Shakespeare Memorial Library,

Library of Birmingham

The ‘Everything to Everybody’ project is an initiative which has brought the Shakespeare Memorial Library to life and given the collection back to the people of Birmingham. Wendy was delighted to be invited to contribute to the family day and exhibition in March 2022. Libraries are important spaces to Wendy and formed a significant part of her early childhood, therefore, Wendy felt that it was essential to display the amazing collection and create activities for all ages.

On display, below, are images of the translations of Shakespeare’s work that the library collection holds. Birmingham is a vibrant, multicultural, multilingual city so it was exciting to share and discuss these translations with the diverse library visitors. Many visitors asked what is lost in translation, however, Wendy asks the question: What do we gain? When a director of the RSC or film production company cuts Shakespeare’s script due to time constraints the director is able to maintain the meaning, integrity and sense of the text for the audience. It’s the same for translations of the text. It also opens up possibilities to ensure that Shakespeare really is for everybody.

On the large map pictured below, Wendy placed dots to show the countries that are mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays to demonstrate the international heritage of Shakespeare’s characters and play locations that Shakespeare himself was aware of and included in his plays. Wendy also created activities that linked to her research and the Rep theatre’s production of Floella Benjamin’s ‘Coming to England’. Inspired by her English teaching career, Wendy created an activity for visitors to create their own Blackout Poetry from extracts of the plays. There was even a colouring in bookmarks activity for the little ones!

To find out more about the Everything to Everybody project and collection, watch the #ShakeRacePedagogy interview with Professor Ewan Fernie & Wendy Lennon and the #ShakeRacePedagogy Exploring the Collection session.

In March, Wendy attended Everything to Everybody’s ‘Coming Home’ event which celebrated the Shakespeare Memorial Library (the people’s library) and the people of Birmingham. At the event, there was a premiere of the project’s recent film with a cast of Frank Skinner, Adrian Lester, the Rep theatre group and the people of Birmingham. Wendy had the opportunity to see the library’s first folio (pictured below)!