25th April 2009

Vivid – 140 Heathmill Lane, Birmingham

BBC Blast, The Hip Hop Shakespeare Company in partnership with Punch Records, are running a free lyric writing and performance workshop with MOBO-award winning hip-hop artist Akala.

The workshop is aimed at (but not limited to!) young people aged 13-19 years old in both schools and youth clubs who are considered ‘hard to reach’ and who may not ordinarily be interested in Shakespeare and his work. We’ll be demonstrating how modern hip-hop shares many similarities with the themes, language and rhythm used by The Bard.

This is a chance to build young people’s self-confidence and unlock their creative and artistic abilities by having them write and perform their own rap lyrics based on a theme from one of Shakespeare’s plays, giving them a platform to showcase their creative ideas and works, and with guidance from leading industry professionals.

If you’d like more details and/or would like to register for a place, email blastsupport@bbc.co.uk

www.hiphopshakespeare.com