PLAYMAKING FESTIVALS

Each year schools across the country young people create performances through the Associate Schools Programme. These Playmaking Festivals take place in schools, theatres across the country and here in Stratford-upon-Avon. 

This work is deeply rooted in the artistic practice of our company. Young people and their teachers approach these texts as our actors do; something to be explored and understood together as we create performance. 

Qualities of a Playmaking Festival 

Playmaking is:

• A celebration of the work created together with young people, teachers and artists; shared with an audience. 

• A collaboration between the words of Shakespeare and young people’s insights through a creative process. 

Playmaking Festivals should include: 

• The words of Shakespeare, through the Playmaking edits and other RSC resources. 

• Music and sound, set, costume and movement and all the possibilities of theatre. 

• All the skills of a company of young people and teachers: an ensemble approach to storytelling, speaking text and bringing a play to life. 

• An inclusive approach for creatives, performers and audiences, so everyone has the opportunity to experience it. 

Playmaking Packs

Our Playmaking Packs honour the original text and language, but have been edited to a length of 75-90 minutes. Each script is broken down into Units which can be grouped together and allocated as scenes or sections of the play. We encourage teachers (as directors) to edit further, as needed to meet the needs of their group of students.