Since 1995, and the unveiling of a bust to commemorate Rabindranath Tagore, we have gathered every year on a date close to the poet's birthday to lay flowers and celebrate his life. 2020 was the first time that the celebrations in the garden of Shakespeare's Birthplace were not possible, because of the coronavirus.
We were delighted to be contacted by Obhi Chatterjee, SBT Council member and the person who has done so much to sustain this tradition in recent years, with the suggestion that we take the celebrations online. We quickly agreed to this and plans were put in place that involved a number of performers recording music, song and dance in their own homes.
I recorded an introduction from the Birthplace Trust and Obhi skilfully edited together the video you can see here. You can also read Obhi's reflections on the 2020 celebrations on his own blog.
As the charity dedicated to leading the world’s enjoyment of Shakespeare, we are proud to celebrate and share links with other great writers like Tagore, effectively creating a global cultural meeting place where people can explore literary and creative ideas and look forward to resuming celebrations like this in the Birthplace garden once it is safe to do so.