Reduced Shakespeare Company back on tour with new version of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)

A new version of hit West End show The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) by the Reduced Shakespeare Company is heading out on a UK tour in 2026.

The tour starts at The Theatre Chipping Norton on 18 February 2026, and then visits Chipping Norton, Basingstoke, Worcester, Epsom, Coventry, Huddersfield, Salisbury, Bristol, Guildford, Lichfield, Southampton, Poole, Hertford, Bedford, Newbury, Taunton, Exeter, Northampton, Bolton, Watford, Oxford, Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds, Newcastle, Doncaster, Wakefield, and York.

After nine years in the West End, two TV specials and performances in over 20 countries, the Reduced Shakespeare Company is bringing its comic masterpiece to a new generation of audiences – updated and reinvented.

Written by Adam Long, who also directs, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield, the creative team also includes set and costume design by Liz Cooke, lighting by Alexandra Stafford and movement directed by Amy Lawrence.

Casting is to be announced.

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) team hold two Guinness World Records: The highest altitude Shakespearean performance – on 23 April 2014 (Shakespeare’s birthday) the RSC performed The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) at 37,000 feet aboard an EasyJet flight from London Gatwick to Verona, Italy; and the longest-running Shakespeare play (West End) – notching up 3,744 performances from its opening night on 7 March 1996 until it closed on 3 April 2005.

The show is produced by The Theatre Chipping Norton and Selladoor Worldwide.

Writer and director Adam Long said in a statement: “We’ve always said that The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) is about what happens when the genius of Shakespeare collides with the mentality of the modern world. I was brought up in a world of Bugs Bunny, Marx Brothers and The B-52s. Our new young cast was brought up on TikTok, SnapChat and Labubu Dolls. So far, in these early stages of collaboration, we’ve adapted Titus Andronicus as a YouTube cooking tutorial that morphs into a scene out of Stranger Things, and the entire 270 minutes of Othello has been micro-compressed into a fifteen second ukulele solo.”

Chipping Norton Theatre Artistic Director, John Terry said: “We are incredibly excited to be working, alongside amazing partners, to bring this legendary piece of comedy theatre to new audiences across the country. We have been touring work nationally for the last eleven years, but this is our biggest tour to date, and we are seeing real excitement in the venues and audiences we will be visiting.”

More about the Reduced Shakespeare Company

The Reduced Shakespeare Company began as a street theatre troupe in San Francisco Bay in the 1980s, busking 15-minute versions of Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet to earn a living. Most of the performances were at ‘Renaissance Faires’ where the RSC often had to share their stage with belly dancers and sheep. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) was first performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in 1987, at 10am in a church basement. From there, the RSC was invited to perform in Montreal, Tokyo, New York and London. After several world tours, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) landed at the Criterion Theatre in Piccadilly Circus where it ran for nine years.

More about tickets to The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) – UK Tour

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) – UK Tour Dates 2026

Wednesday 18 – Saturday 28 February – The Theatre Chipping Norton
Tuesday 3 – Saturday 7 March – The Haymarket Basingstoke
Tuesday 10 March – Swan Theatre, Worcester
Wednesday 11 March – Epsom Playhouse
Friday 13 & Saturday 14 March – Belgrade Theatre Coventry
Tuesday 17 March – Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield
Thursday 19 – Saturday 21 March – Salisbury Playhouse
Tuesday 24 – Saturday 28 March – Bristol Old Vic Theatre
Monday 30 March – Thursday 2 April – Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford
Wednesday 8 – Saturday 11 April – Lichfield Garrick
Wednesday 15 – Saturday 18 April – Mayflower Studios, Southampton
Tuesday 21 – Saturday 25 April – Lighthouse Poole
Monday 27 – Wednesday 29 April – Beam Hertford
Thursday 30 April & Friday 1 May – Bedford Quarry Theatre
Tuesday 5 & Wednesday 6 May – Newbury Corn Exchange
Saturday 9 May – Tacchi Morris Arts Centre, Taunton
Tuesday 12 & Wednesday 13 May – Exeter Northcott
Thursday 14 – Saturday 16 May – Northampton Royal & Derngate
Tuesday 19 – Saturday 23 May – Bolton Octagon
Monday 25 – Wednesday 27 May – Watford Palace
Thursday 28 – Saturday 30 May – Oxford Playhouse
Tuesday 2 – Saturday 6 June – Ipswich New Wolsey Theatre
Tuesday 9 – Saturday 13 June – Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds
Friday 19 & Saturday 20 June – Northern Stage
Monday 22 – Wednesday 24 June – Doncaster Cast
Thursday 25 – Saturday 27 June – Theatre Royal Wakefield
Tuesday 7 – Saturday 11 July – York Theatre Royal