Pupils take to stage to celebrate Shakespeare

Two West Midlands primary schools have taken to the stage to mark the beginning of Shakespeare Week.

The national series of events for school children celebrates the playwright, which organisers said was this year's inspired by Shakespeare's iconic female characters.

On Monday, pupils from Wood End primary school in Wolverhampton and Robin Hood Academy, Hall Green, took part in music and dance performances and a design show at the Old Rep Theatre in Birmingham.

"We're working across the curriculum - so we work with art, music, poetry, we've got events with Michael Rosen," said Sally Gray, project manager at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

"We've got children doing drama performances, there's children doing artwork... some of the children today are showing off the costumes they've designed for Shakespeare characters," Ms Gray added.

"We're just celebrating Shakespeare in lots of different ways to give children those first experiences."

Other events taking part with schools across the week include an exhibition by children at Barnsley Library, a poetry event with the children's author Michael Rosen in London and a street dance on Bristol's SS Great Britain.

The week culminates in a free festival in Stratford-upon-Avon on 29 and 30 March.

"There's just so much they can find out about him, Shakespeare's language is stuff that we use today, so they're learning about his language," said Ms Gray.

"It's also a great introduction to Shakespeare before they have to study Shakespeare in a more formal way.

"If they can get to learn the stories and characters and get to explore it in all kinds of exciting ways, it takes the fear out of Shakespeare and it just becomes part of their cultural capital."

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