Award-winning female-led creative company Anagram, launch innovative public art project, which looks to the future of Shakespeare’s hometown

For centuries, Stratford-upon-Avon has celebrated its illustrious status as the hometown of William Shakespeare. But what’s it like to be a local resident, sharing a town with millions of visitors from all over the world? What might the future look like?

The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and the Royal Shakespeare Company have commissioned an innovative artistic project that explores the experiences and perspectives of local people.

I See the Future is a bold piece of ‘playable’ public art that will temporarily transform the landscape of Stratford. Created in collaboration with the local community, two giant pairs of interactive binoculars will curiously appear in the town over the weekend of 6-8 September.  
 
Developed by Anagram, an award-winning female-led creative company specialising in interactive storytelling and immersive experiences,  I See the Future will offer a  vision of Stratford 100 years on, as  imagined by its people today. Supported by Watershed’s   Creative Producers International programme and Arts Council England, the project marks the 250th anniversary of David Garrick’s  Shakespeare Jubilee of 1769.

The Shakespeare Jubilee is considered to be the event that established the Shakespeare tourism industry as we know it today.  Shakespeare and Garrick were visionaries, and they were instrumental in shaping Stratford. But what could the future look like for the people of this town now?

Residents of all ages and backgrounds will be invited to contribute their hopes, dreams and imaginings for the future in a series of creative workshops this summer. Their collective vision will come to life in stunning augmented reality inside the large-scale binoculars for people to interact
with.  

Louisa Davies, head of creative programme at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, and producer on the Creative Producers International cohort, said, “The 250th anniversary of a pivotal moment in the town’s history feels a
timely opportunity to draw local people into a conversation about the future of their town, and their part in how it develops. I See the Future  offers opportunities for people to spark new memories of old places and forge connections between communities, shaping an idea of a future that echoes the spirit of the Jubilee, one of unity and ambition.”

Geraldine Collinge, director of events and exhibitions at the Royal Shakespeare Company, said: “We are thrilled to be developing a new commission in partnership with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and Creative Producers International for the 250th anniversary of the Garrick Jubilee. I See the Future is an exciting opportunity for our local community to come together and imagine what’s next for their Stratford and to work with the amazing artists Anagram.”

Local people are invited to contribute their ideas at the interactive workshops, which take place in July. Full details will be announced in the local press and on social media. Follow @ShakespeareBT and @TheRSC for updates.

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