Shakespeare

Global Shakespeares at the Barbican With Dr Sonia Massai, Deborah Shaw, Ivo van Hove and Thelma Holt 28 May 2012 / 19:00 Fountain Room Tickets: £5 - price includes a complimentary glass of wine. Limited availability. To book, please call the Box Office on 020 7638 8891 subject to availability share this ________________________________________ This event draws together a panel of leading international theatre experts, directors and producers to discuss the notion of Shakespeare as a 'global' author, 'the prophetic soul of the wide world dreaming on things to come'. On the week of opening the Ninagawa Company's production of Cymbeline at the Barbican, Dr Sonia Massai (Reader in Shakespeare Studies, King's College London) chairs a panel discussion on Global Shakespeares, joined by Deborah Shaw (Associate Director, RSC & Director of the World Shakespeare Festival) Ivo van Hove (Artistic Director, Toneelgroep Amsterdam) and Thelma Holt (Producer & Managing Director, Thelma Holt Ltd). What does Shakespeare mean to each of these theatre artists? What is the global state of Shakespeare today? What are the comparisons and differences in approach in twenty-first century performance around the globe? And what can we learn about the role of Shakespeare and the audience within local and global contexts? The speakers, whose careers have been shaped by a sustained engagement with a range of different theatrical traditions and cultures, will lend fresh insight into these questions and into the reception of recent touring productions of Shakespeare in London and overseas. The discussion will focus primarily, but

not exclusively, on the current World Shakespeare Festival, on Shakespeare and International Festivals more generally, and on how visiting productions have inflected the meaning and cultural value of Shakespeare for contemporary British audiences. Debate lasts 90 minutes. Your complimentary glass of wine will be available at the end of the debate, on presentation of your ticket. Produced by Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning. Global Shakespeares is part of the World Shakespeare Festival, which is produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company for London 2012 Festival.