Thousands of people from across the world gathered at the birthplace of William Shakespeare on Saturday to pay homage to the British playwright on the 400th anniversary of his death.
A theatrical parade through Stratford-upon-Avon kicked off around 10:15 a.m. local time to honor the Bard, who died on April 23, 1616. It was attended by more than 10,000 people.
The procession saw participants dressed in Shakespearean characters carry a floral tribute through the town, as crowds, many of them wearing masks of the Bard, watched on, waving flags and throwing rosemary branches to create a great remembrance.
One of the most exciting moments came at about 11 a.m. when people in the town, men and women, young and old, all put on Shakespeare masks.
"It's very exciting to get to come all the way from Kentucky in the United States to Stratford to take part in all of this," a man who played the role of Shakespeare said.
"Because our daughter was in the parade with the grammar school and our granddaughter was just in the parade team from the girls' grammar school," said an elder man who watched the entire parade.
A group of people from Fuzhou City, east China's Jiangxi Province, hometown of Chinese Ming Dynasty playwright Tang Xianzu, also took part in the parade. This year also marks 400th anniversary of death of Tang, considered as the Shakespeare of China.
At the garden of Shakespeare's birthplace, performers from Fuzhou City on Saturday performed selections of Tang's renowned plays, such as Peony Pavilion and The Story of the Purple Hairpin, as well as Fuzhou's traditional folk dances. More on: [ Ссылка ]
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