1) Shakespeare performances have been documented in Brazil, Africa, China, and Australia as far back as the early 19th century. 2) Shakespeare was introduced to different parts of the world through translations, adaptations and amateur and professional performances. 3) Famous actors from various countries, such as Ira Aldridge from America, Isidoro Máiquez from Spain, and Toshiro Mifune from Japan, have helped popularize Shakespeare's works globally through their portrayals of characters like Othello.

1. BRAZIL
1835: First
performance
of Hamlet by a
Brazilian theatrical
troupe staged in
Niterói and Rio
de Janeiro (João
Caetano, actor;
Oliveira e Silva,
translator).
AFRICA
1607: The
first recorded
performance
of Hamlet was
an amateur
production on
board
an East India
Company ship off
the west coast
of Africa.
CHINA
1913-1930:
Shakespeare first
became known via
translations and
dramatizations of
Charles and Mary
Lamb’s Tales from
Shakespeare. The
Merchant of Venice
is particularly
popular and the
first Shakespearean
adaptation to
be staged.
AUSTRALIA
1833: The first
professional
Shakespeare
performance was
Richard III with John
Meredith as the
titular role.
Worldwide
Martin Butler, ‘Kemp, William (d. in or after 1610?)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [Accessed 19 June 2015].
René Weiss, ed., Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Arden Shakespeare Third Series (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2012), p. 57. Ann Thompson
and Neil Taylor, eds, Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Arden Shakespeare Third Series (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2005), pp. 45-46. Frances Teague,
Shakespeare and the America Popular Stage (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006), pp. 12-17. Patrick Spottiswoode, “Friends, Germans,
countrymen: the long history of ‘unser Shakespeare’”. The Guardian. Web. 6 Oct 2010. Ann Thompson and Neil Taylor, eds, Hamlet by William
Shakespeare, Arden Shakespeare Third Series (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2005), pp. 53-55. “The Early Years”, Internet Shakespeare Editions, University
of Victoria, n.d. Web. Accessed 20 June 2015. Yushiko Kawachi, ‘Shakespeare and Japan’, Review of the Faculty of Foreign Languages, Kyorin University 1
(1989): 1-8. Rick J. Santos, Introduction to Latin American Shakespeares, edited by Bernice W. Kliman and Rick J. Santos (Madison: Fairleigh Dickinson
University Press, 2005),p. 19. Heidi J. Holder, ‘Aldridge, Ira Frederick (1807?–1867)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004
[Accessed 20 June 2015]. RSC/British Council survey 2012. Shakespeare’s Globe, “About the Project”. The Shakespeare’s Globe Trust, London 2014. Web.
20 June 2015. M. A. Katrizky, ‘English Troupes in Early Modern Germany’, in Transnational Exchange in Early Modern Theatre, ed. by Robert Henke and
Eric Nicholson (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2008), pp.35-46. José Manuel González, Spanish Studies in Shakespeare and His Contemporaries, University of Delaware
Press, 2006. Web. 25 Sep 2015. Rick Lyman, “Toshiro Mifune, Actor, Dies at 77; The Primal Hero of Samurai Films”, The New York Times, The New York
Times Company. 25 Dec 1997. Web. 25 Sep 2015. Xiao Yang Zhang, Shakespeare in China: A Comparative Study of Two Traditions and Cultures, Associated
University Presses, 1996. Web 25 Sep 2015. Gaydin B. N., “Vysotsky Vladimir Semenovich”, The World of Shakespeare: An Electronic Encyclopaedia,
2014. Web. 25 Sep 2015. de Camargo Leão, Liana. “Shakespeare in Brazil: Introduction.” MIT Global Shakespeares, 2010. Web [Accessed 28 September
2015]. http://globalshakespeares.mit.edu/blog/2010/11/20/brazil/
oup.com/Shakespeare
of the world’s
schoolchildren
study Shakespeare
in the classroom
50%
THE WORLD
SHAKESPEARE
CONGRESS,
the main international
academic Shakespeare
conference, has taken
place every five years
since 1976. Venues have
included Stratford-upon-
Avon, Berlin, Tokyo,
Los Angeles, Valencia,
Brisbane, and Prague
ACROSS THE GLOBE
AMERICA
1699: The first recorded
Shakespeare play in
America is a listing of
Macbeth in an inventory.
1750: The first recorded
performance of Richard III
in New York.
GERMANY
1766: 22 of Shakespeare’s
plays were translated
into German.
JAPAN
1887: The first stage
production of Shakespeare
was a version of The
Merchant of Venice, which
was based on a newspaper
adaptation.
LEADING ACTORS OF DIFFERENT COUNTRIES
IRA
ALDRIDGE
1807-1867: American
actor and first black
man to play Othello
ISIDORO
MÁIQUEZ
1768-1820: Spanish
actor who debuted in
a Spanish version of
Othello: Otelo, o el
moro del Venecia
FRIEDRICH
LUDWIG
SCHRÖDER
1744-1816:
German actor who
was famous for
portraying Hamlet
and King Lear
TOSHIRO
MIFUNE
1920-1997: Japanese
actor from China
who was renowned
for starring in film
adaptations of
Shakespeare, such as
Throne of Blood
ZHAO
DAN
1915-1980: Chinese
actor who played
Romeo in a 1937
version of Romeo
and Juliet
VLADIMIR
VYSOTSKY
1938-1980: Soviet
actor whose portrayal
of Hamlet has left a
lasting impression
on Russian culture
and theater
450TH
ANNIVERSARY
OF
Shakespeare’s
birth,
a production of
HAMLET
set off from the
GLOBE
THEATRE
in London.
THE
ON
23 April
2014
IN A SPAN OF TWO YEARS,
the cast will tour the
ENTIRE WORLD,
perform in every country,
and finally finish on
23 April 2016,
THE 400TH
ANNIVERSARY
OF HIS DEATH.