Richard II Starring David Tennant To Be Streamed Live To Cinemas Worldwide

The RSC's sold out production of Richard II starring David Tennant will be played live this November in cinemas around the world and streamed, for free, direct into 1,000 UK schools. 

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) announced today an exciting new collaboration with Picturehouse Entertainment and Ravensbourne College on their  'Live from Stratford-upon-Avon' programme to screen its productions live from Shakespeare's home town.

The live broadcast of Richard II will be the first by the Company. Richard II, directed by RSC Artistic Director, Gregory Doran, stars David Tennant in the title role with Oliver Ford Davies and Michael Pennington, and opens in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre (RST) on the 10th October 2013. The production will be filmed during the performance in the RST on 13 November 2013 and simultaneously screened into over 100 cinemas around the country and available in North America, Australia, Japan and Northern Europe. The RSC is also opening up its work behind the scenes, through a series of short films available online during the run-up to the screening and live footage on the night, before the show and during the interval.

The production will be filmed using multiple cameras around the stage and auditorium, with John Wyver as producer, having previously collaborated with Gregory Doran on the RSC's highly acclaimed filmed versions of Macbeth, with Antony Sher and Harriet Walter, for Channel 4 and Hamlet, with David Tennant, and the recent African Julius Caesar for the BBC.

A further two RSC Shakespeare plays, to be announced in September 2013, will be filmed live during the next year, as part of an on-going programme to make the Company's work more available to a nationwide and global audience. 

The Company is also offering a unique opportunity to schools across the UK to experience Richard II in the classroom on 15 November 2013, building on the success of its first direct-to-the-classroom interactive stream last year. 

The production will be streamed direct into up to 1000 schools, reaching an estimated 60,000 students through a collaboration with Ravensbourne College and the Janet Network. It will be accompanied by a live studio link-up hosted by Konnie Huq, who will introduce the webcast. Members of the creative team, including Gregory Doran and David Tennant, will also be on hand to take part in a live online Q&A with participating students.  Alongside the webcast, the RSC will create an extensive package of online resources for use by teachers and students in the classroom, both in the lead up to the broadcast and for use as follow up materials afterwards.

Gregory Doran, RSC Artistic Director, said today; 'We want to bring the work we make in Stratford-upon-Avon to the widest possible audience. Taking our productions live into cinemas and direct into schools is the next logical step. We will start with Richard II. 

'I have enjoyed a long and creative relationship with John Wyver and his company, Illuminations, working on filmed versions of my past RSC productions of Macbeth, Hamlet and Julius Caesar, and I'm looking forward to these new broadcasts, which are part of our commitment to celebrate our 'one-room spaces' in Stratford and capture the thrill of sitting in the audience and experiencing theatre live. 

'Through a brand new partnership with Picturehouse Entertainment, who have a great track record in screening the arts live, we can share the RSC's contemporary interpretations of our house playwright across the UK and around the world, direct from Shakespeare's home town.  

'Our on-going relationship with Ravensbourne College and the Janet Network also allows us to give a thousand schools the chance to get involved and experience one of Shakespeare's greatest plays live in the classroom.' 

John Wyver, RSC Media Associate, said: 'I am delighted to continue the work begun on earlier collaborations of creating ambitious screen versions of RSC stage productions. Richard II promises to be as thrilling and engrossing an experience on cinema screens as I have no doubt it will be in the theatre.'

Marc Allenby, Head of Commercial Development at Picturehouse, said 'We have consistently been at the forefront of new developments in Alternative Content and are really excited to be part of this project. We are looking forward to working with the RSC to bring their renowned Shakespearian productions to cinemas around the world.'

James Morris, Subject Leader for Web Media at Ravensbourne, said 'Ravensbourne is extremely excited about working with the Royal Shakespeare Company and Janet again. Our previous project together broke new ground and was an extremely beneficial experience for the Ravensbourne students involved. We're relishing the chance to bring Shakespeare to thousands of UK schoolchildren in a new and engaging way.'

Full details about the project is available at www.onscreen.rsc.org.uk including a chance to sign up for updates about the creation of the production online ahead of the screening. Check back regularly as more screens will be added in the UK and around the owrld in the coming months.

Click here for more information about Richard II

Many thanks to the RSC Press Office