On Sunday, we, the Dolphin’s Back, and a room-full of participants were lucky enough to see the history of the Blackfriars and the First Playhouse brought to life on the very spot on which it once stood. Thanks to the Society of Apothecaries, London, we were able to stage the leases, drama, court quarrels, and … Continue reading The First Blackfriars: A Workshop Reflection
Month: February 2018
Authorship studies: where have we got to, and where are we going?
We've been talking about authorship and the way we study it so much on this blog that I've taken a moment to think aloud about where we've got to as a discipline. This post is unusually scholar-facing for me, both in the sense that it's about scholarship and it’s aimed at my colleagues, and it … Continue reading Authorship studies: where have we got to, and where are we going?
‘I do fear the people’: theatre and the problem with audiences
I had the enormous privilege of seeing Julius Caesar last night at London's newest theatre. It's one of the greatest Shakespeare productions I've ever seen: visceral, violently physical, exuberantly political but also jewelled with exquisite details. A few newspaper reviews have said that because the show is loud and frenetic it is therefore not terribly subtle. They … Continue reading ‘I do fear the people’: theatre and the problem with audiences
Did Oxford write Shakespeare?
One of the best-known disputes in popular conversation around Shakespeare is the question of who wrote his work. After all, someone must have written it, so it stands to reason that we need to find out who that someone was, and buy them congratulatory cake. One of the foremost candidates for the authorship of Shakespeare's … Continue reading Did Oxford write Shakespeare?
“Fly me to the moon!”
Edward's Boys' Director, Perry Mills, introduces their latest production, in collaboration with Before Shakespeare, John Lyly's The Woman in the Moon. To read about Edward's Boys in rehearsal at our conference in August 2017, read Perry's companion piece on our site. Now that Autumn and even Winter have been and gone – although Back-Winter appears to … Continue reading “Fly me to the moon!”
In the Company of Edward’s Boys: Nashe’s Summer’s Last Will and Testament
We are delighted to present a guest post from Perry Mills, the director of Edward's Boys (a theatre group from King Edward VI school, Stratford-upon-Avon, where he is also Deputy Head). Edward's Boys are soon to be performing The Woman in the Moon on several dates across the country. Perry has also blogged on our site … Continue reading In the Company of Edward’s Boys: Nashe’s Summer’s Last Will and Testament
Performing words #4: gender
This post is part of a series on theatrical words. For an introduction to the series, see Performing words: introduction to a new thread on theatre and language. A short post from me today, but I hope an engaging and topical one as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the right to vote for some women … Continue reading Performing words #4: gender
Performing words #3: thus and thus
This post is part of a series on theatrical words. For an introduction to the series, see Performing words: introduction to a new thread on theatre and language. This particular post makes available Andy Kesson's paper for Miranda Fay Thomas and Evelyn Tribble's Shakespeare Association of America seminar on gesture. Andy would like to thank his seminar … Continue reading Performing words #3: thus and thus
Before Shakespeare 