Module description
This module focuses on Shakespeare in contemporary performance and pays special attention to “place” as a critical lens through which recent productions are studied in detail.
Why is “place” important, as the terms “local” and “global” in the title of this module imply? Reflecting on “where” a specific production was staged, as well as by what type of company, in what type of venue, and for what type of audience, sheds light on who “owns” Shakespeare in contemporary performance, that is on who has the funding and the institutional support to re-present Shakespeare on stage and who has access to it.
The answers to these questions gain further significance, when considered alongside a selection of recent theorists interested in cultural production in our increasingly globalized, postmodern world. These theorists, who themselves write from a range of different places – Continental Europe, Asia, Africa and the U.S. – complicate our sense of “place”, at a time when producers and consumers of theatrical artefacts are connected through digital communication, social media, and international travel. These theorists, along with the theatre directors studied on this module, invite us to consider whether and when terms such as ‘colonial’ and ‘postcolonial’, ‘national’ and ‘international’ are still helpful to appreciate the theatrical and ideological complexity of productions that increasingly stem from thoroughly “networked” theatrical cultures and traditions.
Weekly screenings give students an opportunity to watch all the productions studied on this module. Two or three of the theatre directors, actors and producers, whose work is covered by this module, are invited to join our seminar discussions every year; the exact number of invited speakers depends of course on availability, but guest speakers are a constant and popular feature of this module.
Assessment details
Coursework
1 x 4,000 word essay
Teaching pattern
One two-hour weekly seminar and viewing