Blog Article
Working with multiple partners to revive 探花直播's Shakespeare Memorial Library, the world's first great Shakespearean library.听
Researcher
Research background
听is a collaboration between the Shakespeare Institute and the Library of 探花直播, led by the Project Director Professor Ewan Fernie and the Operations Director Tom Epps.
It has been awarded 拢675,000 by听听to open access to the collections and deliver an exciting programme of engaging events for people and communities across the city. The project is also being supported by听.
BCU鈥檚 Reader in Literature and History, Dr Islam Issa is the project鈥檚 Advocacy and Engagement Consultant. He has so far focused on how to engage diverse communities in the project and has brokered significant partnerships for it with Canal and River Trust, the British Muslim Heritage Centre, the Muath Trust, and 鈥渓ocal Banksy鈥� Aerosol Ali. 听He has also arranged dissemination opportunities and is co-supervising a PhD dedicated to the topic.
One of the founders of 探花直播鈥檚 Shakespeare Memorial Library was the radical preacher and lecturer, George Dawson (1821-1876). Dawson formulated the 鈥榚verything to everybody鈥� ethos, which fuelled a significant movement for public welfare and cultural participation in nineteenth-century 探花直播: a major stimulus to the development of modern civic culture.
Historians have asked important questions about how inclusive Dawson鈥檚 vision and nineteenth-century 探花直播 really were. In response to this, and to ongoing conversations about Black Lives Matter and the impact of Covid-19, the Everything to Everybody project will attempt to reopen 探花直播鈥檚 unique Shakespeare heritage with people and communities across the city, identifying historic barriers to inclusion and endeavouring to overcome them.
Research aims听
This project plans to revive the city鈥檚 almost-forgotten 探花直播 Shakespeare Memorial Library, housed in the iconic Library of 探花直播 - and the first great Shakespeare library in the world, as well as one which from the very beginning has belonged to all the people of the city.
The 鈥楨verything to Everybody鈥� Project aims to:
- Unlock the first, oldest and largest Shakespeare collection in any public library in the world
- Revive and extend its founding principle that culture should be actively owned by everybody
- Inspire 探花直播 people and communities to explore, interrogate and improve the collection now
Islam presented听, in which he interviewed Ewan Fernie and renowned actor Adrian Lester about this project.