Shakespeare 400: Read Romeo and Juliet...in Russian!

A COPY of Romeo and Juliet in Russian that was handed to the Shakespeare Memorial Library in Birmingham by a 30-strong delegation from the Soviet Union in 1964 will be among 100 items that will go on display in a joint exhibition by the Library of Birmingham and the British Library.

The Our Shakespeare exhibition will also include a First Folio and other Shakespeare-related items from around the world.

The Shakespeare Memorial Library is considered one of the world’s greatest collections of the Bard’s work.

It is made up of tens of thousands of books, films, posters and photographs in many different languages, including Tibetan, some of which are hardly ever on public display.

The collection began in the 1860s when Birmingham considered itself as an important centre for Shakespeare — despite being over 30 miles away from his hometown of Stratford.

Our Shakespeare curator Julian Harrison said: “The boundaries were not as they are now, and people in Birmingham saw him as one of their own and some who is important to the area.

“This is a rare and exciting opportunity for people to experience first-hand artefacts, footage and audio that they won’t have seen elsewhere.”

Visitors will be also able to listen to recordings of Will’s works in their original pronunciation, and see items owned by Laurence Olivier, Ellen Terry and other famous actors.

Our Shakespeare runs at the Library of Birmingham from 22nd April to 3rd September.

Pick up a copy of our Shakespeare 400 Souvenir Supplement which is FREE in the current edition of the Stratford-upon-Avon Herald.