British Council
Much Ado 2: Fun to Play
Audiences around the world love Shakespeare. A video and set of accompanying tasks, part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, discusses how audiences in Japan react to Shakespearean plays. The exercises after the video help check...
British Council
Much Ado 1: A Beautiful Trick
Two people hate one another, and then fall in love. The common romantic movie formula first appeared in the play Much Ado About Nothing. As part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, a video uses the popular play to help teach...
British Council
London 1: Piece by Piece
How has London changed since the time of Shakespeare? Using a video and series of activities, part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, English language learners discover a bit about the town that inspired Shakespeare's...
British Council
Lady Macbeth 2: Unchecked Ambition
Can unchecked ambition, as is the case in MacBeth, have disastrous consequences? A video and accompanying activities, part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, discusses the topic while also teaching key English skills. The...
British Council
Lady Macbeth 1: Top Dog
Who wears the pants in the Macbeth family? Many would argue it's not the Thane of Cawdor, but his wife, Lady Macbeth. As part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, a video and connected lessons discuss the power and influence...
British Council
Juliet 2: Feisty, Funny and Determined
One of the reasons Romeo and Juliet remains popular over time is the fact that teenagers relate to the main characters. A lesson, part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, discusses the character of Juliet. While watching the...
British Council
Juliet 1: Falling in Love
Shakespeare's timeless tragedy Romeo and Juliet has many lessons to teach youth today. As part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, a video and set of activities help English learners connect with the popular play....
British Council
Hamlet 2: A Bad Death
Hamlet's experience with his father's death rings true for those who have experienced the death of their own fathers. A video and set of activities, part of the Shakespeare English Exercises series, provides a unique perspective on...
British Council
Hamlet 1: His Father's Ghost
The lessons in Shakespeare's Hamlet transcend language and culture. An actor describes his view of the play in a short video accompanied by tasks, part of the Shakespeare English exercises series. While listening to the video,...
Crash Course
English Theater After Shakespeare: Crash Course Theater #17
Shakespeare may have been one of the greatest playwrights of all time, but many masterful dramatists came after him. An interesting video describes English theater after the Bard, particularly focusing on the works of Ben Jonson and...
Crash Course
Straight Outta Stratford-Upon-Avon - Shakespeare's Early Days: Crash Course Theater #14
Who would've guessed that a boy from the sleepy town Stratford-upon-Avon would grow up to become one of the greatest playwrights of all time? Scholars only know a few details about Shakespeare's early life, but that information is the...
Crash Course
Comedies, Romances, and Shakespeare's Heroines: Crash Course Theater #16
As a writer, Shakespeare took the genre of comedy to a new level. An informational video outlines the characteristics of Shakespeare's comedies and romances and explains how the plays differed from others during the period. Additionally,...
Lit2Go
Romeo and Juliet
"Oh Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" The classic play by Shakespeare goes digital through a version that contains audio and PDF versions of the text. Additionally, each act and scene displays the Flesch-Kincaid readability level...
TED-Ed
Why Should You Read "Macbeth"?
All is fair in motivating readers. And something wickedly wonderful comes from using a short introductory video to double readers' enjoyment of Shakespeare's tragedy about the ambitious Thane of Glamis. It is a tale told by a genius.
Crash Course
Love or Lust? Romeo and Juliet Part II
"Do you believe that fate is inescapable, or that people forge their own lives?" This is the essential question at the heart of Romeo and Juliet, according to the narrator of a series on Shakespeare's tragedy. Short but dense, the video...
Crash Course
Of Pentameter & Bear Baiting - Romeo & Juliet Part I
Thinking about using Romeo and Juliet with your honors or AP class? Consider showing this video as an introduction and overview to Shakespeare, Elizabethan theatre, and the play. The narrator's obvious scholarship, fast pace, and quirky...
Crash Course
Ophelia, Gertrude, and Regicide - Hamlet II
In Part Two of a video course in Hamlet, narrator John Green looks at the gender dynamics in the play. He presents Ophelia and Gertrude as powerful characters and argues that these women do have options that affect the course of the...
Curated OER
Richard III Newscast
Review the main events in the play Richard III using this resource. Learners created a video newscast in which they describe the plot. It is a creative and motivating way to discuss this material.
TED-Ed
Development of English Drama
From mystery plays to Shakespeare! Progress chronologically through the evolution of English drama, which began as a way for English clergymen in the eleventh century to illustrate biblical stories to the mass of illiterate commoners....
Sesame Street
Man Of La Muncha
What a wonderful way to explore vegetables! This video features a Shakespearian-style performance about a man trying to decide which vegetable to eat for dinner. There are rhymes, great examples of language usage, and a lot of fun.
Crash Course
Ghosts, Murder, and More Murder - Hamlet Part I
"Words, words, words." Part I of a two-part course in Hamlet focuses on the changes Shakespeare made in his version of the old Danish tale and the reasons he might have made these changes. In particular, the narrator examines...
Folger Shakespeare Library
Folger Shakespeare Library: Folger Podcasts: An Insider's Guide: Macbeth
An audio discussion of the plot, themes, and characters of Shakespeare's Macbeth, interspersed with actors performing pieces from the play. [10:00]
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Twelfth Night Act 2 Sc 4
In this video from Penn State's School of Theatre production of Twelfth Night, Feste sings a song for the Duke and Viola (Cesario, and the two discuss the way men and women approach love. [7:31]
Favorite Poem Project
The Favoite Poem Project: "Sonnet 29" by William Shakespeare
In this video episode [5:06] from Favorite Poem Project, Daniel McCall, a retired anthropologist from Boston, describes himself and explains how William Shakespeare's poem entitled "Sonnet 29" helps him reflect on his childhood when his...