As we wrap up 2023, we are taking a look back at the plays we covered this year by re-reading them and discussing how our readings of the plays has changed after doing our research for our episodes. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone Works referenced: Shakespeare, William, and Harold F. Brooks. A Midsummer Night's Dream. Bloomsbury, 1979. Shakespeare, William, and Jonathan Bate. Titus Andronicus: Revised Edition. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 2018.  

Each year, in recognition of the National Day of Mourning/Thanksgiving holiday in the United States, we examine how British colonialism is irrevocably intertwined with Shakespeare. This year, we are taking a look at how Shakespeare's works have been used to critique the legacy of colonialism. We will look at how adaptations of Shakespeare's work from Martinique, Barbados, Cuba, and Kenya have utilized Shakespeare's stories and characters to represent and unpack the effects of colonialism. We also discuss a 2011 Palestinian production of A Midsummer Night's Dream that intentionally worked to create post-colonial version of Dream. Because of current events at the time we are releasing this podcast, we also encourage our listeners to learn more about colonialism as it relates to Palestine and have included additional resources below.  Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone Works referenced: Al-Saber, Samer. “Beyond Colonial Tropes: Two Productions of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in Palestine.” Critical Survey, vol. 28, no. 3, 2016, pp. 27–46. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26384116. Accessed 21 Nov. 2023.   Singh, Jyotsna G. Shakespeare and Postcolonial Theory, The Arden Shakespeare, Bloomsbury Publishing, London, 2020. Additional resources on Palestine:  Non-fiction Books: The Question of Palestine by Edward Said The Hundreds’ Year War On Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917–2017 by Rashid Khalidi The General’s Son: the Journey of an Israeli in Palestine by Miko Peled Palestine, Israel and the U.S. Empire by Richard Becker The Revolution of 1936-1939 in Palestine: Background, Details, Analysis by Ghassan Kanafani Documentaries: The Empire Files Presents: Gaza Fights for Freedom The Empire Files Presents: The Untold History of Palestine & Israel Al-Jazeera’s Ten Films to Watch About the History of the Israel-Palestine Conflict  Journalists: Motaz Azaiza @motaz_azaiza Plestia Alaqad @byplestia Rania Khalek @raniakhalek Wizard Bisan @wizard_bisan1 Photographers: Hamdan Dahdouh @hamdaneldahdouh Hamza Wael @hamza_w_dahdooh Mohamed Al Masri @mohamed.h.masri Ali Jadallah @alijadallah66 Video Creator: Ahmed Hijazi @ahmedhijazee Documenting Palestine @documentingpalestine Podcasts: The Palestinian Pod Citations Needed Podcast Episode 28: The Asymptotic ‘Two State Solution’ (Part 1) and Episode 29: The Asymptotic ‘Two State Solution’ (Part 2) Writer: Jenan Matari @jenanmatari Organizations: Palestinian Youth Movement Jewish Voice for Peace Answer Coalition Breaking the Silence: Israel @breakingthesilenceisrael  Aid: Anera: helps refugees and vulnerable communities in Palestine, Lebanon, and Jordan @aneraorg  

We are finishing up our series on Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus by discussing two prominent adaptations and how they match up to what we've studied in our episodes.  First, we will take a look at Julie Taymor's 1999 epic surrealist film adaptation, Titus, starring Antony Hopkins and Jessica Lange. Then, we compare it to the 2017 Royal Shakespeare Company production directed by Matthew Woodward. Join us as we explore these two very different productions of Shakespeare's bloody and brutal play! Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast by becoming a patron at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone  or by shopping our bookshelves at bookshop.org/shop/shakespeareanyonepod Works referenced: Taymor, Julie, director. Titus. Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2000. "Titus Andronicus." , directed by Matthew Woodward, and William Shakespeare. , produced by Griselda Yorke. , Royal Shakespeare Company, 2017. Alexander Street, https://search.alexanderstreet.com/view/work/bibliographic_entity%7Cvideo_work%7C3999879. 

This year, 2023, is the 400th anniversary of the death of Shakespeare's wife, Anne Hathaway. Have you ever stopped to ask how much you actually know about Anne? In today's episode, we will travel back through time to explore how Anne has been depicted in Shakespeare biographies and works of imaginative fiction since her death. We explore how her inclusion (or exclusion) from Shakespeare's narrative has changed and investigate what these depictions can tell us about society's perceptions of Shakespeare. Finally, we will also dive into the historical record and share the facts of Anne Hathaway's life. And yes, we will talk about that second best bed line in William Shakespeare's will.  Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone Works referenced: AKA Group Limited, LLC, and Juliet Broadway LLC. “& Juliet: Official Broadway Website.” & Juliet | Official Broadway Website – Official Tickets for the New Broadway Musical & Juliet., Juliet Broadway LLC, 2022, andjulietbroadway.com/. Gunderson, Lauren. The Book of Will. Dramatists Play Service Inc., 2018. O’Farrell, Maggie. Hamnet. Alfred A. Knopf, 2020. Scheil, Katherine West. Imagining Shakespeare’s Wife: The Afterlife of Anne Hathaway. Cambridge University Press, 2018.

In today's episode we are joined by Carson Brakke to discuss how early modern concepts and anxieties about hospitality and cannibalism influenced early modern literature and drama, most explicitly in Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus.  Carson breaks down the early modern concept of hospitality and shares the cultural debates and dilemmas that centered around it and its inherent dangers. Join us as she guides us through the cognitive dissonance surrounding cannibalism for early modern Europeans, who simultaneously used it to other non-Europeans while possibly participating in cannibalism themselves!  We also explore how readers and theatre-makers today can use this knowledge to interpret scenes of hospitality and cannibalism in Shakespeare and other early modern works. Content warning: cannibalism is discussed throughout this episode. Please listen with care.  Our guest: Carson Brakke is a PhD candidate at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, and is writing her dissertation on representations of hospitality in early modern English literature. In addition to hospitality, her research interests include domesticity, food studies, and women’s writing. To break up the solitary work of dissertating, Carson uses her TikTok platform to talk about early modern literature and the PhD experience. You can find her @glutenbergbible, where she’s always looking to chat with more people about research, academia, and the weird and surprising sides of early modern English literature! Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone Works referenced: Brakke, Carson. “The Dangers of Hospitality in Shakespeare: The Hostess in The Rape of Lucrece and The Winter’s Tale.” Journal of the Wooden O, vol. 21, 3 June 2022, pp. 1–12, https://omeka.li.suu.edu/ojs/index.php/woodeno/article/view/265. Shahani, Gitanjali G. Tasting Difference: Food Race and Cultural Encounters in Early Modern Literature. Cornell University Press, 2021.      

Explore the transformational tales of Ovid's Metamorphoses and their influence on Shakespeare's works. Discover the parallels between Ovidian stories and Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Learn about the impact of Ovid's tales on Shakespeare and other early modern writers. Uncover how Ovid's Metamorphoses challenged gender norms in early modern England and influenced Shakespeare's plays. Discover the use of Ovid's stories in Titus Andronicus and their relevance to issues of sexual violence.

In today's episode, we are joined by the brilliant Dr. Mia Escott to embark on a journey through the complex intersections of race, Shakespeare, and the early modern era. Dr. Escott provides crucial context to help us understand how people of the early modern era were socially categorized based on nationality, religion, and social status. It's a crucial foundation for dissecting Shakespeare's approach to race. Aaron, the enigmatic character from Titus Andronicus, takes center stage. Dr. Escott walks us through the complexities of this character, a Moor in a world where stereotypes and villainy are often intertwined. We explore key moments and lines that shed light on Aaron's character and the racial dynamics at play. We also discuss Blackness and race within Shakespeare's broader canon, as Dr. Escott sheds light on how Shakespeare both humanized and socially othered his Black characters. Woven throughout our discussion are Dr. Escott's insights into how the worlds of academia and theatre can better approach race and discussions of race, especially when it comes to Shakespeare.  Dr. Mia Escott  is an Assistant Professor of English, Rhetoric, and Writing at Berry College. She joined the faculty in 2022 after receiving her doctoral degree in English from Louisiana State University. An Alabama native, she has graduated from Auburn University and the University of Montevallo. Her research and teaching interests include early modern British Literature, Renaissance Drama, Shakespeare, Critical Race Theory, and Women’s and Gender Studies. Dr. Escott is the 2022 recipient of LSU’s HSS Diversity Committee— Excellence in Teaching Graduate Student Award, which highlights her commitment to making academia an inclusive and equitable learning space. Most recently she has been a guest speaker at various Berry College events, sharing her love for English and Shakespeare. If you are not a Berry student then luckily you can find Dr. Escott on TikTok as @dr.shakesfeare, where she is making The Bard more accessible and comprehensible, in a humorous way. Recommended Reading (may contain affiliate links):  White People in Shakespeare: Essays on Race, Culture and the Elite by Arthur L Litttle Jr.  The Great White Bard by Dr. Farah Karim-Cooper Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone

In today's episode, we're peeling back the layers of a genre that not only fascinated audiences of the Early Modern period but also left an enduring mark on the works of the Shakespeare himself: Revenge Tragedies. Join us as we journey through time to an era of dramatic tension, dark desires, and vengeful spirits. Revenge tragedies, a genre that flourished in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, paved the way for some of Shakespeare's most iconic plays. In this episode, Kourtney and Elyse will shed light on the defining features, influential playwrights, and societal factors that contributed to the allure of these gripping tales of retribution. Delve with us into a world of poisoned chalices, secret plots, and enigmatic ghosts as we dissect the very essence of a classic revenge tragedy. We'll explore the groundbreaking works of playwrights like Thomas Kyd, whose play The Spanish Tragedy not only set the stage for the genre's popularity but also influenced Shakespeare's own exploration of vengeance on the stage. Step into the shoes of Elizabethan and Jacobean theatergoers, and discover why themes of political intrigue, power struggles, and personal vendettas struck a chord during those tumultuous times. We'll discuss the psychological complexities of characters seeking revenge, as well as the societal undercurrents that resonated with audiences then and continue to captivate audiences today. Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone Works referenced: Findlay, Alison. “Re-Marking Revenge in Early Modern Drama.” Revenge and Gender in Classical, Medieval, and Renaissance Literature, edited by Lesel Dawson and Fiona McHardy, Edinburgh University Press, 2018, pp. 58–82. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctv7h0vqp.7. Accessed 26 Aug. 2023. “The Maid’s Revenge.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 20 Aug. 2023, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Maid%27s_Revenge. “The Maid’s Tragedy.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 21 Aug. 2023, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Maid%27s_Tragedy. Preedy, Chloe Kathleen. “‘Women’s Weapons’: Education and Female Revenge on the Early Modern Stage.” Revenge and Gender in Classical, Medieval, and Renaissance Literature, edited by Lesel Dawson and Fiona McHardy, Edinburgh University Press, 2018, pp. 181–200. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctv7h0vqp.14. Accessed 26 Aug. 2023. “Seneca His Ten Tragedies, 1581.” British Library Collection Items, British Library, 2023, www.bl.uk/collection-items/seneca-his-ten-tragedies-1581. “The Spanish Tragedy.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 24 Mar. 2023, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spanish_Tragedy. Tassi, Marguerite A. “The Avenging Daughter in King Lear.” Revenge and Gender in Classical, Medieval, and Renaissance Literature, edited by Lesel Dawson and Fiona McHardy, Edinburgh University Press, 2018, pp. 111–21. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctv7h0vqp.10. Accessed 26 Aug. 2023. “’tis Pity She’s a Whore.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 30 May 2023, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%27Tis_Pity_She%27s_a_Whore. Willis, Deborah. “‘The Gnawing Vulture’: Revenge, Trauma Theory, and ‘Titus Andronicus.’” Shakespeare Quarterly, vol. 53, no. 1, 2002, pp. 21–52. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3844038. Accessed 26 Aug. 2023.

Introducing Play On! Podcasts: Love's Labour's Lost! Play On Podcasts are epic audio adventures that reimagine Shakespeare’s timeless tales, featuring original music composition and the voices of award-winning actors. Each episode explores plays from Macbeth to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, in a way that you can actually understand it and created specifically for the podcast form by some of America’s most exciting playwrights, directors and composers, and performed by stage and screen’s best. Check out the first episode from their latest series: Love's Labour's Lost! The King of Navarre gathers together with his best friends (Longaville, Dumaine and Berowne) in the library at Howard University where he gets them to agree that they will devote themselves entirely to their studies without dating or indulging in food, drink or sleep for three full years. Berowne protests and reminds the King that the Princess of France is going to arrive soon to plead a case on behalf of her ailing father. The King promises to handle the situation and Berowne agrees to stick with his vow despite his reservations. They decide they’ll amuse themselves during their downtime by laughing at the antics of Don Adriano de Armado, a visiting scholar from Spain who is hilariously full of himself. Almost as soon as the King’s proclamation is issued, Sir Anthony Dull delivers a letter from Armado accusing Costard, a groundskeeper at Howard, of having an affair with Jaquenetta, a young lady who lives nearby. The King punishes Costard with a week of fasting on bread and water. Meanwhile, Armado confesses privately to his young friend and confidante, a Custodial Assistant named Moth, that he is painfully in love with Jaquenetta and vows to win her affections. The Play On Podcast series, “LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST”, was written by WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE and translated into modern English verse by JOSH WILDER. Each episode was directed by NELSON T. EUSEBIO the THIRD. The cast is as follows: RUSSELL G. JONES as THE KING OF NAVARRE and THE FORESTER MATTHEW ELIJAH WEBB as BEROWNE ASHLEY BRYANT as THE PRINCESS and JAQUENETTA TIFFANY RACHELLE STEWART as ROSALINE TONYA PINKINS as MARIA, HOLOFERNES, and HIEMS SHAWN RANDALL as COSTARD and DUMAINE BRANDON JONES as DON ADRIANO DE ARMADO and LONGAVILLE WALTER COPPAGE as MOTH, BOYET, DULL and MARCADE SARITA COVINGTON as LADY NATHANIEL and KATHARINE Casting by THE TELSEY OFFICE: KARYN CASL, CSA, and ADA KARAMANYAN. Voice and Text Coach: JULIE FOH Episode scripts were adapted and produced by CATHERINE EATON Original Music and Sound Design by LINDSAY JONES.  Sound engineering by SADAHARU YAGI.  Mix Engineer and Dialogue Editor: LARRY WALSH.  Podcast Mastering by GREG CORTEZ at New Monkey Studio.  Coordinating Producer: TRANSCEND STREAMING (KYRA BOWIE and LEANNA KEYES). Executive Producer: MICHAEL GOODFRIEND. The Managing Director of Business Operations and Partnerships at Next Chapter Podcasts is SALLYCADE HOLMES. The Play On Podcast Series “THE TEMPEST” is produced by NEXT CHAPTER PODCASTS and is made possible by the generous support of THE HITZ FOUNDATION. Visit ncpodcasts.com for more about the Play On Podcast Series. Visit playonshakespeare.org for more about Play On Shakespeare. Hear more about the Play On Shakespeare Podcast series by subscribing to Play On Premium at ncpodcasts.com, where you’ll find interviews with the artists, producers and engineers who brought it all to life. And remember: “We are such stuff as Dreams are made on”. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's episode, we will be discussing the portrayal of women in Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus and how it reflects the evolving concept of girlhood in Early Modern England as well as popular conceptions of one specific woman involved in early modern European politics: Catherine de Medici.  Step into the past and uncover how linguistic developments in the early modern era point to an evolving understading of womanhood and how these developments appear in Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus.  Discover the enigmatic Catherine de Medici's profound influence on Shakespeare's iconic tragedy. Unveil the parallels between her powerful legacy and the depecition of Tamora, offering fresh perspectives on the play's timeless themes. Join us for a captivating episode that delves into history, literature, and their echoes in our world today on "Shakespeare Anyone!" Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and 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 You can support the podcast at patreon.com/shakespeareanyone Works referenced: Carney, Jo Eldridge. "“I’ll Find a Day to Massacre Them All”: Tamora in Titus Andronicus and Catherine de Médicis." Comparative Drama, vol. 48 no. 4, 2014, p. 415-435. Project MUSE, doi:10.1353/cdr.2014.0034. Higginbotham, Jennifer. “‘A Wentche, a Gyrle, a Damsell’: Defining Early Modern Girlhood.” The Girlhood of Shakespeare’s Sisters: Gender, Transgression, Adolescence, Edinburgh University Press, 2013, pp. 20–61. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctt20q22dc.6. Accessed 1 Aug. 2023.