The ESFN (European Shakespeare Festivals Network) www.esfn.eu brings together the key festivals across Europe who present Shakespeare from an international perspective.
The Shakesphere project is an open call for a small-scale production which will be presented at ESFN member festivals during 2025, and this is the fourth year of our project.
From a wide choice, the selection panel are delighted to announce that they have chosen an exciting new production – Learlike – which is made by a new company, Greensleeved – a female-led ensemble of theatre-makers from across Europe Julia Vredenberg (Norway), Amber Frances (Belgium), Lucy Doig (Scotland), Ariela Nazar-Rosen (Poland) and Cecilia Thoden van Velzen (The Netherlands).
This new production will be presented at:
York International Shakespeare Festival (UK)
Gdansk Shakespeare Festival (Poland)
Verona Shakespeare Festival Fringe (Italy)
Craiova International Shakespeare Festival (Romania)
And has also been invited to the Festival Shakespeare de Catalunya (Spain)
On behalf of the ESFN, Chair, Philip Parr said, “The selection panel were universally excited by the possibilities of this innovative female led reinterpretation of King Lear. We established the Shakesphere project to draw emerging artists and companies, with their contemporary sensibilities, into the rich world of European Shakespeare performance, and to have a group of European creative artists coming together to create a new production is exactly the outcome that we wished for. We are fascinated to see one of Shakespeare’s much presented plays through a new, young, female led lens.”
On behalf of Greensleeved, director and adapter Cecila Thoden van Velzen said. “I am beyond excited that our production has won the 2025 Shakesphere Competition. Adapting King Lear has been on my mind for at least a year now, so to be invited into such an international environment where Shakespeare’s words are reinvented and reexamined with great care and creativity, is a true gift. Over the next months, I’ll be writing, composing and rehearsing with my wonderful team, and then we’ll be raring to go by the time the festivals start. We cannot wait to share Learlike with all of you.”





The ESFN member festivals are all looking forward to an exciting year of festivals, bringing international productions of Shakespeare to their audiences. To learn more about our work, follow us on facebook @esfn and via our website www.esfn.eu.
For further information about Shakesphere, or for interviews with ESFN members or with Greensleeved – contact Joanna Sniezko, Executive Director of the European Shakespeare Festivals Network – joanna.sniezko@esfn.eu