STUDENTS will get a first taste of Shakespeare later this year when the Royal Shakespeare Company brings a production of the classic The Comedy of Errors to Bradford.

The RSC First Encounters production will be aimed at children aged seven to 13, and will be in Bradford at Bradford College on Monday, December 3.

The play, which will be performed by eight actors and actor-musicians and directed and edited by Alex Thorpe, is an edited version of the plays performed using original Shakespearian language.

The performances in Bradford are part of a seven week national tour.

A key feature of First Encounters is involvement and engagement of the audiences and local community, with young people from Bradford being directly involved in the production.

A group of up to 20 local youngsters will perform an edited version of one of the play’s opening speeches, in which Egeon explains how he became separated from his wife and one of his twin sons.

Schools will also be invited to decorate parts of the set ahead of the RSC’s visit to create a sense of their hometown.

The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeare’s early plays and is his shortest and most farcical comedies, featuring lots of slapstick comedy, puns and wordplay.

It tells the stories of two sets of identical twins who were accidentally separated at birth, with two arriving in the town which is the home to their twin brothers.

Director Alex Thorpe said: “The RSC’s First Encounter’s productions have a long and exciting history of not only giving young audiences their early experiences of Shakespeare and theatre, but also actively involving them in the making of it.

“This year I am delighted to be leading a company who will take things a step further. This production is being built around its audience and the places we visit.

“Extending and building on the play’s themes, the professional company of actors and actor-musicians will be joined by ensembles of young performers to help tell some of the story.

“Ephesus, the play’s market town setting, will feel uncannily familiar as local communities work together to complete the stage’s design.”

Jacqui O’Hanlon, RSC director of education, said: “At the heart of our First Encounters with The Comedy of Errors tour are the regional theatres and schools we are privileged to work in collaboration with to create it.

“Many of us have our first encounter with Shakespeare at school, an experience which can define our attitude to live theatre and to Shakespeare for all of our lives.

“Together with our partner theatres we bring the excitement and wonder of Shakespeare’s work right into the heart of schools and local communities.

“We know that audiences for this work include significant numbers who are new to Shakespeare and to theatre, and that 20 per cent of returning audiences have had their first encounter with theatre through these tours is testament to the profound impact that partnerships between schools and theatres can have on local communities; partnerships forged out of a shared vision for education in which access to the arts plays a central part.”

The performance to schools will take place at 1.30pm on December 3, with a public performance also taking place at 6.30pm at Bradford College.