Shakespeare. The bane of every teenaged English student in the English speaking world, right? Even though the scripts are in English, seems like there’s something lost in translation over four centuries of linguistic change. Nonetheless, teachers work with what they’ve got. And now they’ve got an app for that: Shakespeare at Play, currently available in the App Store  — stages a full production of the Bard’s plays right above the play’s text on an iPad or iPhone screen. Divided by scene, each of the app’s three current productions (Hamlet, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet) are presented word-for-word, and the user is able to scroll the text along while they watch. Also included with each play is an array of annotations, a robust glossary (available within in the text) and an audio introduction to each scene. Video Editions of the plays are available for $3.99 from within the app and Notes Editions (which include all of the text materials but not the videos) are available for $1.99. The app also includes a growing library of free scripts and will eventually offer the entire canon. “The play’s the thing…” — and finally, students can watch the play while they read it. Check it out. www.shakespeareatplay.ca