The life and work of William Shakespeare — author of some of the world's best-loved, most-performed plays, including Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Othello — is celebrated in the 21st century in perhaps more ways than ever before. There are marathon performances of all of the plays, birthday parties, even a "Talk like Shakespeare Day." Here are some less traditional, even unusual events from around the globe, all inspired by the "Bard of Avon."
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Carriacou Shakespeare Mas
The tiny island of Carriacou is home to the annual Shakespeare Mas ("Masque") where locals, dressed in elaborate Carnival masks and costumes, compete in Shakespeare recital contests. It's a tradition dating back over 100 years born out of colonialism when a plantation owner decided his slaves would benefit from learning Elizabethan iambic pentameter. -
The New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane
Since Hurricane Katrina, Tulane University has re-imagined its New Orleans Shakespeare Festival to engage local audiences in a dialogue about the destruction and recovery of the city. To that end, Shakespeare's plays are recast to include local color and history. -
Chicago's Talk Like Shakespeare Day
April 23 is traditionally when Shakespeare's birthday (and death day) is celebrated. It's also the target date for the next "Talk Like Shakespeare Day." You still have time to brush up your Shakespeare before the April 2012 event. -
William Shakespeare Parade
Shakespeare's place of birth, Stratford-upon-Avon is, not surprisingly, a big tourist destination. Located in the Midlands in the county of Warwickshire, this little town hosts a birthday celebration every April for the Bard that includes a parade, a procession to lay flowers on Shakespeare's tomb, and a birthday luncheon. -
Shakespeare Behind Bars
Kentucky's Luther Luckett Correctional Complex is home to the all-inmate theater company Shakespeare Behind Bars. For sixteen years, the company has presented fully-staged productions of Shakespeare's works for prison population as well as the public. This year, they take on Romeo and Juliet. -
African American Theatre Company presents Julius Caesar
San Francisco's African American Theatre Company's history of innovative productions ("Envisioning the classics with color.") continues with a March-April 2012 production of Julius Caesar. Well worth seeking out for locals and travelers alike, even if you're not familiar with the plays. -
The Beatles perform Shakespeare
This blast from the past is a great example of how Shakespeare's dramatic writing has always been a part of contemporary popular culture. So who among today's rock, R&B, or Hip-Hop artists would be game to perform a scene from Shakespeare? U2 could definitely do Hamlet. Maybe Rihanna, Jay-Z, and Kanye West could do something from Romeo and Juliet? -
Pittsburgh Public Theater Shakespeare monologue and scene contest
Every winter, the Pittsburgh Public Theater hosts its Shakespeare monologue and scene contest. What makes it special is the age of the contestants. Students in grades 4-7 and 8-12 receive coaching and a chance to perform onstage at the O'Reilly Theater. -
The "Dear Juliet" Prize
Each year, the Verona, Italy-based volunteer organization Club di Giulietta receives and apparently responds to hundreds of letters addressed to "Juliet" of Shakespeare's much-loved tragedy. Each Valentine's Day, the club awards the Cara Giuletta ("Dear Juliet") prize to the writers of the "most compelling letters" received the previous year. So…if you were writing a letter to Juliet, what exactly would you say? -
Chicago's Improvised Shakespeare Company
Have you ever wondered if it was possible to improvise a Shakespeare comedy or tragedy or some weird hybrid of the two? After receiving one audience suggestion for the plot or subject matter, that's exactly what Chicago's Improvised Shakespeare Company does. And they've been doing it since 2005. Shakespeare could be very bawdy, and he knew how to play to an audience. This company is continuing that grand tradition.
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