Special Edition - SAA 2019 Debrief
In this episode we debrief on the highlights of our SAA experience. We talk about our favorite papers and presentations, our digital exhibition, all the famous and fabulously dressed scholars we met, and much more. We’re energized with new ideas and scholarship and ready to share it with you!
2 Henry VI 101
Have you wondered lately, “When will Whamlet get back to the thrilling saga of Henry VI?” Wonder no more, because this week we bring you 2 Henry VI 101, the much-anticipated sequel to 1 Henry VI where more people die and the Yorks and Lancasters still totally hate each other. The Rhetorical Device of the Week is prosopopoeia (aka personification); the Burbage Break is all about catch words in early modern printing practices; we (or rather, Richard of York) catch you up on the family tree; Aubrey plays a round of Line Roulette; we shout out some awesome fan mail; and (insert drumroll here) we announce THE WINNER of the #DickBracket. This episode is about as action-packed as Jack Cade’s rebellion and twice as entertaining. #yourewelcome
Trailer: What's All the Hurly Burly About?
Quick, dirty, comprehensive…It’s our brand!
Hi Friends!
Whether you’re new to the show or a long-time listener, we invite you to listen to the trailer we cooked up for our digital exhibition at this year’s Shakespeare Association of America annual conference in Washington, DC. We are soooooooo excited to be included in this amazing conference and cannot wait to meet everyone we’ve been following on Twitter.
Leave a comment below to let us know you stopped by our booth!
And check out our super-spiffy powerpoint we prepared for the exhibition!
Merchant of Venice 201
This week we return to The Merchant of Venice to talk about what a total dick Portia is and how you can use some clues from the text to enliven performance. We continue our How To Grad School segment with a little talk about conference etiquette, and give you the low-down on where you can find productions of Merchant near you in the coming year. Also, Jess’s foster cat Becky interrupts recording to squeak at us and it’s super important.
Links to the (very few) Merchant productions and adaptations coming your way in 2019:
Shakespeare at Winedale, Austin, Texas, June 20–23, 2019
Shakespeare Dallas, Dallas, Texas, Summer 2020
Royal Shakespeare Company, England, September 30–October 5, 2019
https://theatrbrycheiniog.ticketsolve.com/shows/873596893?locale=en-GB
Edward III 101
We can’t claim full Canon Completion without doing a 101 episode about the forgotten history play, Edward III. The Rhetorical Device of the Week is syllepsis; the Burbage Break is all about The Wiggins; we give you a quick run down of where Edward III is on the Plantagenet Family Tree; Jess tries (and maybe succeeds? You decide) to prove that Shakespeare definitely wrote at least part of this play (the wooing part, obvs); we play another round of F*ck, Marry, Kill; and there’s no new #DickBracket news to report because y’all are still voting on the final matchup. All that and super-not-sexy maritime pick-up lines, too!
Galatea 101
The incredible Joey Gamble joins us to talk about the Queerest of all early modern plays, Galatea! The Rhetorical Device of the Week is periphrasis; we Meet the Contemporary, the real OG, John Lyly; Joey slays a round of Line Roulette; we gossip a little bit about some awesome upcoming projects and conference plans; and we reveal the FINAL #DickBracket matchup! All that, and surprise lesbians, too!
Arden of Faversham 101
In this “tedious and brief” 101 episode, we break down everything you need to know about Arden of Faversham (and that most elusive of playwrights, Anonymous); the Rhetorical Device of the week is antanaclasis; we do an (anonymous) round of Meet the (Anonymous) Contemporary; we gush about the ASC production of Arden we just saw; we briefly rabbit-hole about Sublime and other ‘90s nostalgia; we play an epic round of F*ck, Marry, Kill; and finally, we deliver the results of one of the #DickBracket semi-final match ups. In case you’re wondering, everyone wants to f*ck Black Will and kill Shakebag. Obvs.
The Witch 101
This week we have super-special-witchy guest, Courtney Parker on to talk us through Thomas Middleton’s The Witch! The Rhetorical Device of the Week is hyperbaton (aka Yoda-speak); we bring back our Meet the Contemporary feature and tell you all about our buddy T-Mids; Courtney breaks down why this play is so awesome and yet so under-performed; Jess invents a new game; we gossip about a new program at this year’s SAA conference; and Tambourlaine advances to the next round in the #DickBracket (of course he did, that DICK). Which Witch is the titular Witch? You’ll have to listen to find out!
Hamlet 301
Things get a little emotional in this 301 episode because we kick off Women’s History Month with a tribute to Aubrey’s mom, Dorrie, who passed away two years ago. Back in 1999 she wrote a term paper for a theatre class about “the tortured Dane” and argued that, legally, Hamlet could be considered insane. Aubrey reads the paper and we try to contextualize it for 2019. Then Jess gossips about a production of ‘The Changeling’ she recently saw and we unpack the ethical (ir)responsibility of portraying sexual violence on stage. We also reveal the first match up of our Final Four in the #DickBracket competition. It’s a journey, y’all, and we hope you go on it with us.
2 Henry IV 101
In an unforeseen turn of events, we’re talking about Henry IV part 2 this week! The Rhetorical Device of the Week is assonance; the Burbage Break is all about the wealth of knowledge in the Short Title Catalogue; Jess and Aubrey go back and forth (yet again) about Falstaff; we play a few rounds of F*ck, Marry, Kill featuring characters from the play (and yes, one of us would *definitely* marry Falstaff and the other would kill him). We drop a little ShakesBubble Gossip and advance yet another contender in our #DickBracket. Find out who’s next up, and more, in this 101 episode!