RSC First Encounters: Julius Caesar

RSC First Encounters: Julius Caesar

Please note this performance takes place at Treviglas Academy Sports Hub

‘Liberty, freedom, tyranny is dead!’

Harriet Walter reprises her role as Brutus in Phyllida Lloyd’s groundbreaking 2012 Donmar Warehouse production, bringing world-class theatre to Treviglas Academy.

From the back of a prison van, Ancient Rome is brought to the stage. Reflecting their own preoccupations with freedom and justice, a group of female prisoners present a 90-minute version of Julius Caesar. Soon, story and reality collide, and the impact of power politics feels very close to home.

Caesar’s creeping dominance in Rome risks democracy. A collective of conspirators secretly recruit the popular senator Brutus and they assassinate Caesar to reclaim the republic for the citizens. As terror and chaos rule the streets, Shakespeare’s politically-charged play exposes how the overthrow of a tyrant by violent means seldom leads to a peaceful outcome.

This First Encounters with Shakespeare tour, a co-production with KPPL Productions, sees Harriet Walter and the company in residence at RSC partner school Treviglas Academy, and four others across the country, inviting young people to voice their opinions on how the themes of the play speak to our world today. On Thu 01 Oct, audiences will be invited to join in post-show discussions about the critical questions raised by the production.

 The tour of First Encounters: Julius Caesar is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, which makes it possible for the RSC to expand its tour to work in partnership with more places across England.

Age recommendation: 12+
Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes, no interval