Sir Patrick Stewart Will Now Read Shakespeare On Twitter Daily

Mar 28, 2020 by apost team

As many of us sit at home confined by government-mandated lockdowns, award-winning English actor Sir Patrick Stewart has something to pass the time. Since last Sunday, the actor has begun posting daily readings of Shakespeare's sonnets on Twitter in an effort to provide a bit of artistic relief for his large three-million-follower fan base.

Stewart’s sonnet spree began last Sunday with an uncaptioned and impromptu video of the actor reading Sonnet 116. The actor, who seemed to have memorized the poem, delivered the sonnet with poise and careful diction, which is typical of the former Royal Shakespeare Company performer.

“Let me not to the marriage of true minds / Admit impediments. Love is not love / Which alters when it alteration finds, / Or bends with the remover to remove,” the actor recited.

With more than 50 thousand likes — and growing — it’s safe to say that Stewart struck a chord with his internet audience in a time of growing uncertainty and extreme social isolation. Following this global outpour of internet support, Stewart made a post the next day, announcing that he was “delighted by the response,” and would therefore start posting a sonnet a day to his Twitter feed.

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“When I was a child in the 1940s, my mother would cut up slices of fruit for me (there wasn’t much)”, the Stark Trek star wrote on Twitter, “and as she put it in front of me she would say, ‘An apple a day keeps the doctor away.’”

He added: “How about, ‘A sonnet a day keeps the doctor away’? So...here we go: Sonnet 1.”

Since the intial post, Stewart has uploaded Sonnets One through Four. And we can all expect more beautiful poetry to grace our feeds in the future. It’s worth noting that Stewart is uniquely qualified to recite Shakespeare’s famed 17th century sonnets given the actor’s extensive stage-acting background. According to The Independent, Stewart has performed numerous times in multiple Shakespeare productions, including The Tempest, Macbeth, Hamlet, Twelfth Night and The Merchant of Venice. In fact, in an interview with PBS, Stewart says that his long relationship with the king of English literature began when the actor was 12 when he had to read The Merchant of Venice in front of his class.

“[Shakespeare’s] been a dear, dear friend ever since, and the good thing is he’s a friend who never, ever lets you down,” the actor added.

Stewart isn’t the only one to turn to the arts for entertainment and community in this unprecedented period of global isolation. People around the world have sung their hearts out from rooftops and balconies to serenade neighbors, and musicians have streamed live performances to fans around the world. Take DJ D-Nice, for example. With over 100,000 people tuning into the livestream, DJ D-Nice had incredible success with his Instagram Live dance party, according to Billboard. The dance party got so popular that tons of celebrities joined in, including Jennifer Lopez, Drake, Michelle Obama and Joe Biden. Talk about an A-list club.

So whether you’re a Shakespeare fan — or someone more inclined to go clubbing — talented artists across the globe are using technology to offer some much needed entertainment and community. And for that, we can be grateful.

Are you a fan of poetry? What do you think of Sir Patrick Stewart’s daily sonnet? Let us know and be sure to pass this along to your friends and family.