A new piece of theatre coming to London reminds us why Shakespeare is still essential – to hold the mirror up to nature and to one of the most pressing humanitarian disasters of our time, the plight of refugees.
[Wither Would You Go?] juxtaposes a series of videos of events taking place around the world with extracts from Shakespeare’s plays: we see a woman suffering in Myanmar followed by the “To be or not to be” soliloquy; a Syrian child bride followed by a scene from Romeo and Juliet; a torture scene and Richard II.
Jamie Lloyd, who has been called “the new Sam Mendes”, is directing, and the scenes are delivered by actors who are giving their services for free, including Martin Freeman, Olivia Williams, Roger Allam, Celia Imrie, and Lee Evans, emerging out of his retirement from the stage.
But this is more than just virtue-signaling. Olivia Williams, who performed in LA, said, “Contributing to 'Whither Would You Go?' is the answer to the question, ‘What can I do to help?’” The show has already raised around $30,000 for UNHCR, the UN refugee agency.
