Shakespeare 4 Kidz - S4K's Macbeth

So, what makes this production ‘4 Kidz’? Well we have a script transformed into modern English, we have song and dance routines and we have a controlled tone to the piece that allows evil in but keeps terror reassuringly at bay.

It’s Macbeth with the edges softened and a big dose of Andrew Lloyd Webber thrown in and however naff it sounds, it nevertheless makes for an entertaining and instructive primer for Year Seven students. The cast uses music, movement and gesture to provide a kind of wordless subtitling to the play which is useful for an 11-year-old struggling to follow the convoluted plot, and every opportunity for humour is exploited – for example, the porter scene is played as a camp music hall and goes down a treat.

Shakespeare is often approached in schools with a sense of dread by both under-pressure teachers and confused students. S4K themselves are doing something important.

They are celebrating the drama of Shakespeare, and making vivid the characters. Plots and speeches before they have a chance to be tainted by the duller associations many people have of Shakespeare in schools.
Their production is pantomime, horrors story and lark combined and I think Shakespeare would have enjoyed the reactions of the audience to it.

The tour for Shakespeare 4 Kidz production of Macbeth continues until November 24, and takes in various venues including Skegness, King’s Lynn and Stoke-on-Trent. For tickets and other details visit your local theatre or try www.shakespeare4kidz.com

What they say about us:
S4K HAMLET: "I just wanted to let you know how much my eleven year old son and I enjoyed the production this evening. It was the first time at the theatre for my son, who showed an interest after visiting The Globe. He suffers from an attention disorder, and rarely have I seen him so rapt. I have certainly never heard him talk so enthusiastically about any form of entertainment. We look forwards to attending tomorrow afternoon for Hamlet. Thank you for enabling me to share something that I particularly enjoy with my son, on a level which is appropriate and useful to him." Parent, Norwich.

What they say about us:

S4K HAMLET: "I just wanted to let you know how much my eleven year old son and I enjoyed the production this evening. It was the first time at the theatre for my son, who showed an interest after visiting The Globe. He suffers from an attention disorder, and rarely have I seen him so rapt. I have certainly never heard him talk so enthusiastically about any form of entertainment. We look forwards to attending tomorrow afternoon for Hamlet. Thank you for enabling me to share something that I particularly enjoy with my son, on a level which is appropriate and useful to him." Parent, Norwich.