THEA 202 Shakespeare's Scripts

Looking at a small number of Shakespeare's scripts from the vantages of actor director and playwright we examine the unique and complex relationship between Shakespeare's literary constructions and their possible performances. We analyze how through language and structure he develops characters of psychological complexity; how he develops stories from extra-theatrical material; and how in style and subject matter his scripts relate to one another. This course offers students a bridge between literary study and theatrical enactment: looking closely at Shakespeare's designs from the perspective of the theater practitioner-from in most ways Shakespeare's own perspective.