How Shakespeare ended up on EasyJet: 10k steps a day, livestock and what it takes to keep the Bard alive

In 2014, on a calm and cloudy day, William Shakespeare – incredibly, almost four centuries after he died – set a new Guinness World Record for the highest theatrical performance ever, staging a play at 37,000 feet above the ground.

Okay, so this is a weird one. I was on an EasyJet flight from Gatwick to Verona – the 10:20am one – and we’d barely gotten comfortable when the announcement came on. Seriously, they announced that a performance of Romeo and Juliet was about to begin in ten minutes! And then, get this, they told us to use the restroom or get drinks now if we needed to. It was the most surreal airplane announcement ever – like, are we landing in the play?

Adam Long, who started the Reduced Shakespeare Company, definitely remembers some confused looks from the audience before his group began their performance. They famously walked up the aisle, playfully ‘fought’ with the drink trolley, climbed over chairs, and then brilliantly performed the complete story of Romeo and Juliet in just 45 minutes.

You know, our experience with street theatre really saved us on this project! We’ve gotten pretty skilled at making things work in all sorts of locations over the years, but this one was definitely the toughest. That balcony scene? Let’s just say it was… memorable! We really had to get creative.

This was all done to honor Shakespeare’s 450th birthday and present his work in a fresh, innovative way – a goal Long has dedicated the past forty years to achieving.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company began in 1981, founded by Long, along with Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield. They shared a love for Shakespeare’s plays and started by performing fast-paced versions of Hamlet at Renaissance Fairs in San Francisco and Los Angeles. As Long describes, their initial audiences were a diverse mix of people, including “hippies, bikers, computer programmers and punks.”

Building on their initial success, the group expanded their show and took it to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where they ambitiously performed all 37 of Shakespeare’s plays.

Reflecting on their initial tour, Long explained that the band originally planned to end things after performing in Edinburgh. They’d agreed it had been a great experience, but wasn’t sustainable, so they envisioned one last large show in America before everyone went their separate ways. However, by the time they arrived in California, they were already receiving messages indicating continued interest.

The very first performance of “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)”—a hilarious parody—happened at the Fringe festival, surprisingly at 10am in a church basement. This show went on to become a huge success, running for nine years in London’s West End, appearing on two TV specials, and being performed in over 20 countries worldwide.

The show gained a reputation for quickly covering all of Shakespeare’s plays with a barrage of pop-culture jokes – everything from references to Tommy Cooper to the Beatles. It was a uniquely funny mix of witty writing, creative props, and slapstick comedy.

Long mentioned the show has seen all sorts of unexpected moments, from animals being led across the stage to audience members spontaneously breaking out into dance.

Long recalled often finding himself backstage, breathless and gazing at the props – a pie with a face baked inside, a robotic Godzilla, and countless wigs. He’d jokingly wonder, ‘How did my life end up this way?’

Then we got the amazing opportunity to play on the White House lawn for President Obama, which must mean we were on the right track!

He explained that they found people everywhere share a similar sense of humor, which was a surprising discovery. Traveling the world for two years, and then finishing the journey with a performance in London’s West End, felt like the perfect ending. Performing Shakespeare in Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare’s hometown, was a dream come true – the highest achievement he could have hoped for.

The show is coming back for a UK tour, stopping at 30 theaters between now and July 2026. When the tour was announced, creator Long had the challenging task of finding four new actors to perform the show – a difficult job considering over 2,000 people applied! The chosen four are Efé Agwele, Woogie Jung, Tom Pavey, and Kiran Raywilliams, and they’ll definitely need to be energetic to keep up with the show’s fast-paced performance.

I was completely blown away when Long told me about the cast’s dedication! Apparently, Efé is a serious runner – she does a 10k every single day – and was walking for an hour and a half just to get to rehearsals. But Tom… wow. He’s doing his PhD in lion conservation, which means he was actually in Africa doing fieldwork when he found out about the auditions. He flew all the way back just to try out! You really have to admire their commitment.

Long explained that the current cast has modernized the show for a new generation, introducing contemporary language and references. He shared an example: “I’m constantly learning new slang. There’s a character, Caliban, in ‘The Tempest’ who pursues a female character, and an actor described his advances as ‘rizzing her up’ – a phrase I hadn’t heard before, but it’s now part of the show.”

He and the new actors believe it’s crucial for the show to be enjoyable and easy for younger viewers to get into. He explained that they’ve always approached the show as a way to combine the brilliance of Shakespeare with the shorter attention spans of today’s youth – something people were even concerned about when he was a child.

These days, it’s even harder to focus. With things like TikTok, social media, and YouTube constantly vying for our attention, our attention spans are really being tested.

His main goal, just as it was 45 years ago, is to prove that Shakespeare isn’t boring or stuffy – a perception he believes comes from studying the plays for exams.

I often get asked if our Reduced Shakespeare Company shows are meant to fix boring Shakespeare. But that question always surprises me, because I’ve never actually found any Shakespeare to be boring.

There’s nothing quite like experiencing a live performance, and with our show, you’re actually getting 37 plays for the price of a single ticket – it’s incredible value for your money!

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When and where can I see The Complete Works of William Shakespeare live?

The hilarious show, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), is touring the UK until July 2026! It will be performing at 30 different locations, and you can find tickets on the official tour website.

18–28 Feb 2026 – Chipping Norton, The Theatre
5–7 Mar 2026 – Basingstoke, The Haymarket Theatre
10 Mar 2026 – Worcester, The Swan Theatre
11 Mar 2026 – Epsom, Epsom Playhouse
13–14 Mar 2026 – Coventry, The Belgrade Theatre
17 Mar 2026 – Huddersfield, Lawrence Batley Theatre
19–21 Mar 2026 – Salisbury, Wiltshire Creative (Salisbury Playhouse)
24–28 Mar 2026 – Bristol, Bristol Old Vic
30 Mar–2 Apr 2026 – Guildford, Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
8–11 Apr 2026 – Lichfield, Lichfield Garrick Theatre
15–18 Apr 2026 – Southampton, Mayflower Studios – Studio 1
21–25 Apr 2026 – Poole, Lighthouse Theatre
27–29 Apr 2026 – Hertford, Beam
30 Apr–1 May 2026 – Bedford, Quarry Theatre
2 May 2026 – Tunbridge Wells, Trinity Theatre
5–6 May 2026 – Newbury, Newbury Corn Exchange
9 May 2026 – Taunton, Tacchi Morris Arts Centre
12–13 May 2026 – Exeter, Exeter Northcott Theatre
14–16 May 2026 – Northampton, Royal and Derngate Theatres
19–23 May 2026 – Bolton, Bolton Octagon
25–27 May 2026 – Watford, Watford Palace Theatre
28–30 May 2026 – Oxford, Oxford Playhouse
2–6 Jun 2026 – Ipswich, New Wolsey Theatre
9–13 Jun 2026 – Bury St Edmunds, Theatre Royal
16–18 Jun 2026 – Keswick, Theatre by the Lake
19–20 Jun 2026 – Newcastle, Northern Stage
22–24 Jun 2026 – Doncaster, Cast
25–27 Jun 2026 – Wakefield, Theatre Royal
7–11 Jul 2026 – York, Theatre Royal

Authors

Olivia Garrett

2026-02-27 11:06

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When and where can I see The Complete Works of William Shakespeare live?

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