Packed venue for Akala

English hip-hop artist Akala at an interactive session at a packed King's and Queen's Performing Arts Centre yesterday, where he was welcomed with a rousing haka.

Akala is an author, poet, political activist and social entrepreneur.

In 2009, he founded The Hip-Hop Shakespeare Company, which explores the social, cultural and linguistic parallels between the works of William Shakespeare and that of modern-day hip-hop artists.

The aim of the talk was to help young people develop an alternative view of the arts by showing how both hip-hop and Shakespeare have the power to transcend race and class.