Two landmark anniversaries will coincide in 2016: the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death and the 500th anniversary of the foundation of the Jewish Ghetto of Venice, a place that provided the world with the concept of the 'ghetto', as well as the historical backdrop to Shakespeare’s controversial play, The Merchant of Venice. This project draws on these two events to reflect and respond creatively to the legacy of European racism and tolerance, and to the remarkable variety of cross-cultural exchange engendered by the Ghetto and the play. Both are ambivalent documents of European civilization, as instruments of intolerance and catalysts for cultural exchange. Our starting point is the first ever promenade production of The Merchant of Venice in the Ghetto, bringing into a creative relationship two milestones of European intangible and tangible heritage. This historical performance will be disseminated through various activities: a summer school, ten artistic workshops translating place and play into different media, two symposia, programmed from 2016 to 2018 in four different countries. All activities will depend on the interaction between state-of-the-art research and artistic elaboration among the various partners and several established artists. The project will address how sensitive topics concerning the coexistence, exchange, conflict between different ethnic and religious groups can be delivered through art to the broadest and most diverse audiences. The activities will be disseminated globally on a digital platform called 'The Shylock Encyclopedia'. Our aim is to explore how a multidisciplinary creative endeavor can reconfigure the public perception of a classic theatre masterpiece and of a heritage site that have a long, tormented history and a continuing political relevance in today's Europe. Six partners from four countries (Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, Rumania) will cooperate on this project, led by Ca'Foscari University of Venice.