Shakespeare on the Global Stage: Performance and Festivity in the Olympic Year

Description

Long held as Britain's 'national poet', Shakespeare's role in the 2012 London Cultural Olympiad confirmed his status as a global icon in the modern world. From his prominent positioning in the Olympic and Paralympic ceremonies, to his major presence in the cultural programme surrounding the Games, including the Royal Shakespeare Company's World Shakespeare Festival and the Globe's Globe to Globe Festival, Shakespeare played a major role in the way the UK presented itself to its citizens and to the world. This collection explores the cultural forces at play in the construction, use and reception of Shakespeare during the 2012 Olympic Moment, considering what his presence says about culture, politics and identity in twenty-first century British and global life.

Paul Prescott is Reader in English at the University of Warwick, UK. Erin Sullivan is Lecturer and Fellow at The Shakespeare Institute, University of Birmingham, UK.

Shakespeare on the Global Stage is a timely and insightful collection... it raises crucial questions that will be central to any future attempt to bring Shakespeare, and the arts more generally, to wider audiences nationwide. * Sonia Massai, Professor of Shakespeare Studies, King's College London, UK * This is a compelling and thought-provoking volume ... [which] will reach a broad readership. * Around the Globe *