To be, or not to be, that is the question

  • 30
  • 60
Time

Activity Details

Benefits

  • Keep Learning
  • Bring Joy

Participants

  • One to One or Group Activity

What you need

  1. Shakespeare Quotes Quiz - download resource

Intro

Shakespeare buffs, this one is for you! The father of English Literature is so widely known that, even if you haven’t read or seen any of his plays, the chances are you’ve seen one of the film adaptations. There are so many versions of Romeo and Juliet knocking about!

This quiz is all about Shakespeare’s most famous quotes. So, get guessing and see how many you know. It doesn’t matter if you get them wrong. You can have fun along the way, imagining yourself at the Globe Theatre in the 16th century, reading the lines aloud. You may even have said a few of these quotes without realising their origin, see how many you have used 

Get acting. Be dramatic. And give us your best witch impression! “When shall we three meet again? In thunder, lightning, or in rain?”

Top tip

 People with dementia at a mid-late level might not be able to answer the questions, but they may very well enjoy the music, dramatics and film-watching. So, invite them along to watch and enjoy the fun!

The Activity

  1. Gather all your budding playwriters, actors and drama buffs in a nice quiet space
  2. Set the scene with some quiet music in the background – classical or Elizabethan would be ideal
  3. Give the first quote and ask which play it’s from 
  4. Try to act out the quotes (if you can), to make it more dramatic, entertaining and fun
  5. Once the answer has been revealed and discussed, move onto the next quote
  6. Continue on for as long as the group are enjoying themselves 
  7. Maybe round off the theme with a Shakespeare play or movie – Midsummer Night’s Dream is a comedy, so it could be a nice one to watch 

PDF Resource