking redemption through Shakespeare's "The Tempest" -- a remarkable documentary experience that reveals the power of Shakespeare to transform the human spirit.

Including a Q & A with the filmmakers and a preview of the sequel film they are making, 20- years later, following the now-released inmates who still reverberate with the impact of their experiences with Shakespeare. This screening is a special benefit to help finish their sequel film.

Winner of 11 festival awards and a Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury nomination, SHAKESPEARE BEHIND BARS follows a year in the life of the renowned "Shakespeare Behind Bars" troupe at Luther Luckett Correctional Facility in Louisville, Kentucky. Through their production of "The Tempest" and its primary theme of forgiveness, inmates delve deeply into the characters, confronting their most formidable personal demons. The parallels between actor and inmate, text and life are striking, as the men search deeply to discover the reasons they committed heinous crimes - to find forgiveness and mercy in themselves - and move forward with their lives.

The result is an extraordinary film about the creative process and the power of art to heal and redeem - in a place where the very act of participation in theater is a human triumph and a means of personal liberation.