Episode 137:

The dating of the play

Printing in the First Folio

The sources for the play and the nature of the text

A brief synopsis of the play

The major themes of the play

How the status and youth of Valentine and Proteus helps to understand their actions in the play

The role of Speed and how the play features the embryo of Shakespearean wordplay

The role and values of Lance, and Crab the dog, as a comparison to Proteus

Some well-regarded verse from the play

Different readings of the theme of love

The problematic rape and forgiveness scene

The play as a courtly romance

The play as a parody of past cultural norms

Is the text more corrupt than is generally thought?

How our understanding of male relationships at the time might affect our view of the play

The performance history of the play

Support the podcast at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 136:

Having given you my own thoughts on ‘Titus Andronicus’ last time I’m pleased to say that for this special guest episode I was able to take the discussion even further with Eleanor Conlon, a fellow podcaster and a theatre professional as you will hear Eleanor has a lot to say about the play and insights that, in some cases, go in different directions from what I was able to say about the play.

Eleanor Conlon is an actor, director, and award-winning writer based in Sussex.

After completing her BA in English Literature at Goldsmiths, University of London, Eleanor earned her MA in Shakespeare and Early Modern Drama at Kings College and Shakespeare’s Globe. While at The Globe, Eleanor worked dramaturgically on productions by Dominic Dromgoole Matthew Dunster and Jeremy Herrin, and with Jenny Tiramani on the Original Practices Costume Archive.

After achieving success with her theatre company The Barefoot Players in the late 2000s and early 2010s, with which she produced plays including Tis Pity She’s a Whore, Doctor Faustus and The Alchemist, the latter two of which she also directed, as well as productions of several of Shakespeare’s works, plays by Ibsen, Oscar Wilde, and others, she founded her current and much acclaimed theatre company Rust & Stardust.

Writing over a dozen plays rooted in English folklore, Eleanor has worked with her puppet-maker partner Katie Sommers to tour Rust & Stardust’s shows all over the UK, including their plays The Wild Man of Orford, Black Shuck, The Marsh Demons of Iken, and Doctor Dee’s Daughter and the Philosopher’s with celebrated recorder quartet Palisander.

In addition to recent adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays including The Tempest and Macbeth with Trinity Theatre in Tunbridge Wells, in 2023 she launched the Three Ravens Podcast with her partner Martin Vaux – also a writer and actor – which explores history, legends, and diverse aspects of folk culture.

Featuring original stories each week based on the lore of England’s 39 historic counties, Three Ravens quickly rose into the Top 1% of podcasts globally. It currently sits in the Top 50 UK Fiction Podcasts, with 4.9/5 star ratings on iTunes, Apple Podcasts and Spotify and a passionate fanbase across social media.

For Three Ravens contact:

Website: https://www.threeravenspodcast.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/threeravenspodcast/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/threeravenspodcast

X: @threeravenspod

For Rust + Stardust Theatre

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eleanorstardust/

Website: https://www.rustandstardust.co.uk

Support the podcast at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 128:

Author John Taplin discusses researching the Stratford families of Shakespeare's time and particularly the ancestry of John Hall, Shakespeare's son-in-law.

John Taplin spent the majority of his career in management in the telecommunications industry until 2001 when he joined the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust at Hall’s Croft and Nash’s House/New Place in Stratford-upon-Avon, until retiring in 2010. A historian, genealogist and biographer, he has published articles on Shakespeare, his contemporaries and associates in and around Stratford, including the families directly associated with New Place.

Shakespeare’s Stratford home, before and after Shakespeare’s lifetime. In 2011 he published his book Shakespeare’s Country Families - A Documentary Guide to Shakespeare’s Country Society. He was a member of the Advisory Board for the Trust’s Dig for Shakespeare project at New Place between 2010-2015, and in 2018 he published a revised and updated edition of his 2011book. He has a Masters degree in historical studies from the University of Leicester.

Links to John's ebook:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Twenty-first-Century-Shakespeare-Gleanings-Taplin-ebook/dp/B0CC633JY2/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.UlnFY8UInwIYfhuJf0AiXmtXTQSRHcN9Ativ9cOIX_PGjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.4xAoLuO1JQQ2o0LumK9U_Hjq703MON6NOQVolv2BSr4&dib_tag=se&qid=1721225584&refinements=p_27%3AJohn+Taplin&s=digital-text&sr=1-1&text=John+Taplin

Support the podcast at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

www.patreon.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 63

In a coda to season 3 somewhere in England an acting troupe travels through a cold December at the tale end of the Medieval period, in search of an audience. A fictional account using the facts and assumptions discussed in the Medieval Theatre season of the podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this bonus episode we get an introduction the the diary of Philip Henslowe, theatre owner and businessman during the end of the Tudor period and beginning of the Stuart period. Elements from the diary will feature on upcoming episodes for podcast supporters on Patreon.

To support the podcast go to: www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A bonus episode featuring Salome by Oscar Wilde. In summer 2021 I was fortunate to see the Lazarus Theatre production at the Southwark Playhouse in London. In this episode I give a brief version of the Oscar Wilde story, look at Salome in more detail and think about what the Lazarus Theatre revival brings to this lesser known play.

To see more about the work of Lazarus Theatre: www.lazarustheatrecompany.co.uk

For some of the pictures and cartoons mentioned in the podcast: www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com/blog

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 62

With the Reformation came the final end of the great Religious plays of the medieval period. The episode sumarises the great trends of medieval theatre and charts the final end as Europe descended into religious disagreement.

A reminder of the journey from the religious trope, thorough the folk festivals, the cycle plays, the saints play, the morality play and the interlude.

The end of Medieval Theatre as brought about by the Reformation and political and sociological changes.

Some final thoughts on the legacy of Medieval Theatre.

To support the podcast:

www.thehisotryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

www.patereon.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 61

Once the medieval theatre had moved out of the confines of the church and away from religious obligation a form of commercial theatre began, but how was money spent and income generated and was it profitable?

The rise of commercial theatre through the Interlude and the Travelling Players

Play expenses and income

The rising costs of the Cycle Plays and other entertainments

The actors contract

The production of 'Mystery Des Trois Doms' and what it tells us about collaboration

The relationship between the concerns of the Church, the State, and the Guilds

The player in the service of a Lord.

To support the Podcast:

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 60

Religious theatre dominated the Medieval period, but there are some examples of works written just for fun and entertainment.

How celebrations like The Feast of Fools, The Boy Bishop and The Feast of Asses developed into secular theatre.

The rise and influence of the travelling players and the church reaction to some of their work.

The French travelling players Rutebeuf and Adam De La Hale.

French Medieval comedy

The establishment of performers guilds and the role of the player in service of a king or lord.

A rare example of political satire in Medieval France.

The Interlude and the work of Henry Medwell and John Hayward

To support the podcast:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoept

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 59

Everyman is the most well known of all the Morality plays and probably an English adaptation of a Dutch original.

Different types of Morality Plays

The Morality play in Europe and how they differed from the English offering

A synopsys and analysis of Everyman

The Dance Macabre and the role of Death

To support the podcast:

www.thehistorofeuropenatheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 58

The Castle of Perseverance is a great example of how difficult it can be to discuss the form of a play separately from the content and in this case we have an illustration that shows how the play might have been presented

A summary of the plot of the play

Details from the manuscript about dating the play

The illustration contained in the manuscript reviewed in detail

The problems with the way the audience might have been positioned and the play presented

The role of the 'Stytlery'

The ditch and how it might have been used.

To see the illustration discussed in this episode go to the website

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

To support the podcast go to:

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 57

The Morality play is a type of play that for all its similarities and shared heritage with the Corpus Christi cycle plays brought something new to the world of drama and had a profound effect on the future development of theatre.

How the Morality Plays are different from Cycle Plays

The Development of the ideas around the seven vices and virtues and how they developed into personified characters

The development of education in the Middle Ages and the influence on monastic preaching

The presentation of Morality plays and the move away from the church feast day

Examples of the different sort of Morality plays that we have mention of in the records

The five extant Morality Plays

The developing commercial nature of theatre including the travelling troupe of players and the booth stage

For more details on Rosslyn Chapel see:

https://thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com/blog/

https://www.rosslynchapel.com

Support the podcast at:

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 56

The history of the Harrowing of Hell and the way it was portrayed in the cycle plays, including some thoughts on how it would have been staged and how the play comes alive when the demons and devils take to the stage.

The play of Noah and the Great Flood must have provided the medieval set designers with some real challenges. Some thoughts on how that might have been done and a look at some of the detail around the story of Mrs Noah, doves, ravens and Rainbows.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 127:

A recap of Henry VI part one and the potential involvement of Christopher Marlowe

A word on methods of authorship attribution in the context of Shakespeare and Marlowe

The dating and sources of the play

A synopsis of Henry VI part two

The characterisation of the War of the Roses

The decline of England mapped out in the play

The main characters in the play

The weakness of the king as portrayed in the play

The powerplay between Gloucester, York and Margaret

Margaret as a central character in the play

The use of language to define different characters

The contrast between Henry and Margaret

The Jack Cade rebellion and the utopia of a classless society

Gloucester and the view of justice-based government

How the world depicted in the play might have been viewed by the first audiences

The historical accuracy of the play

The arrival of Richard, future king, on stage

The performance history of the play

Support the podcast at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

www.patreon.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 55

The Second Shepherds play is considered the best of the medieval cycle plays. In this episode I take a look at not only the second shepherds play, but the first play as well, which is often overlooked.

Why are there two shepherd's plays in this cycle?

The plot and characters in the first play

The plot and charaters in the second play

The similarities and differences between the plays

What the plays say about the social conditions of the time

The Wakefield Master, author go the plays

Support the podcast here:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 54

In this episode we look at the way the cycle plays developed in the four major centres from where we have complete versions of the cycle: York, Chester, Coventry and Wakefield.

The development of the York Plays

Further details on the guilds and how they functioned in society

The development of the Chester plays

The development of the Coventry Cycle

The development of the Wakefield cycle

The N-Town cycle Manuscript

The Wakefield cycle plays

The literary merits of the plays

For the list of plays and associated guilds from York see: www.thehistoryofeuropeantheare.com/blog

Support the podcast here:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 53

Stage sets, costuming and special effects became quite sophisticated in the cycle plays during the sixteenth century. This episode looks at the examples of stage sets that we have from Valenciennes. You can see the drawing that is described in the podcast here:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com/gallery

A look at evidence for costuming the has survived

And then we take a look at the the different stager special effects used to impress the audience, especially the representations of Hell's Mouth, with associated demons, fires and pyrotechnics.

Support the podcast here:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 52

This episode looks at how the Corpus Christi plays were organised and staffed with actors, tradesmen and other organisers and supporters.

How rehearsals were organised and what was expected of actors, including details of the contrast they were expected to sign.

The different playing spaces that were used for the plays, including three main types, the round, the wagon, and the market place.

The role of 'The Ordinary' and other things we know about the way the plays were presented.

The rise and fall of the Saints Play

For the illustration of the martyrdom of St Appolonia see: https://thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com/gallery/

To support the podcast:

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 51

The instigation of the Corpus Christi feat day too theatre out of the church and into the town and village. This episode looks at the development of the celebration of the new feast day and how the new trades guilds and other organisations took over the production of biblical plays from the church.

An understanding of the theology behind the feast day is important to an understanding of how the plays developed, so this is outlined and the concepts of time and place within the plays is discussed.

Then it's on to more practical matters such as learning lines and the emergence of the producer, director and stage manager.

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 50

The Synod of Winchester issued direction on the performance of the Trope in 960 and the door was open for further developments on other feast days.

Then a look at other church festivals with dramatic elements. The Boy Bishop, The Day of Fools and the Festival of the Ass.

And in the late twelfth century the Trope starts to get too big for the likes of some in the church as stage directions get more complicated and props and scenery get put to use to represent individual places and characters.

You can support the podcast at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.patreon.com/thoetp

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 49

The story of how theatre found it's way into the church service on the most important days in the Christian calendar, Easter Sunday and Christmas Day. For a long time drama was a small elaboration to the massif the same way music, architecture and art were only included to amplify the message of the service and the word of God. Following a lot at their impact and use we get to the Trope, but it that really the beginnings of church drama? The Synod of Winchester in 970 might just have the answer.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 48

To open season three a summary of how theatre and dramatic activity survived despite the restrictions placed on it from the growing influence of the Christian Church.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 126:

A conversation with Dr. Darren Freebury-Jones, author of 'Shakespeare’s Borrowed Feathers' about the influence of early modern playwrights on Shakespeare where we talk about Marlowe, Kyd, Greene and others and the role of data analytics in modern author attribution studies.

Dr Darren Freebury-Jones is author of several works on early modern theatre including: 

Reading Robert Greene: Recovering Shakespeare’s Rival 

Shakespeare’s Tutor: The Influence of Thomas Kyd

and his latest work Shakespeare’s Borrowed Feathers, will be published in October 2024.

Darren is Associate Editor for the first critical edition of The Collected Works of Thomas Kyd since 1901. He has also investigated the boundaries of John Marston’s dramatic corpus as part of the Oxford Marston project and is General Editor for The Collected Plays of Robert Greene published by Edinburgh University Press.  His findings on the works of Shakespeare and his contemporaries have been discussed in national newspapers in the UK and on BBC Radio. His debut poetry collection, Rambling published by Broken Sleep Books, was published in 2024.  In 2023 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in recognition of his contributions to historical scholarship. 

Links to 'Shakespeare's Borrowed Feathers'

https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526177322/shakespeares-borrowed-feathers/

https://www.amazon.com/Shakespeares-borrowed-feathers-playwrights-greatest/dp/1526177323/ref=sr_1_1?crid=94S4BGF6FW1K&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.pfj-18kdWvHO-sbFvYC3sw.Bx51-kXl5CIuz42hJHAOTCZs4KerccNu9A8tK9wC0Tc&dib_tag=se&keywords=shakespeare%27s+borrowed+feathers&qid=1720274180&sprefix=shakespeares+borrowed+feathers%2Caps%2C163&sr=8-1

Link to Darren's on-line talk on Robert Greene 22nd July 2024 in aid of the Rose Playhouse

https://www.trybooking.com/uk/events/landing/63856?

Support the podcast at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

www.patreon.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation with Ricky Dukes, artistic director of Lazarus Theatre.

Find more about Lazarus Theatre at: https://www.lazarustheatre.com

or on Twitter @LazarusTheatre

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation with Tamsin Shasha, Actor, Ariel Performer and artistic director of The Actors of Dionysus.

Find out more about Tamsin's work here:

www.actorsofdionysus.com

Twitter: @aodtheatre

For the official website of the UN Climate Change Conference 2021:

www.ukcop26.org

and The Brighton Fringe

www.brightonfringe.org

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation about the earliest forms of theatre, the Greeks, Dionysus and more with performer and podcaster Rosie Beech. Rosie has a masters degree in Social Anthropology and applies the rigours of that subject to her knowledge of the earliest forms of theatre and the role of religion, women and much more in Greek Theatre.

Find Rosie's podcast as Yorick Radio Productions on all good podcast apps and on twitter @RadioYorick

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A special episode to make the First Birthday of the Podcast featuring five stories from the history of the London Theatre

Charles 2nd and Nell Gwyn

King George, the Prince of Wales, and the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane

The ghost of William Terriss

Noel Coward's West End Flop

The tradition of the Baddeley Cake

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A short episode to introduce the new website for the podcast and the Facebook Group.

Find us on the web at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

Find us as a Facebook Group as:

The History of European Theatre Podcast Group

Also at Patreon.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 47

To conclude the season on the theatre of Rome this episode imagines a resident of the city in 54BCE, recounting in a letter to a sick friend, a day spent travelling to the theatre of Pompey and the time spent there.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 46:

The second and concluding part of a summary of Roman Theatre presented as my personal top ten of the most influential, interesting and surprising aspects of Roman Theatre.

This episode goes from number 5 to number 1.

No spoilers as to the content of the episode here. You'll have

to listen to hear the countdown.

And then the story of the final demise of theatre in the Roman Empire

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 45

The first part of a summary of Roman Theatre presented as my personal top ten of the most influential, interesting and surprising aspects of Roman Theatre.

This episode goes from number 10 to number 6. The top 5 will follow next time.

No spoilers as to the content of the episode here. You'll have to listen to hear the countdown.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 44:

A detailed look at the Roman art of Pantomime which was the preeminent form of dramatic art during the Imperial period.

Dr Elodie Palliard's thoughts on why Pantomime dominated and how it was used by the Emperors.

The origins of Pantomime

The performers Pylades, Bathyllus and their relationship with Emperor Augustus

Pantomime as a non-verbal performance style

Description of Pantomime and the regiment for it's supremacy over other forms by Lucian

The banishment of performers and their reinstatement by Caligula

Caligula and pantomime

The morality of pantomime

2nd century description of pantomime by Apuleius.

Dr Paillard is Honorary Associate in the Department of Classics and Ancient History at the University of Sydney and lecturer and scientific collaborator in the Department of Ancient Civilizations at the University of Basel. She is currently leading a research project on Greek theatre in Roman Italy, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation. She is the author of 'The Stage and the City. Non-élite Characters in the Tragedies of Sophocles' (Paris 2017).

She is currently co-editing two forthcoming collective volumes, one on Greek Theatre and Metatheatre: Definitions, Problems & Limits and one on Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World.  In parallel to her interest in ancient Greek theatre, she is also working on the social structure of Classical Athens and the emergence of democracy.

You can connect with her on Twitter @elopai 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 125:

A detailed look at the first Shakespearean history play 'Henry 6th part 1'

The problems with dating 1 Henry VI

How much of the play did Shakespeare write?

The relationship of the play to parts 2 and 3

The sources of the play

A brief summary of the play

The play in relation to other history plays of the time

Criticism of the battle scenes

The theme of the loss of the English Empire and the end of chivalry

The portrayal of Joan and the French

The portrayal of the English aristocracy

Problems with the structure of the play

Support the podcast at:

www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com

www.ko-fi.com/thoetp

www.patreon.com/thoetp

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 43:

The history of Roman Mime, one for the two dramatic forms that dominated theatre in the Roman Imperial period.

A word on Horace and his work The Art Of Poetry, one of the most influential works of dramatic theory. His rules for the stage and where he did and didn’t agree with Aristotle

The differences between Mime and other dramatic forms

The origins of mime in Greece ad the Greek colonies in Italy

Mime in Rome and at the Ludi festivals

The limits of textual evidence for mime

Some descriptions of mime plays and titles

Moral issues with mime because of the content relating to adultery

Mime of political satire, including stories from Tiberius, Caligula, Nero and Vespasian.

Mime as part of religious festivals

Women performers in Mime

If you would like to support the podcast please find us at:

www.Patreon.com or www.ko-fi.com.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook @THOETP

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 42:

This episode takes a detailed look at Phaedra, Seneca's version of the Hippolytus myth.

The two versions by Euripides and how Seneca used these

A summary of the play

The differences in Seneca's version from Euripides -

The position of Phaedra as innocent or responsible

Greek shame Vs Roman guilt and repentance

Phaedra and the Roman bas step-mother trope

The play in relation to Stoic philosophy

The motif of the hunt, the hunter and the hunted

Presentations of the play in the medieval period

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 41

In this episode I take a detailed look at Seneca's version of Medea. The story of a woman who is a foreigner and a witch suited his form of dark tragedy perfectly.

A summary of the narrative of the play

The impact of the language used and how it becomes overblown.

An analysis of the final scene and why Seneca might have chosen to make this the only moment of visual drama in the play.

Questions about how and if the play was staged and the use of stage machinery

Medea as a witch and how that plays into Roman tropes

The character of Jason an his effect on the play

A comparison of the Euripides version to Seneca's

The legacy of Seneca's tragedy on the medieval period.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 40

The life and tines of Seneca - Philosopher, Playwright, Poet and Statesman who operated in the time of emperor Nero.

The origins of Roman Tragic drama and the little we know about it's exponents.

The life of Seneca from his birth in Spain and education in Rome.

Seneca's rise to political office. The accession Claudius and the rise of his wife Agrippina and her son Nero.

Court intrigues and an eight year exile in Corsica.

Rehabilitation and tutor to Nero.

Life under Nero and Seneca's fall from favour and death.

An overview of his nine plays

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 39

The Brothers, dated to 160 BCE, is Terence’s last surviving work.  We have that date exactly because the play is recorded as being presented at the games held to honour the Roman general Lucius Aemillus Paullus.  

The first presentation of the play and who was Lucius Aemillus Paullus?

The prologue to the play and Terence's defence of his use of Greek plays to create a new piece.

A synopsys of the play

The Brothers as a play of ideas and a discussion of it's main themes about the best way to raise sons.

The external influences in an expanding Roman Republic and how they influence the play.

The main characters Demea and Micio as more complex and developed characters than have been seen before.

The role of Sannio the slave dealer and other minor characters.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 38

A look at 'The Self Tormenter' by Terrence. Written in 162 or 163 BCE this is the story of disagreements between fathers and sons over the choice of women and how a clever slave almost wins the day.

A synopsis of the pay with some comments about the Prologue, the action of the play and the general style.

The way Terence changes the standard stock characters and makes them more rounded characters than anything we have seen before, including how the portrayal of the clever slave and the courtesan are more subtle than in previous plays.

Some of the issues with the play.

How Terence continued to use metatheatre and how he changed it.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 37

Terence had a short life and left only six complete comic plays, but he moved the genre on from Plautus and other earlier dramatists.

The story of his beginnings as a slave and how he came to Rome

The circles he moved in and how he got support from the Practician class and Caecilius Statius the best known comic dramatist of the day.

A short word on the history of Caecilius Statius and Ambitious Turpio, producer and actor.

Contemporary criticisms of Terence and his use of Greek comedies

A brief review of the six surviving plays.

The untimely death of Terence and his legacy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 36

The influence of Plautus and other Roman playwrights has long been understood, but what are those influences and how did the Roman plays come to the attention of Rennaisance playwrights?

How manuscripts survived after antiquity and were rediscovered in the early Renaissance.

The growth of secular drama in Italy and the role of Duke Ercole d'Este in Ferrara

Terence Vs Plautus as the Roman plays became known and appreciated in northern Europe.

How early English plays used the Roman models and how the growing education system in Elizabethan England used Latin plays.

The influence of Plautus on Shakespeare and similarities in settings, characters and plots.

Ben Johnson's debt to Plautus

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 35

The Menaechmus Brothers is taken from a Greek new comedy original and via this version by Plautus was used by later dramatists, most notably Shakespeare.

In the first half of this episode I summaries the plot that features identical twins and gets quite complicated and confusing for all concerned.

I then discuss the weaknesses in the play and it's more cynical outlook than seen in other plays by Plautus.

A look at he naming of stock characters and some thoughts on the problematic female characters is followed by a look at the influence of the Saturnalia festival on the play.

The theme of the identical twins is strong in the play and supported by other semantical elements in the structure and the Roman ideas of industria and voluptas.

If you would like to support the podcast please find us at:

www.Patreon.com or www.ko-fi.com.  

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook @THOETP

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 34

In this eisode we take a detailed look at Casina by Plautus. It's a tale of two men who try to use their slaves in a plot marry the young Casina by proxy.

It has a prologue of particular interest. The usual stock characters are there, but for once the women come out strongly as they take control of the situation and thwart the plans in comic style.

The play prompts a look at the role of the head of the household, the 'pater families' in Rome and as some suggestions that there is some social commentary on recent events concerning some recent behaviour of the Bacchic cult.

If you would like to support the podcast please find us at:

www.Patreon.com or www.ko-fi.com

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook @THOETP

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A conversation with Margaret Oakes about the book 'To Gender or Not to Gender: Casting and Characters for 21st Century Shakespeare’ which explores ways in which gender is being reinterpreted by British and North American productions since the turn of the millennium. After an initial chapter outlining recent gender theory, which is very useful to a newcomer to this as an academic study, like myself, the rest of the book uses examples of recent productions to illustrate different possibilities in cross gender casting, and the questions that this approach can lead to.  I found it to be an absolutely fascinating read, driven by Margaret’s enthusiasm for her subject, which you can also hear in our conversation.

Margaret J. Oakes is a Professor of English at Furman University, a liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina. She specializes in early modern British poetry and drama and detective fiction. She holds a B.A. in English and a J.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, an M.A. in English from Northwestern University, and a Ph.D. in English and Humanities from Stanford University. She has published on George Herbert, Francis Bacon, J.K. Rowling, Sara Paretsky, and Dorothy L Sayers.

https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/to-gender-or-not-to-gender/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gender-Not-Casting-Characters-Shakespeare-ebook/dp/B0D76WMZZK/ref=sr_1_1?crid=11CZZNA8QVXMS&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Fihl0uzGo8sTOhBH_I4U8wOKjYHyDayfQRaiJC8DtmU2ys8o2ElWldOC_VbzQCTL8m9pHSr8AoWvS-DvPKEK95JDT0OLndsd1tmX0761a0mRVME0k2kAiYP2gv6iazDe_eDgN3NATv9tYPQW2r5F3odhSC2oKCtn9O8jhT_SDIZm4-SSu4y_Rn_KxtwO4aRTW3gap_sqUj1T_nfvUY_3VQXB04ieAYtntSqU7UrZq9k.QIlJWmZhVaV9c6eAKS1TbJIl5tUJlRuDAD4RIRn2fpM&dib_tag=se&keywords=to+gender+or+not+to+gender&qid=1718710353&s=books&sprefix=to+gender+or+not+to+gender%2Cstripbooks%2C87&sr=1-1

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 33

The life and time of Plautus, the first Roman Playwright from whom we have surviving works. After a hard start he became the most popular of the Roman playwrights churning out comedy after comedy.

This episode looks at his life story and playwriting career.

Then there is a brief summary of his six most significant plays and a discussion of the role of the courtesan character in the plays, including how this reflects the reality of life for women and prostitutes in Roman society.

A note on the lack of political commentary in the plays leads on to a look at how the prologue was used and to conclude I look at the legacy of Plautus in the way his plays have been used as source material for many later adaptations.

To support the podcast please find us on:

www.patreon.com

www.ko-fi.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A little extra episode for Christmas week with best wishes to you all for the holiday season.

If you would like to support the podcast please find us at:

www.Patreon.com or www.ko-fi.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 32

An interview with theatre director Jimmy Walters about his 20217 production of Trackers of Oxyrhynchus by Tony Harrison. This version of the Satyr play 'Trackers' by Sophocles was originally performed by the National Theatre in 1988. Jimmy's revival in 2017 was at the Finborough Theatre in west London.

In conversation we discussed the approach to the play and the way the adaptation by Tony Harrison put current social concerns at the heart of the play, which still remained true to many aspects of the original Greek play.

Jimmy Walters' credits include productions of John Osborne's A Subject of Scandal and Concern, Julius Caesar, Improbable Fiction, A Naughty Night With Noël Coward, Hamlet (for a tour in the United Arab Emirates), I the Jury, Breaded Butler, and Dear Ray at the Edinburgh Festival. Recently he directed Billy Bishop Goes to War for Southwark playhouse and Jermyn Street Theatre and The Skin Game also for Jermyn Street Theatre, which due to the UK lockdown in 2020 was presented via Zoom.  

Jimmy co-hosts the '…In quarantine' podcast with Alexandra Evans.  Season 1 discussed several Shakespeare plays and season 2 is taking on the challenge of discussing novels by Charles Dickens.  

You can connect with Jimmy on Twitter @jimmywalters101 

Please support the podcast at

www.patreon.com

www.ko-fi.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.