Description: Over the past four years Theatre Royal Education and Outreach (TREO) have worked with English Heritage Education on ways to promote the use of historic sites for drama work to support work in history or to interpret historic texts and scripts.

Issue: TREO have used a range of Shakespeare's plays such as Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream at sites which have included Tynemouth Priory, Aydon and Warkworth Castles and Belsay Hall.

Strategy: In 2003 Prudhoe Castle provided the inspirational setting for three local schools to explore the various themes of A Midsummer Night's Dream. A series of drama and music workshops were held to enthuse and empower students in their understanding of Shakespeare.

Outcome: The schools came together on the final day at Prudhoe Castle to present an abridged version of A Midsummer Night's Dream to an invited audience - open to parents and friends. These workshops are intended to help teachers develop their own skills and workshop/lesson plans and there is to be a publication by English Heritage about the event as teacher notes.