Shakespeare Unlimited podcast
William Shakespeare and his works are woven throughout our global culture, from theater, music, and films to new scholarship, education, amazing discoveries, and more. In our Shakespeare Unlimited podcast, Shakespeare opens a window into topics ranging from the American West, to the real history of Elizabethan street fighting, to interviews with Shakespearean stars. As you’ll hear, he turns up in surprising places, too—including outer space. Join us for a “no limits” tour of the connections between Shakespeare, his works, and our world.
Kathryn Harkup on Death by Shakespeare
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 144 It’s quite a list: Hanged. Prison fever. Stabbed. Stabbed. Poisoned. Beheaded. Beheaded. “Malady of France.” Cannonball. Burnt. Bitten. Eaten. Mauled. Shakespeare wrote about a lot of things, but he really wrote a lot about death. Chemist…
Shakespeare and Solace
Folger Director Michael Witmore and his predecessor, Director Emerita Gail Kern Paster, talk about the bits of Shakespeare that bring them comfort.
The Long Life of Shakespeare's Sonnets (18th century – today)
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 142 Today, we think of Shakespeare’s Sonnets as a triumph. We read them, puzzle over them, and recite them. We compare our significant others to summers’ days, beweep our outcast states, and never admit impediments to the…
Emma Smith on This Is Shakespeare
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 141 Is there a right way to interpret Shakespeare’s plays? No, says Emma Smith, and there’s a good reason for that. In her new book, This Is Shakespeare, she writes that Shakespeare’s plays are characterized by gaps—unknowable…
James Shapiro on Shakespeare in a Divided America
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 140 Even with our country feeling more divided than it has in 50 years, there are still things that tie us all together. Loving our families, cheering on a favorite team, and—according James Shapiro—Shakespeare. Shapiro is an…
Abraham Lincoln and Shakespeare
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 139 There are lots of stories about Abraham Lincoln and his passion for Shakespeare. Some are true, while others are made up out of whole cloth. We talk to scholar Michael Anderegg about Lincoln’s love of Shakespeare…
Shakespeare and Folktales
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 138 You probably know where Shakespeare got the ideas for his plays. His Histories come from Holinshed’s Chronicles. Caesar and other Roman plays depend on Plutarch’s Lives. The Comedy of Errors is based on Plautus’s Menaechmi. But what…
Books and Reading in Shakespeare's England
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 137 Do you have a book that means something special to you? 400 years ago, when printed books were a fairly new thing, they meant something to their owners too. But in many ways, what they meant…
The Early Years of Shakespeare's Sonnets (16th and 17th centuries)
Shakespeare Unlimited:Episode 136 Did Shakespeare intend to publish his sonnets? For whom were they written? What can they reveal about their author? We talk to Dr. Jane Kingsley-Smith about her newest book, The Afterlife of Shakespeare’s Sonnets, published by Cambridge…
The History of Shakespeare in American Schools
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 135 We’re willing to bet that at some point in school, you read at least of one Shakespeare’s plays. Did you ever wonder why that is? How did Shakespeare go from popular entertainment to classroom staple? Professor…
Peter Brook
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 134 Peter Brook passed away on July 2, 2022. We remember him with fondness and gratitude for his many contributions to the theater.In this episode, we spend 40 minutes with one of the world’s most influential directors.…
Kenny Leon on Much Ado About Nothing
Shakespeare Unlimited: Episode 133 Director Kenny Leon’s production of Much Ado About Nothing mesmerized audiences during the Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park last summer. Now, you can watch this exuberant, sassy, and political performance, starring Orange is the New Black’s…