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RSC asks am dram players to join Cultural Olympiad
Louise Jury, Chief Arts Correspondent22.09.08
London's amateur dramatics societies are to be invited to join in a giant Shakespeare festival planned to coincide with the 2012 Olympic Games.
The Royal Shakespeare Company, which is organising the festival, wants to break down the barriers between amateurs and professionals for the celebration.
Michael Boyd, the RSC's artistic director, said today: "There's a danger in our modern professionalised theatre that we get rather good at what we do but disconnected from the community we're doing it for.
"I would want to maybe take away the crucifix and garlic that we have held up in our profession against the non-professional theatre. Amateur theatre is probably the most powerful cultural phenomenon the world over but is not really treated with respect historically."
The World Shakespeare Festival is one of 10 events planned for the Cultural Olympiad - an artistic programme that launches this weekend and runs until the Games. RSC executive director Vikki Heywood said the Cultural Oympiad was full of "fantastic aspirations", but added: "We will need to firm up exactly how the project is going to be funded and how it's going to be delivered."
The plans were unveiled today at the launch of the RSC's annual report, which records a small surplus. It is about to recruit a new company of actors that will work together beyond the opening of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2010 after a £112.8 million redevelopment.
The RSC is adding Russian theatre to its programme alongside productions of Shakespeare. Michael Boyd will direct a new production of Nikolai Gogol's Dead Souls, Gregory Doran will tackle Boris Godunov by Alexander Pushkin, and there will be an adaptation of short stories by Anton Chekhov.
