The module aims at offering a discussion of late twentieth-century British theatre with special attention to some Shakespearean rewrites.
British Shakespearean rewrites in the late twentieth century: from the absurdist to the epic theatre.
The module will deal with some rewrites of Shakespeare’s tragedies (Hamlet, Macbeth and King Lear) by Tom Stoppard and Edward Bond. These plays will be set against the British theatrical experimentation of the 60s and 70s, and will be examined in relation with contemporary absurdist and epic issues concerning meta-theatricality and meta-communicativeness.
The module will be set up into lectures (24h = 4CFU) and a seminar (24h = 4CFU) intended to further the discussion of the syllabus and to apply to textual analysis the critical tools presented during the classes. Non-attending students are required to follow the primary text and reference lists recommended to attending students and to complement it with the supplementary reference list.
LANGUAGE: the module will be held in English.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Primary Texts:
Students are free to choose any English edition:
• William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear
• Tom Stoppard, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (1966), Dogg’s Hamlet, Cahoot’s Macbeth (1979), Fifteen-Minute Hamlet (1979)
• Edward Bond, Lear (1971)
• During classes students will be provided with a handout with the following texts:
References:
• K.E. Kelly (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Tom Stoppard, Cambridge, Cambridge U.P., 2001: Paul Delaney, “Exit Tomaš Straussler, enter Tom Stoppard”, pp. 25-37; Ira B. Nadel, “Stoppard and Film”, pp. 84-103; John Bull, “Tom Stoppard and politics”, pp. 136-153; Jill L. Levenson, “Stoppard’s Shakespeare: textual re-vision”, pp. 154-170; Enoch Brater, “Tom Stoppard’s Brit/lit/crit”, pp. 203-212; Michael Vanden Heuvel, “‘Is postmodernity?’ Stoppard among/against the postmoderns”, pp. 213-228;
• G. Restivo, La nuova scena inglese: Edward Bond, Torino, Einaudi, 1977, pp. 5-20, 52-81, 101-111
Supplementary references for non-attending students
Non-attending students are required to read in full the two critical texts indicated in the References section above: K.E. Kelly (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Tom Stoppard, Cambridge, Cambridge U.P., 2001; G. Restivo, La nuova scena inglese: Edward Bond, Torino, Einaudi, 1977
Please be advised
Further details on required readings and general information on bibliographical material will be provided during classes.
The exam will consist in an oral discussion in English of the module’s topics
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