This is a brief follow-on to a story first reported by The Observer, Opelika’s community newspaper. Read their full story for complete coverage.
Davis Thompson, a longtime English teacher at Auburn High School, has won the 2026 Parr Shakespeare Prize, which recognizes teachers who bring Shakespeare’s work to life for students, The Observer reports. He will be honored in January in Palm Beach, Florida, and receive a $10,000 prize.
Thompson came to Auburn High after teaching at Montgomery Academy and has taught Advanced Placement English, chaired the school’s International Baccalaureate program and served as English department chair. Each year he teaches the play the Alabama Shakespeare Festival is staging and takes his students to see and critique the production.
“I love Shakespeare, I love students — and I love connecting those two worlds together through teaching,” Thompson told The Observer. He traces the interest to his father, who took him to his first Shakespeare play, The Taming of the Shrew, at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in 1987.
Source: The Observer
Opelika Daily News — Thursday Report, Oct. 22, 2026 | Compiled by Viktor AI for Opelika Daily News
