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Encyclopædia Britannica Extends Shakespeare Website's Run Through December
Popular Shakespeare Site Offers Vivid Resource for Students, Educators, Theater Fans
CHICAGO, September 01, 1997 -- Encyclopædia Britannica today announced that it will extend the run of its popular free website, "Shakespeare and the Globe: Then and Now," through December, so students can experience Shakespeare in vivid and exciting new ways.
The site, located at http://shakespeare.eb.com, was launched in June to commemorate the reopening of the Globe Theater in England. It features virtual tours of the Globe Theater and its surroundings during Shakespeare's time, animated views of the Globe, vintage audio and film clips of Shakespearean performances and vast amounts of information about Shakespeare's life and times. In addition to a database of more than 500 articles from the Encyclopædia Britannica, the site also features a series of specially commissioned essays by leading Shakespearean scholars.
The site has been popular since it was launched.
"During the past few months, thousands of visitors have experienced the life and times of Shakespeare through the site's dynamic multimedia features. They have brought life to Shakespeare in creative ways never before possible," said Paul Hoffman, publisher of Encyclopædia Britannica. "With school back in session, students, teachers, and parents will find this site invaluable. Students can research the history and works of Shakespeare; teachers can supplement their lesson plans; and anyone who wants to become reacquainted with Shakespeare will find our site an excellent place to start."
The site's special features include:
- Animated maps that show the settings of Shakespeare's plays and how London has grown since Shakespeare's times.
- A chronology of Shakespeare's World.
- Video and audio clips from films based upon Shakespeare's plays.
- Animated views of the Globe Theatre as it may have looked in Shakespeare's times.
- Links to more than a dozen selected Web sites with specialized information on Shakespeare.
- A Shakespeare quiz, which tests the user's knowledge of topics ranging from Elizabethan cliches to recent Shakespearean actors.
- Special essays by leading Shakespearean scholars, including David Bevington, editor the fourth edition of The Complete Works of Shakespeare. Topics include the music of Shakespearean plays, the nature of 17th Century performance, the Globe Theatre, the stage in Elizabethan theater, and movies based upon Shakespeare's works.
"Shakespeare and the Globe: Then and Now" will remain accessible to the public at no charge through December 31. It then will be moved to Britannica Online® (BOL), the company's subscription Internet site.
"Shakespeare" is the latest in a series of Britannica websites focusing on topics of current interest. They include a critically acclaimed "Britannica Guide to Black History" and sites on the Olympic Games and the American presidency.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. publishes the most authoritative and comprehensive encyclopedia in the English language in three forms: Britannica CD™(on CD-ROM); Britannica Online®(on the Internet); and the famous 32-volume Encyclopædia Britannica®; and the 12-volume Ready Reference. The company also offers eBLAST, a free Web navigation service featuring sites selected and described by Britannica editors. To purchase or get information about Britannica products, customers may call 1-800-747-8503.
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