Shakespeare Anyone?

Kourtney Smith & Elyse Sharp
undefined
Sep 1, 2021 • 23min

Mini-Episode: Shakespeare & Cross-dressing

In today's episode, we'll be covering cross-dressing in early modern England. Shakespeare depicts cross-dressing in multiple plays, but what was the contemporary cultural context? We'll dive into early modern reactions to cross-dressing both onstage and off and how Shakespeare uses cross-dressing as a plot device across his plays. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was "Korey Leigh Smith". Episode written and researched by Kourtney Smith. Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Follow us on Instagram at @shakespeareanyonepod for updates or visit our website at shakespeareanyone.com Works referenced: Cressy, David. "Gender Trouble and Cross-Dressing in Early Modern England." Journal of British Studies, vol. 35, no. 4, 1996, pp. 438–452. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/176000. Accessed 28 May 2021. Howard, Jean E. "Crossdressing, The Theatre, and Gender Struggle in Early Modern England." Shakespeare Quarterly, vol. 39, no. 4, 1988, pp. 418–440. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2870706. Accessed 19 May 2021. Saccardi, Nadia. "Women Cross-Dressing and the Early Modern." The Costume Society, The Costume Society, 2014, accessed 18 May 2021 from costumesociety.org.uk/blog/post/women-cross-dressing-and-the-early-modern.
undefined
Aug 18, 2021 • 1h 22min

Twelfth Night: Gender and Queer Theory

In today's episode, we explore Shakespeare's Twelfth Night through the lens of Gender and Queer Theory. We take a look at how Early Modern concepts of gender and queerness may have influenced the writing of Twelfth Night and how modern productions use the play to explore themes related to gender and queer identity. In the second half of the episode, we are joined by our first ever guest of the pod, Dr. Sawyer Kemp to continue our discussion on Gender and Queer Theory. Dr. Sawyer Kemp (they/them) is a Chancellor's Postdoctoral Fellow in Transgender Studies with the Gender & Women's Studies department at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Sawyer's current book project investigates the rhetoric and industry of "accessibility" in contemporary Shakespeare performance. Exploring access as a tool for feminist and queer critique, this project analyzes theatres' impact on and outreach to communities of trans and gender non-conforming people, sexual assault survivors, and people with disabilities. Sawyer's work has appeared in Shakespeare Quarterly, Shakespeare Studies, The Journal for Early Modern Cultural Studies, and the edited collection Teaching Social Justice Through Shakespeare. Their most recent article, "Two Othellos: Transitioning Anti-Blackness" is forthcoming in Shakespeare Bulletin. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was "Korey Leigh Smith". Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Follow us on Instagram at @shakespeareanyonepod for updates or visit our website at shakespeareanyone.com Works referenced: Ake, Jami. "Glimpsing a 'Lesbian' Poetics in 'Twelfth Night.'" Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900, vol. 43, no. 2, 2003, pp. 375–394. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4625073. Accessed 20 June 2021. Aughterson, Kate, and Ailsa Grant Ferguson. "Chapter 4: Cross-dressing and Gender Transgression(s)". Shakespeare and Gender: Sex and Sexuality in Shakespeare's Drama. The Arden Shakespeare, 2020, pp. 97-121. Accessed 19 June 2021. Barker, Roberta. "The 'Play-Boy,' the Female Performer, and the Art of Portraying a Lady." Shakespeare Bulletin, vol. 33, no. 1, 2015, pp. 83–97. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26355090. Accessed 19 June 2021. Charles, Casey. "Gender Trouble in 'Twelfth Night.'" Theatre Journal, vol. 49, no. 2, 1997, pp. 121–141. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/3208678. Accessed 19 June 2021. Coontz, Stephanie, et al. "Marriage vs Friendship." Call Your Girlfriend, 2 Aug. 2009, www.callyourgirlfriend.com/episodes/2019/08/02/marriage-vs-friendship. Dekkar, Thomas, and Thomas Middleton. "The Roaring Girl. OR Moll Cutpurse." Folger Shakespeare Library, 21 July 2017. https://emed.folger.edu/sites/default/files/folger_encodings/pdf/EMED-Roaring-reg-3.pdf "Introduction." Twelfth Night, edited by Keir Elam, The Arden Shakespeare, 2008, pp. 57-68, 111-119. Third. McManus, Clare. "When Is a Woman Not a Woman? Or, Jacobean Fantasies of Female Performance (1606–1611)." Modern Philology, vol. 105, no. 3, 2008, pp. 437–474. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/591257. Accessed 18 June 2021. "Volume 19, Number 4, Fall 2019 Special Issue: Early Modern Trans Studies Guest Editors: Simone Chess, Colby Gordon, and Will Fisher." Journal for Early Modern Cultural Studies, Project MUSE, 24 Sept. 2020, muse.jhu.edu/issue/42946.
undefined
Aug 4, 2021 • 18min

Mini-Episode: Shakespeare's Prose and Verse

In today's mini-episode, we are exploring Shakespeare's Language Framework. In this episode, we will discuss technical elements of how Shakespeare plays were written, as well as provide tips and tricks for navigating what can be a major hurdle to reading and performing Shakespeare: the text itself. How do you actually start to understand what is written on the page? We dive into the clues that can be found by looking at the syllables in each of Shakespeare's lines. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was "Korey Leigh Smith". Episode written and researched by Elyse Sharp. Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Follow us on Instagram at @shakespeareanyonepod for updates or visit our website at shakespeareanyone.com Works referenced: Shakespeare, William, et al. Speak the Speech!: Shakespeare's Monologues Illuminated. Faber and Faber, 2002.
undefined
Jul 21, 2021 • 49min

Twelfth Night: Plays for the Court

Scholars know that Shakespeare's Twelfth Night was performed at court. But what does that mean? In today's episode, we're diving into what producing a play at court looked like for Shakespeare and his contemporaries as well as how performing at court influenced characters and themes of plays like Twelfth Night. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was using the stage name "Korey Leigh Smith". Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Follow us on Instagram at @shakespeareanyonepod for updates or visit our website at shakespeareanyone.com Works referenced: Bergeron, David M. "Court Masques about Stuart London." Studies in Philology, vol. 113, no. 4, 2016, pp. 822–849. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/44329617. Accessed 18 June 2021. Henslowe, Philip. The diary of Philip Henslowe, from 1591 to 1609. Printed from the original manuscript preserved at Dulwich college. London, Shakespeare Society, 1845. Hirrel, Michael J. "Duration of Performances and Lengths of Plays: How Shall We Beguile the Lazy Time?" Shakespeare Quarterly, vol. 61, no. 2, 2010, pp. 159–182. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40731154. Accessed 23 May 2021. Lucy Munro. "Actors, Plays and Performances in the Indoor Playhouses, 1625–42: Boy Players, Leading Men and the Caroline Ensemble." The Yearbook of English Studies, vol. 44, 2014, pp. 51–68. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.5699/yearenglstud.44.2014.0051. Accessed 18 June 2021. RANKIN, MARK. "Henry VIII, Shakespeare, and the Jacobean Royal Court." Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900, vol. 51, no. 2, 2011, pp. 349–366. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/23028079. Accessed 24 May 2021. Streitberger, W. R. "Chambers on the Revels Office and Elizabethan Theater History." Shakespeare Quarterly, vol. 59, no. 2, 2008, pp. 185–209. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40210263. Accessed 23 May 2021. "The Royal Household and Its Revels." Music in Elizabethan Court Politics, by Katherine Butler, NED - New edition ed., Boydell & Brewer, Woodbridge, Suffolk; Rochester, NY, 2015, pp. 76–104. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.7722/j.ctt7zst07.10. Accessed 23 May 2021. Vanhoutte, Jacqueline. "Introduction" & "3: Remembering Old Boys in Twelfth Night". Age in Love: Shakespeare and the Elizabethan Court, University of Nebraska Press, 2019, pp. 1–32 & 121-158.
undefined
Jul 7, 2021 • 32min

Twelfth Night: Stuff to Chew On

In this episode, we will go over the major themes of Twelfth Night and touch on topics we will cover in depth in future episodes as well as any fun facts. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was using the stage name "Korey Leigh Smith". Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Follow us on Instagram at @shakespeareanyonepod for updates or visit our website at shakespeareanyone.com Works Referenced: "Introduction." Twelfth Night, edited by Keir Elam, The Arden Shakespeare, 2008, pp. 1–26. Third. SparkNotes Editors. "SparkNotes: Twelfth Night." SparkNotes.com, SparkNotes LLC, 2005. Accessed 14 May. 2021 from https://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/twelfthnight/.
undefined
Jun 23, 2021 • 51min

Twelfth Night: Synopsis

It's time to dive into our second play! To cleanse our palates of the murder and mayhem of Macbeth, we are switching to one of Shakespeare's comedies: Twelfth Night! As with Macbeth, we are starting off with a summary of the action in the play--just in case it has been a while since you've read the play or if you are unfamiliar with it. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was "Korey Leigh Smith". Episode written by Elyse Sharp and Kourtney Smith. Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Works referenced: Shakespeare, William, and Keir Elam. Twelfth Night: or What You Will. Bloomsbury Arden Shakespeare, 2017.
undefined
Jun 9, 2021 • 1h 22min

Macbeth: Wrap Up

We can hardly believe it, but here it is: our final episode in our Macbeth series (for now)! Before moving on to our next play, we wanted to cover how Macbeth has been adapted for stage and screen and how the myth of the hero turned tyrant continues to shape our world narratives. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was using the stage name "Korey Leigh Smith". Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Additional sound effects from https://www.zapsplat.com Follow us on Instagram at @shakespeareanyonepod for updates or visit our website at shakespeareanyone.com Works referenced: Barnes, Todd Landon. "George W. Bush's 'Three Shakespeares': 'Macbeth, Macbush', and the Theater of War." Shakespeare Bulletin, vol. 26, no. 3, 2008, pp. 1–29. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26347734. Accessed 28 Mar. 2021. Bickley, Pamela and Jennifer Stevens. "Macbeth." Studying Shakespeare Adaptation: from Restoration Theatre to YouTube, by Pamela Bickley and Jennifer Stevens, The Arden Shakespeare, 2021, pp. 165–183 Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Theatre of the Absurd". Encyclopedia Britannica, 12 May. 2020, https://www.britannica.com/art/Theatre-of-the-Absurd. Accessed 27 March 2021. Brown, Eric C. "Shakespeare, Class, and 'Scotland, PA.'" Literature/Film Quarterly, vol. 34, no. 2, 2006, pp. 147–153. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/43797270. Accessed 28 Mar. 2021. Cain, Bill. Equivocation. Dramatists Play Service, Inc., 2014. HOPKINS, D. J. Theatre Journal, vol. 64, no. 2, 2012, pp. 269–271., www.jstor.org/stable/41679587. Accessed 28 Mar. 2021. Jarry, Alfred, et al. "Ubu Roi." The Wadsworth Anthology of Drama, by William B. Worthen, Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2011, pp. 714–731. Kevin Wetmore. Ecumenica, vol. 3, no. 1, 2010, pp. 65–67. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/ecumenica.3.1.0065. Accessed 28 Mar. 2021. Koehler, Robert. "Makibefo." Variety, Variety, 18 Feb. 2003, variety.com/2003/film/reviews/makibefo-1200543361/. Menon, Sita. "Watch Maqbool. It Is Class!" Rediff, Rediff.com, 30 Jan. 2004, in.rediff.com/movies/2004/jan/30maqbool.htm. Piepenbring, Dan. "An Inglorious Slop-Pail of a Play." The Paris Review, The Paris Review, 9 Sept. 2015, www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/09/08/an-inglorious-slop-pail-of-a-play/. Prince, Stephen. "Throne of Blood: Shakespeare Transposed." The Criterion Collection, The Criterion Collection, 6 Jan. 2014, www.criterion.com/current/posts/270-throne-of-blood-shakespeare-transposed. Rooks, Amanda Kane. "Macbeth's Wicked Women: Sexualized Evil in Geoffrey Wright's 'Macbeth.'" Literature/Film Quarterly, vol. 37, no. 2, 2009, pp. 151–160. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/43797714. Accessed 26 Mar. 2021. Smith, Alfred Edgar. We Work Again. Performance by Maurice Ellis, and Charles Collins, U.S. Works Progress Administration, 1937. National Film Preservation Foundation, www.filmpreservation.org/preserved-films/screening-room/voodoo-macbeth#. Film notes by Scott Simmon Stevens, Jennifer, and Pamela Bickley. "Macbeth." Studying Shakespeare Adaptation: from Restoration Theatre to YouTube, by Pamela Bickley and Jennifer Stevens, The Arden Shakespeare, 2021, pp. 165–183. Taylor, Jane, et al. "Ubu and The Truth Commission." The Wadsworth Anthology of Drama, by William B. Worthen, Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2011, pp. 1710–1724.
undefined
May 26, 2021 • 21min

Mini-Episode: Holinshed's Chronicles

Ever wonder where Shakespeare got his inspiration or ideas for plays? In this episode, we explore the history behind one of Shakespeare's major sources for many of his plays: Holinshed's Chronicles. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was "Korey Leigh Smith". Episode written and researched by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Our theme music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Works Referenced: Clegg, Cyndia Susan. "Which Holinshed? Holinshed's 'Chronicles' at the Huntington Library." Huntington Library Quarterly, vol. 55, no. 4, 1992, pp. 559–577. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/3817633. Accessed 20 Feb. 2021. "Holinshed's Chronicles, 1577." The British Library, The British Library, 23 Nov. 2015, www.bl.uk/collection-items/holinsheds-chronicles-1577#. Kewes, Paulina, et al. The Holinshed Project, Oxford University, 2013, www.cems.ox.ac.uk/holinshed/. Marchant, Katrina. Dr Kat and Holinshed's Chronicles. Reading the Past with Dr. Kat: Dr. Kat and Holinshed's Chronicles, YouTube, 13 Sept. 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzK4Y2EEYUM. PASUPATHI, VIMALA C, et al. "Shakespeare & Holinshed's Chronicles." DHSHX, University of Southern California, 14 Jan. 2017, scalar.usc.edu/works/dhshx/holinsheds-chronicles. Zaller, Robert. "King, Commons, and Commonweal in Holinshed's Chronicles." Albion: A Quarterly Journal Concerned with British Studies, vol. 34, no. 3, 2002, pp. 371–390. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/4054738. Accessed 20 Feb. 2021.
undefined
May 12, 2021 • 52min

Macbeth: King James's Play

Remember when we said that we'd cover all of the different parts of Macbeth that were influenced by King James being on the throne or written *just* for him? In this episode, we finally get around to talking about all of that! Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was "Korey Leigh Smith". Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Works referenced: Calhoun, Howell V. "JAMES I AND THE WITCH SCENES IN 'MACBETH.'" The Shakespeare Association Bulletin, vol. 17, no. 4, 1942, pp. 184–189. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/23675195. Accessed 4 Mar. 2021. Mathew, David. "James I". Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Mar. 2021, https://www.britannica.com/biography/James-I-king-of-England-and-Scotland. Accessed 1 Mar. 2021. Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. Arden Shakespeare, 2015. "The Book of Books: The King James Bible." A Little History of Literature, by JOHN SUTHERLAND, Yale University Press, 2013, pp. 47–53. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt5vkwh2.10. Accessed 4 Mar. 2021. "The Smell of Gunpowder: Macbeth and the Palimpsests of Olfaction." Untimely Matter in the Time of Shakespeare, by Jonathan Gil Harris, University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, 2009, pp. 119–140. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt3fj17b.10. Accessed 25 Jan. 2021. Turrell, James F. "The Ritual of Royal Healing in Early Modern England: Scrofula, Liturgy, and Politics." Anglican and Episcopal History, vol. 68, no. 1, 1999, pp. 3–36. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/42611999. Accessed 2 Mar. 2021. Williams, George Walton. "'Macbeth': King James's Play." South Atlantic Review, vol. 47, no. 2, 1982, pp. 12–21. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/3199207. Accessed 4 Mar. 2021.
undefined
Apr 28, 2021 • 21min

Mini-Episode: The Four Humours

Today we have a new mini-episode for you! In these mini-episodes, we'll be exploring topics that are related to Shakespeare but aren't necessarily connected to whatever play we've been discussing. And they're mini, because well, they're shorter than our other episodes. They're like quartos if the regular episodes are folio editions. In today's episode, we are exploring the Four Humours, which were a widely held theory in medicine during Shakespeare's time and which are referenced throughout his works! Shakespeare Anyone? is created, written, produced, and hosted by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp. Note: When this episode was recorded, Kourtney Smith was "Korey Leigh Smith". Episode written and researched by Kourtney Smith with contributions by Elyse Sharp. Our theme music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander. Works referenced: Cummings, M. J. (2018). The Four Humors in Shakespeare's Works. Accessed 5 Jan. 2021, from http://shakespearestudyguide.com/Four%20Humours%20in%20Shakespeare.html#:~:text=Examples%20of%20characters%20who%20exhibit,blood)%20in%20Much%20Ado%20About DRAPER, JOHN W. "HUMORAL THERAPY IN SHAKESPEARE'S PLAYS." Bulletin of the History of Medicine, vol. 35, no. 4, 1961, pp. 317–325. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/44449750. Accessed 10 Jan. 2021. Elliott, R. (2020, February 06). Bloodletting and the treatment of menstrual disorders. Accessed 13 Jan. 2021, from https://hekint.org/2020/02/06/bloodletting-and-the-treatment-of-menstrual-disorders-in-early-modern-england/ Galen: Selected Papers, by Jacques Jouanna and Neil Allies, Brill, LEIDEN; BOSTON, 2012, pp. 335–360. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w76vxr.21. Accessed 29 Dec. 2020. Kern Paster, Dr. Gail. "William Shakespeare and the Four Humors: Elizabethan Medical Beliefs by Dr. Gail Kern Paster." National Library of Medicine exhibit, "And there's the humor of it, Shakespeare and the Four Humors". William Shakespeare and the Four Humors: Elizabethan Medical Beliefs, 14 Jan. 2021, Pittsburgh, Accessed on October 2, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKt4pDZDefQ Marschall, Whythes. "Ancient & Medieval Medicine: Crash Course History of Science #9." Produced and edited by Nicholas Jenkins and Nicole Sweeney, Hosted by Hank Green, YouTube, Crash Course, 4 June 2018, Accessed 5 Jan. 2021, from www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGiZXQVGpbY Paul, Richard. Shakespeare Unlimited Podcast, performance by Neva Grant, et al., episode 55, Folger Shakespeare Library, 23 Aug. 2016. Accessed 13 Jan. 2021. "The Four Humours." In Our Time: Science, performance by Melvyn Bragg, et al., season 10, episode 13, BBC 4 Radio, 20 Dec. 2007. Accessed 13 January 2021. "Understanding the Female Body: MISOGYNY AND SYMPATHY." A Medieval Woman's Companion: Women's Lives in the European Middle Ages, by Susan Signe Morrison, Oxbow Books, Oxford; Philadelphia, 2016, pp. 88–95. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvh1dnb3.15. Accessed 2 Jan. 2021. Van der Eijk, Philip, editor. "THE LEGACY OF THE HIPPOCRATIC TREATISE THE NATURE OF MAN: THE THEORY OF THE FOUR HUMOURS." Greek Medicine from Hippocrates to Galen: Selected Papers, by Jacques Jouanna and Neil Allies, Brill, LEIDEN; BOSTON, 2012, pp. 335–360. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctt1w76vxr.21. Accessed 24 Jan. 2021.

The AI-powered Podcast Player

Save insights by tapping your headphones, chat with episodes, discover the best highlights - and more!
App store bannerPlay store banner
Get the app