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Richard II at the Globe: Black Women Remaking History

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 11:27:00 GMT

For the first time in a major British theatre, Shakespeare presented - and history reinterpreted - by a company of Black women: Richard II

Making History at Shakespeare's Globe: Richard II

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 11:21:50 GMT

Making History at Shakespeare's Globe: Richard II

A Tale of Three Cities

Thu, 05 Nov 2015 15:51:19 GMT

Three events taking BBAS's research back into the community in autumn 2015

October 21, Coventry - the Belgrade Theatre B2: 'To tell My Story' exhibition, introduced by Professor Tony Howard, for Black History Month.

November 12, Birmingham - The Drum. 'In Robeson's Footsteps' including the 'To Tell my Story' exhibition and a performance of In Robeson's Footsteps: a drama-documentary with Nicholas Bailey, Simon Manyonda, Sarah Paul, and Gaby Wong; BBAS's contribution to Being Human, the national festival of the humanities

January 15, London - Kilburn Tricycle. A half-day event presenting the research of the Multicultural Shakespeare in Britain project, including a public seminar, exhibition, drama-documentary performance, and the launch of the British Black and Asian Shakespeare Performance Database.

BBAS exhibition highlights online

Thu, 12 Mar 2015 17:29:29 GMT

'Would audiences walk out?': trailblazing British black and Asian Shakespeare – in pictures

A new exhibition profiles landmark colour-blind and multicultural productions of Shakespeare starring actors including Paul Robeson, Josette Simon and Willard White. To Tell My Story, celebrating the achievements of British black and Asian actors, is on tour alongside Tara Arts’ production of Macbeth and from 22-30 April will be at Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry, as part of a festival of multicultural Shakespeare on screen. Here, Professor Tony Howard from Warwick University, introduces some of the productions....

See the Guardian Online gallery

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"To Tell My Story" is an exhibition celebrating the historic and continuing achievements of British Black and Asian actors who have worked in Shakespeare.

The great singer and human rights activist Paul Robeson broke the colour bar by playing Othello in 1930 in London with a white actress, Peggy Ashcroft ('Many people ask me if I mind being kissed.' she told the press.). A sensational success at the Savoy Theatre, Robeson was refused service in the Savoy Grill.

Following in Robeson's footsteps, brilliant black and Asian performers have transformed the way we understand Shakespeare. They have challenged social taboos, provided powerful role models for young men and women, and, generation by generation, they have celebrated the development of a truly diverse and multicultural society. 'Shakespeare' is a symbol of our national identity; so access to Shakespeare matters, and great achievements need to be remembered.

This touring exhibition has been put together by BBA Shakespeare (an AHRC funded project based at Warwick University) with the enthusiastic and generous help of many leading theatres, archives and individual photographers.

"To Tell My Story" has already been seen in theatres, schools and libraries across the country. It's now touring alongside Macbeth, produced by the leading British Asian theatre company, Tara Arts. From April 22-30 it will be at Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry, as part of a festival of multicultural Shakespeare on screen, from Britain, India and Harlem: Seeing Shakespeare Through Each Others' Eyes.

Young people write Shakespeare

Wed, 25 Feb 2015 19:59:53 GMT

Teach students that Othello could be white, say academics

Started by: TESProfessional 25-2-2015 • 15:00

Could a white man play Othello? What if Romeo was cast as a girl? Delia Jarrett-Macauley, research fellow on the University of Warwick's multicultural Shakespeare project, believes questions like these could be the key to reinvigorating school Shakespeare. Here, she explains why.

My earliest memory of doing Shakespeare was of playing Puck in a school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. For me, Shakespeare was all about acting and was a world away from the texts we studied in class, where we took parts and read around the group. Lessons weren’t exactly interesting − and there certainly wasn’t any specific material about black and Asian Shakespeare.

Young people today are luckier. They have lots of amazing ways into the bard’s work, from specially-targeted productions to imaginative online materials from the Royal Shakespeare Company, TES and companies such as Tara Arts. However, more could still be done to open up school Shakespeare and make it really inclusive.

That’s why I launched a writing competition for young people as part of my involvement with the AHRC-funded Warwick University multicultural Shakespeare project, British Black and Asian Shakespeare (BBAS).

The competition asked young people aged 14-25 to explore the idea of casting Shakespeare’s plays, with a focus on changing from traditional casting to something more innovative and challenging. We have received some fantastic responses from our partner schools and colleges and are hoping to repeat the competition next year. The winners, who will be announced on 20 March, will receive £200 and tickets to a performance at Shakespeare’s Globe in London.

My advice to teachers who are looking to introduce a more creative approach to teaching Shakespeare is simple: be fearless. Encourage play, questioning and experimentation. Where possible, take your students to see the work of Tara Arts, Talawa and other non-western theatre companies. Most run educational workshops and have teaching packs with exercises and background materials.

Professor Tony Howard, lead investigator for BBAS, says, “Historically “Shakespeare” has meant, and too often still means, “exclusion”. Every time we open up Shakespeare to more young people we shall make Shakespeare better − truer and more diverse.”

Traditional productions still have their place, but it is exciting to help young people develop their sense of identity by also seeing people of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds working together to make art.

Delia Jarrett-Macauley is also the author of the novel Moses, Citizen and Me, which recreates Shakespeare's Julius Caesar in post-civil-war Sierra Leone. You can find further resources for teaching Shakespeare here on TES.

Diversity: Peter Bazalgette's speech

Tue, 09 Dec 2014 20:38:39 GMT

I want to begin by talking a little about our changing society, and our cultural traditions...

The Chair of Arts Council England's statement on diversity. Read it here.

...The plain fact is that despite many valuable, well-intentioned policies over the past decade, when it comes to diversity, we have not achieved what we intended...

Hugh Quarshie and Lucian Msamati in RSC Othello

Wed, 03 Sep 2014 10:48:07 GMT

The RSC have announced that Hugh Quarshie will play Othello and Lucian Msamati will play Iago for the company in summer 2015.