In this article, we offer an account of a two-day workshop conducted with a group of postgraduate English and Drama student teachers, part of a larger AHRC-funded research project. Our focus is on reading and the reception of a canonical text, in this case Beowulf. We argue that taking a transmedia approach helps learners to think about the literary text in new ways. Using Louise Rosenblatt's transactional theory of reading as our starting point, we develop Myra Barrs' understanding of reading as a form of enactment or performance and writing as a form of role-play. We specifically consider the meaning and function of "role" across different media platforms, including written text, digital film and computer games.