The Shakespeare-VR Project

Promotional poster for Sweet Sorrow.
Zoe Speas as Hamlet in a 360-degree image from the Blackfriars Tour production.
Anlan Yang’s virtual build of the ASC Blackfriars Theater for Sweet Sorrow.
Cassiel Eatock-Winnik uses a motion capture suit to record performances for the virtual Juliet.
Zoe Speas perfrom as Hamlet.
Ralph Vituccio and Jaehee Cho at the Blackfriars shoot.
Screenshot from Sweet Sorrow gameplay.
Shakespeare-VR collaborators, Stephen WIttek, Jaehee Cho, and Ralph Vituccio.
Anlan Yang’s 3D models for Sweet Sorrow.
A student visits the “Inventing Shakespeare: Text, Technology, and the Four Folios” exhibit at the Hunt Library.
Shakespeare-VR exhibit at the Frick Museum.
A high school student try Sweet Sorrow during a classroom demonstration.
Shakespeare-VR at the “Inventing Shakespeare: Text, Technology, and the Four Folios” exhibit at the Hunt Library.
Students take the virtual Blackfriars Tour during a classroom demonstration.
CMU Drama students Cassiel Eatock-Winnik and Jonathan Champion use motion capture suits to record performances for the virtual Romeo and Juliet.
Prof. Stephen Greenblatt visits the Shakespeare-VR exhibit at the Frick Museum.

Introducing Shakespeare-VR:

The Shakespeare-VR Project is an educational initiative from Carnegie Mellon University that uses virtual reality to open up new ways of enjoying Shakespearean drama. Directed by Dr. Stephen Wittek, the project has developed a suite of virtual experiences that allow users to step into a recreated Elizabethan playhouse, perform alongside virtual actors, and explore the theatrical world of early modern England. By combining historical accuracy with emerging technology, the project invites users to engage with Shakespeare’s works through active participation rather than passive observation.

Launched in 2018, the Shakespeare-VR Project has grown into an international collaboration involving pedagogical specialists, theater artists, and Shakespeare instructors from the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and Australia. Key creative partners include filmmaker Ralph Vituccio and the virtual media team at Orta Interactive, led by Jaehee Cho.
The project has also worked closely with collaborators at the American Shakespeare Center, whose expertise in historically informed performance has shaped both the aesthetic and pedagogical dimensions of the work.

With a strong commitment to accessibility, the Shakespeare-VR project makes all of its media freely available across multiple platforms. It stands at the forefront of a new wave in digital humanities, expanding access to theater and reimagining Shakespeare for the 21st century.

The project was made possible by funding support from Carnegie Mellon University and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Sweet Sorrow: Romeo and Juliet in Virtual Reality

Sweet Sorrow: Romeo and Juliet in Virtual Reality is an immersive learning experience that invites users to step into a digitally reconstructed Elizabethan playhouse and perform scenes from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Created using motion-capture technology and animated 3D models, the experience allows participants to speak lines alongside virtual actors, explore the stage space, and engage with Shakespeare’s text through embodied performance. Designed to work as a theatrical video game, Sweet Sorrow blends historical authenticity with interactive storytelling. Users choose a character, move freely through a virtual environment, and perform in key scenes—such as the iconic balcony and bedroom sequences—while text scrolls across the screen in karaoke-style prompts. See here for further details.

Blackfriars Tour

The Blackfriars Tour experience offers users the chance to step inside a virtual reconstruction of the Blackfriars Playhouse in Stanton VA—a re-creation of Shakespeare’s original indoor theater. Designed in cooperation with collaborators from the American Shakespeare Center, the tour was filmed with with professional actors, performing in front of a live audience. See here for further details.

Outreach

We have shared creations from the Shakespeare-VR Project in museums, libraries, and classrooms around the world. See here for further details.

Shakespeare and Virtual Reality (Cambridge UP)

Shakespeare and Virtual Reality (Cambridge UP, 2021) is a collection of scholarly essays edited by Stephen Wittek and David McInnis. Bringing together contributions from scholars, educators, and media artists, the volume explores how virtual reality can transform the teaching, performance, and experience of Shakespeare’s works. Collectively, the essays in the volume position VR not just as a tool for presenting Shakespeare, but as a medium that can itself be enriched by Shakespearean forms of meaning-making. See here for further details.