As You Like It 201

In this 201 episode, week we go narrow and deep on a few topics related to As You Like It (like what 19th century romantic critics had to say about the play's main characters - except Orlando, for some reason - and the moment when the play's lovers, Rosalind and Orlando, transition between verse and prose and why it matters). We revisit - or rather, recollect - or, to thy better understanding, review! - the Rhetorical Device of #Epanorthosis. We also premiere a new feature of 201 episodes: How to Grad School in which we talk about the "hidden curriculum" of going to and being in grad school that you're expected to perform but no one will teach you till you're in it. This week's ShakesBubble Gossip is all about upcoming As You Like It productions* going on in the upcoming year, and our #DickBracket match ups get so intense they alliterate. #YoureWelcome

*List below:

1. Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival, Vancouver, B.C., to September 28, 2018

2. American Players Theatre, Spring Green, Wisconsin, to October 7, 2018

3. The Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company, Grand Haven, Michigan, October 18–November 18, 2018

4. American Shakespeare Center, Staunton, Virginia, to December 2, 2018

5. Boston University Shakespeare Society, Boston, Massachusetts, Fall 2018

6. Tennessee Shakespeare Company, Memphis, Tennessee, November 29–December 16, 2018

7. Southwest Shakespeare Company, Mesa, Arizona, February 15–March 7, 2019

8. Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis, Minnesota, February 9–March 17, 2019

9. Fauquier Community Theatre, Warrenton, Virginia, March 8–24, 2019

10. Harrisburg Shakespeare Company, Gamut Theatre Group, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, April 12–14, 2019

11. Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Montgomery, Alabama, April 11– 24, 2019

12. Brave Spirits, Alexandria, Virginia, April 4–28, 2019

13. Seattle Shakespeare Company, Seattle, Washington, April 23–May 19, 2019

1. Royal Shakespeare Company.Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, 14 February – 31 August 2019. Booking opens 22 October. www.rsc.org.uk

King John 101

This week we delve into the world of King John and the OG Plantagenets - the dysfunctional family that started it all! The Rhetorical Device of the Week is catachresis; the Burbage Break excoriates the so-called "authorship question" (#NOTaquestion); Aubrey fails at Shakespaere; and we reveal the new eliminations and match-ups in our on-going #DickBracket competition. All this and more in this week's episode!

Jew of Malta 101

This week we're talking about one of Christopher Marlowe's earliest hits, The Jew of Malta! When we introduce one of Shakespeare's contemporaries we forego the Burbage Break in favor of "Meet the Contemporary" and give you a little biographical and canonical information about the featured playwright. The Rhetorical Device of the Week is meiosis (yes, that's also a vocab word from your biology class); we summarize the story of Barrabas, the Jew of Malta, for you in less than five minutes; in our Tips and Tidbits we try to tackle some of the issues around staging such a blatantly anti-semitic play in our own time (spoiler: we don't have an answer); we invent a brand new game for your listening pleasure; and our #DickBracket match-ups this week are Barrabas vs. Leontes (Winter's Tale) and King Lear's Edmund vs. Don John from Much Ado. Tune in to hear who advanced from last week!

Here are the playhouse playboys and their luscious locks we mention on this week's episode (all images pulled from the National Portrait Gallery of London). Take a gander for yourself:

Q1 Hamlet 101

SURPRISE! We have a Super Special guest this week, Molly Seremet! Molly helps us unpack Q1 Hamlet (aka the shorter, better Hamlet) and why some still insist on calling it the "Bad Quarto." The Rhetorical Device of the week is hypallage; the Burbage Break is all about Q1's stage directions; Molly plays a round of Line Roulette and we discuss two more pairings in our Dick Bracket elimination. All that and SO. MUCH. MORE. Enjoy!

1 Henry VI 101

We're taking it aaaaaalllllllll the way back to the 15th century to the start of the War of the Roses with 1 Henry VI 101 (aka the play with Joan of Arc and the guys who pluck the roses). The Rhetorical Device of the Week is apostrophe; the Burbage Break is all about Holinshed's Chronicles; we review the Plantagenet family tree to refresh your memory before the summary and our tips and tidbits include a little bit of authorship studies and practical production concerns. Jess plays Line Roulette and we go toe to toe in our first round of #DickBracket eliminations: Tambourlaine the Great vs. Iago and Measure for Measure's Angelo vs. Volpone. 

Follow us on Twitter @HurlyBurlyShake or Instagram @HurlyBurlyShakes to cast your votes in the bracket eliminations!

Interested in learning more about the Holinshed? Go here.