[Note the many indirect references to the nature and benefits of presence experiences in this CBC News story about an immersive VR tool that makes users part of the world of Shakespeare’s plays. See the original version of the story for a second image and 4:43 minute video. For more on Shakespeare and presence, see ISPR Presence News posts from February 4, 2019, February 9, 2021, February 16, 2021, and February 8, 2023. –Matthew]

[Image: “Stepping Inside Shakespeare,” won the University of Guelph’s 2025 Innovation of the Year Award for its creative approach to education. Co-designed by Dr. Peter Kuling and the company Calian, the technology transforms classic plays like Hamlet and Macbeth into interactive VR experiences where high school students can take on character roles and make choices within the scene. Peter Kuling, says the “goal of this innovation, is to make Shakespeare accessible and engaging by allowing students to step inside the story rather than just reading it as text.” (Joe Pavia/CBC KW)]

Join the witches in Macbeth or look for ghosts in Hamlet as part of new Guelph-made VR experience

Co-designer Peter Kuling says aim is to ‘hopefully inspire you to want to know more about Shakespeare’

Joe Pavia, CBC News
December 15, 2025

A virtual reality game and education tool aims to immerse high school students in the world of Shakespeare.

By putting on the virtual reality (VR) headset, the students are able to join the witches around their cauldron in Macbeth or become the character Bernardo and meet the ghost of King Hamlet in Hamlet.

Shakespeare VR was co-designed by Peter Kuling, an associate professor of theatre studies at the University of Guelph and Ottawa virtual reality company Calian.

“Wanting to be part of the story and really immersed in the story was what drove so much of this,” Kuling said.

“VR really offers that opportunity to feel like you’re part of a story. I thought what better way than to actually make you a character within the experience, still tell the story, cause that’s the goal for educators to use this material.”

Kuling says ever since discovering Shakespeare growing up in Saskatchewan, he has wanted to experience the Bard’s play as more than just an audience member.

He developed the idea for Shakespeare VR during the pandemic lockdown. This year, it won the University of Guelph’s 2025 Innovation of the Year Award for its creative approach to education.

Fostering curiosity

Right now, segments of Hamlet and Macbeth have been made available and are free to be used by Ontario educators. There are plans to create a third experience, which would take users inside the Globe Theatre in London, England.

In the Hamlet experience, the player becomes the character Bernardo who meets the ghost of Hamlet’s father.

In the Macbeth experience, the play is told from the perspective of the three witches who cast spells and exploit Macbeth’s weaknesses.

Lois Adamson is the director of education at the Stratford Festival in Stratford, Ont., and appreciates how the VR experience will enhance the students’ curiosity.

“I think a lot of us who are theatre people feel that there’s no replacement for a live theatre experience. But what I think Peter is offering … is the understanding that theatre is something that comes to life. When something comes to life in that way, it fosters curiosity, it fosters connection and a desire for further inquiry,” Adamson said.

“It provides an awesome experience that is unique and that is different from something that happens by yourself reading a text or that happens in a theatre. It’s really incredible in that way.”

In the classroom

The VR experiences are short, with Hamlet running about 15 minutes and Macbeth 26 minutes. But the hope is it will be enough to whet the appetite of students who will want to learn more.

Kuling has been promoting the project to schools in Ontario and around the world.

“I think learning through play and through games and all of these things is a fascinating and important component here. You learn so much by just taking these chances. You’re in the experience, you get to interact, you get to move, not a lot, but just enough to get you involved,” Kuling said.

“That freedom that becoming part of the experience offers is something that, I mean, I can’t go up on stage at Stratford and I can’t walk into the movie screen. But here I can take those steps and you watch students just click the play-based learning and game-based learning. It’s not just for little ones anymore. I think we should all play more and make this part of our everyday learning experiences.”