“We’re adding to the story, giving you all the gory details…”
Following a stellar sell-out run, four of Shakespeare’s (in)famous characters are back for a national tour and gearing up to tell their side of the story! In this radical reimagining of Shakespeare’s works, 20 Stories High will be blowing off the dust and breathing a new lease of life into Shakespeare’s classics. Tackling stories steeped in racism, patriarchy and violence, these old tales will be repurposed with punchy verses and punky attitudes and whole lotta wit. All shows will be creatively captioned with one BSL interpreted show per venue, as well as featuring integrated audio description. So let’s rip out the pages, raise the roof, and rise up!
This fantastic female and non-binary-led cast will star Mary Savage (Richard, My Richard, Shakespeare North Playhouse; The Boy and The Bird, Liverpool Theatre Festival) as Lady Macbeth, alongside North Irish actor Beca Barton (Perverts, Kings Head Theatre; Our Last First, The Space) as Viola. They will be joined by Brummie-born creative Jada-Li Warrican (The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe ,Birmingham Rep; We Could All Be Perfect, Sheffield Theatre) in the role of Ophelia, alongside Harriett O’Grady (Richard III, Liverpool Playhouse) as Cleopatra.
Striving to break down the stigma around Shakespeare, who the f--k is shakespeare? will retell a range of Shakespearean classics to diversify and encourage lovers, haters and newcomers of his work to explore and hear their stories first hand. Audiences will hear stories from Opheliain Hamlet, Lady Macbeth from Macbeth, Cleopatra from Antony and Cleopatra, and Viola from Twelfth Night-but not as you know them! In this retelling, they are relatable, young and questioning their place in the world. All their lives, they have been told a specific narrative of who they are, but for the first time they will own the space to figure this out for themselves.
TRAILER: who the f--k is shakespeare? Trailer 1 (youtube.com)
Tour details
- Thu 19 – Sat 21 September – Unity Theatre, Liverpool
- Tue 24 September – Shakespeare North Playhouse, Prescot
- Fri 27 – Sat 28 September – Bolton Octagon, Bolton
- Thu 3 – Fri 4 October – Contact Theatre, Manchester
- Thu 10 October – Storyhouse, Chester
- Fri 18 – Sat 19 October – Bernie Grant Arts Centre, Tottenham London
Tickets who the f–k is shakespeare? 2024 Tour : 20 Stories High