The Royal Shakespeare Company is to conduct an experiment into whether Shakespeare can still shock by monitoring the heart rate of theatregoers as they watch Shakespeare’s goriest revenge tragedy Titus Andronicus.
Two groups of people have already been recruited and will wear a heart rate monitor on their wrist as they watch previously announced RSC associate artist David Troughton perform the lead role in the Bard’s bloodiest work.
One group will watch the production live in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford while the other will watch the Live From Stratford broadcast at a cinema when it is screened on 9 August.
The two groups will be demographically matched based on age, theatre experience and gender to achieve a comparable set of results. They will not only decide whether Shakespeare still shocks but also whether the emotional engagement of watching a play live at the theatre is different to watching it live at the cinema. The results from the project will be released in November 2017.
Titus Andronicus, part of the RSC’s Rome season, runs in Stratford until 2 September before transferring to London’s Barbican from 7 December until 19 January.