Shakespeare goes digital with a new reading app
The app aims to inspire a new generation with the Bard's work
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2015-07-19 14:03 GMT
London: A new app that allows students to lip-sync favourite lines from Shakespeare and mix beatbox rhythms with the Bard's text can make it easier for them to study and experience the famous playwright's work. The app, called Re:Shakespeare, is aimed at young people aged 11 to 18 to let them study and experience William Shakespeare's play 'Much Ado About Nothing'.
The app, an initiative by UK's Royal Shakespeare Company, allows students to lip-sync favourite lines, mix beatbox rhythms with Bard's text and take a Hip-Hop Shakespeare quiz, 'express.Co.Uk' reported. Students can get to grips with the 'what, why and how' of Shakespeare's language, with a 360 degree performance of two sections of 'Much Ado About Nothing'.
Hosted by "Doctor Who" actor David Tennant, the app also features actor Tamsin Greig, voice coach Nia Lynn and director Iqbal Khan, offering tips and advice for understanding and performing Shakespeare.
The app includes links to, and quotes from, 19 other Shakespeare plays. "The app sets Shakespeare alongside contemporary artists doing the most extraordinary things with language," said RSC's director of education Jacqui O'Hanlon.
"Language is power for hip-hop artists and they use it to provoke, challenge and move people just like Shakespeare did," O'Hanlon said. More than three million UK students study the works of Shakespeare every year but teachers are concerned that some pupils struggle to see the relevance of works in medieval dialogue from the 16th century.
The app will be offered as a support to schools from September.