This weekend I went to see a wonderfully original and inspiring production of Romeo & Juliet or Romeo og Julie at the National Theatre in Oslo. I was invited by Kare Conradi, the well know Norwegian actor who performed with the BSC last summer. Kare performed Tybalt and as always was powerful and compelling in the role. This was to my mind a wonderful, powerful and visually exciting interpretation of the play. It is very different from the work of the BSC but I can still be inspired by far reaching interpretations.

I have often seen people try to use film in live theatre but this is the first time I have seen it truly blend with and compliment the live action.

I do not want to seem like I am writing a review as this is not my forte but I would like to take this opportunity to thank a brilliant ensemble cast and the director for a wonderful evening in a magnificent theatre.

For those of you with iPhones, there now is an App for Shakespeare and it’s free! The entire works of Shakespeare in your phone…brilliant!

The British Shakespeare Company is to build a reconstruction of the Elizabethan Rose Theatre in the North of England and is in talks to find the perfect location. Dame Judi Dench has donated the stunning reconstruction of the Rose Theatre from the Oscar-winning film Shakespeare in Love for this purpose. The original Rose Theatre built in 1587 is where William Shakespeare first performed his plays and also worked as an actor.

A charitable trust is being setup and the Rose Theatre is now in storage waiting to be reborn. A new website is being created and will be updated with full details shortly and should you require further information or wish to offer support, please contact Robert J Williamson: robert@britishshakespeare.com

HAPPY BARDDAY! The 23rd of April is Shakespeare’s “official” birthday and indeed also the day he was born. A little spooky as this is of course England’s National Day. The British Shakespeare Company introduced the idea of a National Shakespeare Day and we would ask you to visit the site we created for ideas on how to celebrate and to support the campaign. We are very happy to see celebrations for this day now springing up in London. We again urge the powers that be to consider this a perfect day for children to learn about and to celebrate our greatest genius. This is also the day for adults to read a passage or two with a meal and drink. Did you celebrate? Please leave a post and tell us how.

I celebrate the life of Mary Williamson my Aunt that passed recently. She played Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Empire Theatre, Leeds in 1937. She dedicated her life to nursing and won “Nurse of the year”. She had her ashes spread in Glen Gairn, Scotland near to my families ancestral home. R.I.P.

‘We died at such a place;’ some swearing, some crying for a surgeon, some upon their wives left poor behind them, some upon the debts they owe, some upon their children rawly left. I am afeard there are few die well that die in a battle;’

Henry V

You can find out more information about the Poppy Appeal and also make secure donations online by visiting www.poppy.org.uk

Happy 443rd Birthday to William Shakespeare an ordinary man that changed the world with words.

Shakespeare invented over 1700 words that are still part of our everyday language. He gave us: accommodation, addiction, alligator, amazement, assassination, apostrophe, bandit, bedroom, birthplace, bloodstained, bump, cold-blooded, critic, dawn, educate, eyeball, fairyland, fashionable, fortune-teller, generous, hint, laughable, madcap, mountaineer, obscene, perplex, premeditated, priceless, sanctimonious, tranquil, unearthly, unreal, wonderful, upstairs, watchdog, zany…..

Please sign our campaign to make the 23rd April Shakespeare Day.

Ben Jonson (1573-1637) called him “Sweet Swan of Avon!” and said “He was not of an age, but for all time!”

A call has gone out for a Great British Shakespeare Event to take place as part of the 2012 games celebration.

See Guardian article and if you Google it, there are many other articles.

This is a fascinating site. I found a great deal I was unaware of including a black American troupe performing Shakespeare in 1821. SITE

A film that will include Shakespeare scenes directed and performed by the British Shakespeare Company is causing great debate in the academic community. As shown in today’s Guardian where world renown Shakespearian scholar Stanley Wells whom is appearing in the film has written an article. Why may you ask is the British Shakespeare Company working on a film that puts forward another author of the plays? The reason is two fold. We believe that this film and debate will bring Shakespeare’s plays to a much wider audience. Also it will include 28 scenes from Shakespeare’s plays many of which have only been seen on film in the BBC complete works. Directing such scenes with such a fantastic film company is too good an opportunity to miss.

Link to film promo

Link to The Guardian: Stanley Wells article