Hamlet to be performed in London Waterstones as part of workshop series

Director Victoria Gartner said: "Bard in the Bookshop surprises me every time. From children sitting under bookshelves to listen to tourists getting unexpectedly caught in some Shakespeare on the bookshop’s main staircase, I love the idea of bringing theatre to people who might not necessarily have stepped foot in an actual theatre building, or who find sitting for three hours to watch a Shakespeare play daunting or expensive. 

"The bookshop, the actors and audiences – willing or unwilling – form a symbiotic and magical relationship, surprising every time. We are also all rediscovering how little you need to actually perform Shakespeare: words, imagination and most importantly, soul."

Participating actors will have three days of workshop and then present a one-hour promenade performance in the Waterstones store. Previous productions have included Much Ado About Nothing and Henry V, featuring six to 10 actors performing scenes chronologically as audiences follow them around the bookshop. 

Hamlet, which is the initiative’s eighth show, ups the ante with 15 actors – including five Hamlets – performing a larger number of scenes simultaneously in a bid to create a more "immersive" experience for audience members. 

The show will take place on 18th and 19th May at Waterstones Gower Street.