Published: Wednesday, 25th March 2026
The Guildhall Outreach brings Macbeth to Life for over 1,000 local students during Shakespeare Week.
The historic St George’s Guildhall in King’s Lynn has delivered an ambitious and inspiring programme of Macbeth‑themed workshops to more than 1,000 students over the last fortnight as part of its growing Outreach programme in partnership with the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Aimed at bringing Shakespeare’s stories to life for young people, the programme saw the Guildhall’s creative learning team visit local schools to deliver a full day of immersive, hands-on activities inspired by Macbeth. Students explored the play’s themes, characters, and atmosphere through sound, performance, craft and literacy activities.
Across the schools and home educations groups, pupils took part in a full Macbeth experience, drawn from a rich programme of activities, creating atmospheric soundscapes to accompany scenes from Macbeth, stepping into character through drama workshops using costumes and props, and designing their own magical cauldrons in a witches’ craft session inspired by the play’s famous cauldron scene. Alongside this, teachers led pupils through literacy activities such as reading, writing, or watching a child‑friendly retelling of the story.
Most sessions concluded with all the children coming together for a lively group performance, giving them the chance to showcase their creativity and celebrate their achievements.
A Major Milestone for the Guildhall’s Outreach Work - delivering workshops to more than a thousand students marks a significant achievement for the Guildhall team, who continue to expand their cultural learning offer across west Norfolk.
On Monday 23 March, the team brought the workshops to Clenchwarton Primary School, introducing Shakespeare to pupils from reception through to Year 6 in this interactive way. The children were really engaged with the delivery of each session from getting to dress up as the character to creative cauldron art designs. Shakespeare Week is such a great way to get teach children about the famous playwright that has local ties to this area.
Cllr Sue Lintern, Cabinet Member for Culture and Events, expressed her enthusiasm, stating: “We have an incredible connection to Shakespeare here in West Norfolk and it is amazing that our Guildhall team can bring Shakespeare to so many young people across the region. Visiting over 14 schools along with a home education group during this week and the week that lead up to Shakespeare week.”
“Macbeth is a play full of drama, imagination and excitement, and the workshops gave students the chance to explore it in a truly creative, hands-on way.”
“The Shakespeare Week activities form part of the Guildhall’s wider ambition to connect local schools with the arts, history and heritage of one of the country’s most significant theatre sites. The St George’s Guildhall is currently undergoing a big redevelopment but once this is complete, we hope it will become the centre for arts, creativity and theatre for everyone to enjoy.”
Tim FitzHigham, Creative Director for the Guildhall and Creative Hub added: “The comedy part in Macbeth was first played by King’s Lynn born Robert Armin, and I think it is just brilliant that children in the Borough where he was born, get to share in how brilliant both Armin and Shakespeare are. We celebrated the first Robert Armin Day in September 2025 with local school children and as I mentioned then, Robert Armin was famous for working with children and training them for Shakespeare and other acting companies. We hope the Guildhall Outreach programme will continue to grow and develop future generations of theatre lovers and young actors.”