Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere

A discussion with Actors from a London Stage

Moderated by Jeff Pufahl (Center for Arts in Medicine) and Sophia Acord (Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere)

Tuesday, October 9, 2018, 11:30am-1pm

Friends of Music Room, University Auditorium

William Shakespeare is generally seen as the foundation of Western literature and taught in ways that illuminate contemporary social issues such as despotism, social infighting, and questions of citizenship. But, there is also a growing educational movement that seeks to incorporate more diverse authors and texts into educational foundations; this movement argues that a focus on Shakespeare in the educational system obscures the work of other playwrights and authors from diverse traditions. Perhaps as a compromise, far from seeing the Bard’s work as static, contemporary dramatists are envisioning Shakespeare in a variety of ways: transforming traditionally male roles to female actors, updating settings to be contemporary or futuristic, and re-writing his scripts into contemporary dialects. How should we use Shakespeare today in our classrooms and communities? Please join us for an informal discussion with Actors from a London Stage, who are in residency at UF Performing Arts to perform Hamlet October 11-13.

Please bring your own brown-bag lunches. Dessert will be provided.

Free and open to UF students, faculty, and staff.

This event is sponsored by UF Performing Arts and the UF Imagining America Working Group.