Shakespeare to be read out loud during a special event in Stratford this week.
Literature lovers will get the opportunity to express their admiration for Warwickshire’s world-famous playwright ‘out loud’ this week, at a special event just a stone’s throw from his birthplace, at Stratford-upon-Avon Library.
On Thursday (30th September) between 11am – 12 noon, the library will host a special ‘Read Out Loud – Shakespeare’ event as part of the BBC’s ‘Read Out Loud’ project in collaboration with the Reading Agency.
Keen readers are being invited to come together, under the direction of Paul Edmondson, Head of Research and Knowledge and Director of the Stratford-upon-Avon Poetry Festival for the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, to read their favourite passages of Shakespeare out loud and talk about the experience of reading out loud.
Free tickets for the event, which is subject to Covid-safe measures, can be booked in advance at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/178018286487.
Councillor Kam Kaur, Portfolio Holder for Economy & Place, said: “This is an exciting opportunity to join our Warwickshire Libraries colleagues at Stratford-upon-Avon Library, near the birthplace of the great Bard himself, to read your favourite piece of Shakespeare’s works out loud.
“Whether you bring along a Shakespeare speech, brief scene, or sonnet to share with others, you will be very welcome. You’ll be able to take part in a group discussion about how reading out loud makes you feel and what the piece you have chosen to read means personally to you.”
The event will be filmed to form part of the BBC and Reading Agency’s ‘Read Out Loud’ project. All attendees will be asked for their prior permission to be filmed.
The event is being held with Covid-safe measures in place, so masks or visors are strongly encouraged to be worn, seating will be distanced, and numbers will be limited to ensure safety.
The ‘Read out Loud – Shakespeare’ event kicks off a season that sees the return of Stratford Library’s popular ‘Shakespeare for All’ sessions in partnership with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, which sees a group of literature lovers gather at the library to read Shakespeare’s Complete Works together, in order.
The sessions last took place 18 months ago and had to be stopped halfway through Hamlet due to the Covid pandemic.
On 2nd October, the group will restart reading Hamlet from the beginning, and they will then meet on the first Saturday of every month to carry on working their way through the complete works.
It’s hoped that this will become a hybrid in-person and virtual event in the future, to enable more people to take part while keeping them safe. This could mean that Shakespeare lovers from around the world could take part too!
To find out more about the BBC ‘Read Out Loud’ project, visit: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/vVVrp5hg4CHrdk5Tx82jJN/take-part-in-5-live-s-read-out-loud-challenge
To find out more information from the Reading Agency, visit : https://readingagency.org.uk/resources/take-part-in-the-bbc-radio-5-live-read-out-loud-challenge.html