By Hannah Corcoran, Features Subeditor
On the face of it, Shakespeare’s language sounds like there’s much beating about the bush: that is, using a bush as a cover for eavesdropping (Twelfth Night/Much Ado) or to overthrow a monarch (Macbeth). But dig a little deeper and Shakespeare is all about the limits of language: largely, when it can save you or fail you.
On a recent episode of BBC Question Time an outspoken commentator was quick to pick holes in another panellist’s ideas, however, when asked what solution he would suggest instead, the commentator was unable to provide an answer. In an age where the far-right is garnering support with violent rhetoric alone, we can look to Shakespeare’s Richard II, a play about how a spendthrift king is over reliant on fancy language to keep his supporters on-side. By the end of the play, he is deposed. Shakespeare has much to tell audiences in 2025 about how those in power gain and maintain support often not by what they do, but by how they say it.
To find out more about how Shakespeare’s work is kept alive in Bristol in 2025, Epigram reached out to the University of Bristol’s very own Shakespeare Society and spoke with Vice President, Holly Ford-Langstaff, and Producing Rep, Toby Hocking.
From using lychees for fake gouged eyes in King Lear to edible fake blood, ‘Shaxsoc’ is producing feasts for all the senses. Auditions for Julius Caesar are underway in the same week the society perform their annual showcase. ‘How do you do it all?’ I wonder. Toby and Holly exchange a knowing glance: late-night, and occasionally post-pub study.
Shaxsoc’s showcase is being performed this week in the Richmond Building’s Pegg Theatre, but Shaxsoc are no strangers to putting on shows in a range of places, from Cotham Parish Church to the Gallery Space at the Island, they are an adaptable bunch.
I ask what the challenges are with performing in a church: I envisage an alter doubling up as Juliet’s tomb. Toby says it’s ‘cold’, Holly says ‘lighting and rigging’ take some getting used to, but they can use the quirks of the building to their advantage.
How did Toby and Holly get into Shakespeare? Toby says he hadn’t done acting since primary school, so it was ‘mortifying’ starting workshops for the first time, but he settled in quickly, having directed King Lear earlier this year as a first-year English and Film student.
Holly, meanwhile, who comes from a background in dance and is studying for a BA in Music, is no stranger to performance, but admits that as a smaller society, Shaxsoc is less intimidating.
What makes the society unique? Toby says it has its own ‘new identity’, and Holly points out it is both an academic and performing society, and, if acting isn’t your forte, there are opportunities to learn ‘production, marketing, and event management’.
Regarding the skills Shaxsoc members pick up, I ask how Toby and Holly approach directing. Toby talks about the importance of working with actors’ strengths to bring a character to life. He quotes Fritz Lang: you ‘can’t play the part for an actor’. He begins with a ‘base structure’ and works up from there. Actors inform the performance as well as the director- it’s a two-way relationship.
The conversation turns to costumes. Toby says there is a ‘magic costume cupboard’ in the SU which is either a treasure trove or a sensory overload, depending on if your happy place is the Urban Outfitters sale section or David Beckham’s sock drawer. However, along with Facebook Marketplace, the cupboard has been a godsend for sourcing a variety of props, including the indispensable inflatable lobster for The Tempest.
What would Holly and Toby like to do next in Shaxsoc? Holly would like to stage more ‘Shakespeare-adjacent texts’: she recently co-directed an extract from Doctor Faustus in the society’s annual showcase. National interest in Shakespeare’s contemporaries continue to grow as this year, as Ncuti Gatwa played Shakespeare alongside Ed Bluemel’s Marlowe in the RSC’s West End play Born With Teeth.
Toby is also keen to take Shaxsoc to new heights. He arranged a society trip to watch Titus Andronicus at the RSC earlier this year and is keen to do so again. Holly says it was a ‘very, very gory show’. The audience were often sprayed with fake blood, which, I am told, comes in different types- gelatinous, fresh, dried- and is often edible, as actors might be required to spit up blood as part of their performance, but it’s not always appetising. Toby says Shaxsoc sat behind Bake Off’s Prue Leith for the show. As far as I know, the RSC props team are yet to receive a star baker award.
How does watching Shakespeare’s plays influence Holly and Toby’s own directorial choices? Holly favours a ‘stylised’ approach with lots of ‘heightened emotion’, as her Faustus excerpt features lots of physical movement. ‘Lighting is symbolic in yours’, Toby agrees. In contrast, Toby prefers a more ‘naturalistic’ approach in creating ‘ambiance’.
Communicating meaning through lighting, sound, and props is challenging at the best of times, but throw Shakespearean language into the mix, how does Shaxsoc make the Bard accessible and understood to a 2025, especially student, audience?
‘Shakespeare was always meant to be watched’, says Holly. So much so that ‘When William Shakespeare died in 1616, only about half of his plays had ever been printed’. As for modern audiences worrying about whether they’ll understand the language, Holly assures ‘it wasn’t normal language at the time!’ In Shakespeare’s time you wouldn’t so much go to see, but go to ‘hear’ a play, as, at the Globe Theatre, pillars were often in the way of your view.
So how does one ‘hear’ Shakespeare today? ‘Watch the showcase!’ Toby exclaims. By this article’s publication, Shaxsoc’s annual showcase will have come and gone, but there will be plenty more opportunities to get involved. Holly suggests signing up for the society’s ‘Sh!tfaced Shakespeare’, which, as of yet, doesn’t require an audition.
Maya Tailor
Annabel Bienfait
What is Shaxsoc looking forward to in the coming year? ‘Independence!’ says Toby. With auditions well underway for Julius Caesar, group readings, Sh!tfaced Shakespeare coming up, and much more, Shaxsoc, formed in just 2022, is already a thriving and valuable addition to Bristol’s arts scene.
‘Be not afraid of greatness’, Shaxsoc. While Malvolio tells us some have greatness thrust upon them, if ‘thrusting’ appears more achievable than ‘greatness’, Shaxsoc are keen to encourage the use of ‘Hot People Do Shakespeare’ condoms, as featured on the SU Instagram.
Featured Image: Shakespeare Society's 2025 showcase/ Toby Hocking
How will you get involved in Shaxsoc?
