| Kommentar |
More than 400 years have passed since Shakespeare died, and his plays are still being read, performed, and adapted for various artistic purposes all over the world. Is Shakespeare, "the bard", our contemporary? How do we relate to his plays today? We enjoy and sometimes still grapple with Shakespeare's dramatic – historical – language, yet we quote his lines in all kinds of contexts – from everyday conversations to advertisements. We read Shakespeare's plays in the context of specific early modern historical situations. At the same time, we find that his plays dramatize "the human condition".
In this course, we are going to read two of Shakespeare's plays: A Midsummer Night’s Dream and a second play – depending on what Berlin's theatres will have to offer. We will read the plays very carefully with an eye to their dramatic language, the constellations of their characters, and the dynamics of their conflicts, and also with regard to Elizabethan theatrical practices. We will also perform selected scenes ourselves as team-works in class. In a second step, we will watch contemporary cinematic adaptations and (filmed) theatrical performances of these plays. Furthermore, we will go to one of Berlin's theatres and see a performance on stage. So by the end of our course, we will have made Shakespeare our contemporary.
Please get your own copies of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by the beginning of term. The second play will be decided on in one of our first sessions. For Shakespeare's plays, I do recommend the Arden or the Oxford Shakespeare edition. |
