A steampunk image of a collage of letter stamps with Compositor E highlighted

OUR HERITAGE UNBOUND

"We know what we are, but not what we may be" - Hamlet Act IV, Scene 5

Created in line with the 400th anniversary of the First Folio, our Compositor E workshops for young people in Lambeth and South East London, focused on the modern relevance and legacy of the first print of Shakespeare’s complete works.

Students took part in 2-hour workshop facilitated by Charlie Dupré on the First Folio’s making, history, and impact. They explored their own creative voices and created a 21st century written response to the First Folio, platforming their own heritage. In order to achieve accuracy, authenticity, and validity they partnered with Guildhall Library and Shakespeare Beyond Borders Alliance. Student’s responses have been compiled, printed, and bound in the style of the First Folio – a hard copy of which will be sent to each school, and kept in Omnibus Theatre’s exhibition space.

VIEW THE DIGITAL FOLIO BELOW
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN
TO THE DIGITAL LISTENING POSTS

Book Binding | Gallery

Foreword from Alice Eve, Learning & Participation Producer, Omnibus Theatre

This folio, as well as the exhibition and digital space that accompanies it, tells the story of young people using their heritage to understand who they are, where they come from, and what they might become.

With the support of the Heritage Lottery fund, we were able to work with local schools and colleges to continue conversations around history, heritage, and the impact of the First Folio.

In sessions facilitated by Charlie Dupré, students have learned about the First Folio’s making, history, and impact, including the role of Isaac Jaggard. Some students have researched a person from the 1600s who has been an inspiration. Young people have reflected on 17th century worker’s rights, witchcraft, persecution, and gender relations throughout history. Some students even took part in a book-binding workshop where they hand-bound their very own book!

Most importantly, as seen in this collection, they’ve used their own creative voices and created a 21st century written response to the first folio, platforming their new learning and their own heritage.

The main body of this folio has been divided into four sections to reflect the different ways in which young people chose to explore their heritage; Question, Asking for Help, Inheritance, and Admiration. There is a fifth section where a selection of work from the first workshops series has been included. Care has been taken to emulate the First Folio as much as possible in our version, from formatting, to illustrations, from preliminaries, and to hand book-binding.

Each school who participated in this project received a copy of the folio, and one copy will remain at Omnibus Theatre in Clapham, London. It is available to view online on the Omnibus Theatre website, and in-person at the Our Heritage: Unbound exhibition at Omnibus Theatre, opening in March 2024-2025. A preview of this additional content is featured in this folio’s preliminary pages, so read on to check out blogs by experts on Shakespeare and the First Folio.

Thank you to the Heritage Lottery Fund, Charlie Dupré, Emma Smith, Chris Laoutaris, Mylyn McColl, and Shepherds London for supporting this project.

COMPOSITOR E

WRITTEN BY CHARLIE DUPRÉ
PRESENTED BY OMNIBUS THEATRE
"There’s power in that fingerprint of yours. Make sure to use it wisely."

London 1623. Apprentice typesetter, 17-year-old John arrives to work under the mentorship of ambitious printer Isaac Jaggard on a potentially game-changing new commission – Shakespeare’s first-ever complete works.

As John grapples to stamp a manuscript of Macbeth onto the page, fuelled by his dark past, he finds himself weaving his own narrative into the text. But as the ink sets, he begins questioning who the storytellers really are…

Presented in line with the 400th anniversary of the publication of the First Folio, Compositor E celebrates the power of words and explores the many unlikely fingerprints that write and re-write history.

OUR HERITAGE UNBOUND

"We know what we are, but not what we may be" - Hamlet Act IV, Scene 5

Created in line with the 400th anniversary of the First Folio, our Compositor E workshops for young people in Lambeth and South East London, focused on the modern relevance and legacy of the first print of Shakespeare’s complete works.

Students took part in 2-hour workshop facilitated by Charlie Dupré on the First Folio’s making, history, and impact. They explored their own creative voices and created a 21st century written response to the First Folio, platforming their own heritage. In order to achieve accuracy, authenticity, and validity they partnered with Guildhall Library and Shakespeare Beyond Borders Alliance. Student’s responses have been compiled, printed, and bound in the style of the First Folio – a hard copy of which will be sent to each school, and kept in Omnibus Theatre’s exhibition space.

VIEW THE DIGITAL FOLIO BELOW
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN
TO THE DIGITAL LISTENING POSTS
READ EMMA SMITH'S BLOG
READ DR CHRIS LAOURTARIS' BLOG
DOWNLOAD THE DIGITAL PROGRAMME HERE

COMPOSITOR E

WRITTEN BY CHARLIE DUPRÉ
PRESENTED BY OMNIBUS THEATRE
"There’s power in that fingerprint of yours. Make sure to use it wisely."

London 1623. Apprentice typesetter, 17-year-old John arrives to work under the mentorship of ambitious printer Isaac Jaggard on a potentially game-changing new commission – Shakespeare’s first-ever complete works.

As John grapples to stamp a manuscript of Macbeth onto the page, fuelled by his dark past, he finds himself weaving his own narrative into the text. But as the ink sets, he begins questioning who the storytellers really are…

Presented in line with the 400th anniversary of the publication of the First Folio, Compositor E celebrates the power of words and explores the many unlikely fingerprints that write and re-write history.

19 SEP-7 OCT
7:30PM
4PM SUNDAYS
£18 STANDARD
£15 CONCESSIONS
£10 PREVIEWS

Theatre Club
Wed 4 Oct
Free to ticket-holders

Do you like watching theatre, but wish you had someone to talk with about what you see? Come to Theatre Club! It’s a very informal – no membership required – conversation space similar to book groups: people see a show, then meet to chat about it. Find out more here→

DOWNLOAD THE DIGITAL PROGRAMME HERE

Compositor E | Rehearsal Gallery

  • Tre Medley, a black actor wearing a neon yellow football top is staring intently at a piece of paper holding an ink block
  • Actor Kaffe Keating holds a piece of paper looking confused, he wears a striped black and white top. He is a white man in his 30s with a beard
  • Actor David Monteith holds onto an easel glaring over his shoulder. He is a black middle aged man wearing a tropical top
  • Tre Medley, a black actor wearing a neon yellow football top is holding out the small letters in front of him
  • Two ensemble actors hold up David as he hangs his head low, they look bewildered
  • A white man in his 30s with a beard glares intensely
  • Actor David Monteith holds a piece of paper in front of him emphasising his argument. He is a black middle aged man wearing a tropical top

Photo credit: Alicia Bridge

Cinematographer & Editor: Alicia Bridge