A world of Shakespeare on the York St John University campus   

Richard the III, mischievous fairies and King Lear’s daughters will descend on the York St John University campus this month as part of the York International Shakespeare Festival. 

The annual festival returns on Tuesday 22 April, celebrating its 10th anniversary and the second year of a three-year sponsorship linked to the University’s School of Humanities and the School of the Arts. 
 
Artists from around the world will arrive in York for premieres, storytelling in schools and libraries, book launches, seminars, lectures and exhibitions. 
 
A large number of events will take place on the University campus, a highlight being the world premiere of a performance reading of The Murder of Gonzago, introduced by Professor Boika Sokolova from the University of Notre Dame, USA. 
 
This year will also see expanded engagement with the refugee and asylum seeker communities in York, including a GCSE Macbeth session for young Ukrainians, a Shakespearian flora and fauna-themed workshop for adult asylum seekers, and the Pass It On ticket scheme, which enables refugees and asylum seekers in York to attend festival performances. 
 
Other cultural highlights taking place at the University include: 

• Death by Hamlet, a day exploring, deconstructing and imagining Shakespeare’s most famous play, including a conversation with Professor Nicoleta Cinpoes (University of Worchester), led by Dr Saffron Vickers Walking, Senior Lecturer in English Literature at York St John, and facilitated by York St John PhD candidate Mie Claridge.  

• a conversation with director, actor and composer Irwin Appel, led by Dr Anne-Marie Evans, Head of School: Humanities, at York St John.  

• Re-Lording Richard 3.0, in which Kind Richard III shares stories of his childhood, the scheming life at court, his fears, doubts and joys.  

• A Midsummer Night’s Mischief, an interactive production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with puppets, stunts, songs and dancing.   

• Dance the Past, a workshop on learning Shakespearean dance.
  
  
• European Shakespeare Research Association Symposium, on Shakespeare and Our Histories.

Students from York St John University’s Literature and Illustration courses will be helping to run a number of events, providing roles as volunteer coordinators, artist support and liaison, and symposium organisation. 
 
Jenny-Rose Morrison, a third-year Creative Writing student at York St John, will also be the stage manager for the York Shakespeare Project’s production of the condensed Henry VI, working closely with visiting international director Irwin Appel.  
 
The York International Shakespeare Festival 2025 runs from Tuesday 22 April to Sunday 4 May.  
 
For more details and to access the full festival programme please visit the festival’s website.