Shakespeare Lives 2016

We supported two of the National Theatre of Northern Greece’s most compelling theatrical productions: Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet on the road.

Shakespeare Lives at the National Theatre of Northern Greece
Thessaloniki: 15 January–27 March 2016

Shakespeare’s historic Globe Theatre visited Athens for two performances of Globe to Globe Hamlet as part of an unprecedented world tour.

Globe to Globe Hamlet
Athens: 27 February 2016

Award-winning director Gregory Thompson explored how Shakespeare continues to affect and speak to the hearts of audiences today.

Shakespeare Lives: Lecture by director Gregory Thompson
Thessaloniki: 28 February 2016
Athens: 29 February 2016

We invited a team of artists, architects, musicians, theatre directors, filmmakers and photographers to take part in the Romeo and Juliet in Aigaleo programme – aimed at making Shakespeare more accessible to younger audiences –  and work with children and teenagers on projects relating to Shakespeare and the local area.

Romeo and Juliet in Aigaleo
Aigaleo, Athens: 16–19 June 2016

We joined forces with the Athens International Film Festival and the British Embassy in Athens to present a unique cinematic tribute to Shakespeare under the magnificent Athenian sky at the Athens Open Air Film Festival.

Shakespeare in the City
Athens: 24 June–29 August 2016

Walking Cities is a British Council programme that pairs contemporary UK writers with writers and theatre experts from other countries. On the occasion of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, the writers met in many of the cities that provide the settings of Shakespeare’s plays and discussed how these places and Shakespeare’s texts have influenced their own writing and thinking. For Walking Cities: Athens,  we invited British poet Anthony Anaxagorou, who was joined by the director of the National Theatre of Greece, Stathis Livathinos, theatre director Dimitris Karatzas, and translator and actor Nikos Hatzopoulos.

Walking Cities: Athens
Athens: 18–20 October 2016

We invited children and teenagers aged 6 to 16 to take part in Romeo + Juliet x 6, a visual arts competition inspired by the most famous love story of all time and musical pieces performed at the Athens Megaron.

Romeo + Juliet x 6
October–November 2016

In partnership with the Thessaloniki Concert Hall and the British Embassy in Athens, we organised a unique cinematic tribute to Shakespeare with a selection of the most inspiring adaptations of his work for the big screen.

Shakespeare Lives at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall
Thessaloniki: 16 November 2016–8 February 2017

Prominent contemporary UK poets discussed the nature of Shakespeare’s sonnets, their resonance in Shakespeare’s own plays and in today’s writing and thinking.

Discussion on Shakespeare’s Sonnets
Athens: 14 December 2016

Steven Berkoff’s one-man show explored and analysed Shakespeare’s most villainous characters through the famous words of the Bard.

Steven Berkoff: Shakespeare’s Villains
Athens: 15 February 2017