Sheldrake on Shakespeare

James Sheldrake
  • 4.8 (13)
  • BOOKS

James Sheldrake, jack of all literary trades, attempts to say something valuable about each of Shakespeare's plays in handy 15-minute instalments.

  1. 05/24/2024

    Hamlet – Rhetoric

    In an unprecedented second episode on a play, Sheldrake examines the linguistic DNA of Hamlet and finds three rhetorical techniques that perform what Shakespeare is also doing with the big ideas in this play: Hendiadys, Metonymy and Synecdoche. Podcasting on Shakespeare is a profound pleasure but, if you would like to buy me a coffee, […]

  2. 05/10/2024

    Richard III – Queen Margaret

    In an episode dedicated to a great Shakespearean, Mr John Branston, Sheldrake drifts slightly from the one-play-one-idea tagline to focus on one character in this play: Queen Margaret. After her long march through the Henry VI plays, how does she wrest some control of the audience’s perspective from Richard and, in the end, does it […]

  3. 04/26/2024

    Special: Interview with RADA ex-Head of Voice Robert Price

    Few people in the world will have spent as many hours working on the delivery and performance of Shakespeare as Robert Price. After a career as an actor, he was the Senior Voice Tutor at RADA 2007-15 and a voice tutor at LAMDA for many years. He therefore has huge experience with and a rare […]

  4. 05/30/2023

    Hamlet – Is anything original?

    In the first of two episodes on this mightiest of plays, Sheldrake compares the plot of Shakespeare’s Hamlet with its sources, uncovering a tremendous amount of ‘literary upcycling’ but also a profound and imaginative tribute to the power of theatre at the play’s core. First preview of Sheldrake on Shakespeare: Live! THIS FRIDAY 2nd June, […]

  5. 04/23/2023

    A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Why so popular?

    In his return to the airwaves, Sheldrake considers the extraordinary popularity of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and concludes that it is the dark matter in the middle of this festive comedy sandwich that makes the play such a satisfying experience overall. iTunes Amazon Sheldrake on Shakespeare Live! London previews: Etcetera Theatre 2nd June Rosemary Branch […]

  6. 02/24/2019

    Henry V – The Play, The Myth, The Legend

    Henry V: one of the most patriotic characters and plays in all of literature, surely? Not so, says Sheldrake. Henry V and his world are thoroughly morally ambiguous. Also available on iTunes: http://tinyurl.com/ndhzfxm

  7. 07/13/2015

    Henry IV Part 2 – Learning to Play

    How did people learn to act in the Renaissance? Did the texts themselves co-operate in teaching newish actors how to do certain things? Sheldrake thinks so.

  8. 06/15/2015

    Henry IV, Part 1 – History and Personality

    What to say about Henry IV Part 1? In the first of three main episodes, each of which will tackle one play in this Henriad, Sheldrake explores a play about history and personality, focussing on Prince Henry and his rival for glory Harry Hotspur. Also available on iTunes: http://tinyurl.com/ndhzfxm

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Ratings & Reviews

4.8
out of 5
13 Ratings

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James Sheldrake, jack of all literary trades, attempts to say something valuable about each of Shakespeare's plays in handy 15-minute instalments.

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