Beyond Shakespeare

Surprise! We're having a party, and you're invited! Entertaining Henry will be a pop up festival of drama from the reign of Henry the Eighth - a three day pop up festival, performing six complete plays, and a number of over excerpts from the period. More info on our website here! A co-production with The Quay Theatre and Beyond Shakespeare... Let us take you through a whistle-stop tour of the ente...

This week we have a discussion of the play Dick of Devonshire by... well, you shall hear. This is a chat with Kate Ellis, who has produced a Revels edition of the play, the first critical edition of this manuscript text. It is available to purchase now from Manchester University Press , though it's still a tad pricey. CW: We do discuss the sexual violence within the play, from about half way throu...

It's time for a rather chunky section of a damaged play. We have the end of this play, known as Good Order, or Old Christmas. Printed by William Rastell in 1533, it covers the conclusion of a play about how an excess of good cheer over Christmas can be a bad thing. Hint, hint. Yes, you. PUT THE MINCED PIE DOWN! In Old Christmas or Good Order by the Unknown Old Christmas - Aliki Chapple Good Order...

It's here at last, recorded live at The White Bear Theatre during our Winter Revels 2023 on Wednesday 13th December 2023, it's The Tragedy of Cleopatra by Samuel Daniel.  Content warnings are below the cast list. Pamela Flanagan - Cleopatra Simon Nader - Caesar   Lynsey Beauchamp - Proculeius Keith Hill - Arius Alexandra Kataigida - Philostratus Valentina Vinci - Dolabella Kit McGuire - Seleucus K...

The History of the Damnable Life and Deserved Death of Doctor John Faustus , is the book that is the source for Christopher Marlowe's play. Chapter by chapter we will wander through the twists and turns of this story. Performed by Robert Crighton Chapter Sixteen: Another question put forth by Doctor Faustus to his Spirit Mephostophiles of his own estate.   Our patrons also get an exploring session...

Welcome to archived live stream exploring session for Beware the Cat by William Baldwin . It was live streamed on Robert Crighton's private YouTube channel, but not officially added to the podcast, during the opening of the 2020 plague and, beyond a few minor tweaks, remains as streamed. It's a First Look, so it's rough as such things are, and obviously we've come a long way since then. This final...

We have a special walk and talk discussing episode, recorded around St Edmund Hall in Oxford, with Professor Henrike Lähnemann, Fellow of St Edmund Hall and Professor of Medieval German Literature and Linguistics, as our guide to The Oxford Medieval Mystery Cycle. Join host Robert Crighton, with Liza Graham, as we were given a walking tour around the route of the event, coming up on Saturday 26th...

Surprise pod drop! Yes, we're embedded in a production of Lady Rachel Fane's Household Masque, performing this Saturday (8th March 2025) at Boston Manor House. We're helping archive the rehearsal process and the performance, and hope to do a more detailed BTS episode further down the line. This is a quick pop up episode, recorded during the first day of rehearsals on Wednesday 5th March 2025, feat...

Welcome to archived live stream exploring session for Beware the Cat by William Baldwin . It was live streamed on Robert Crighton's private YouTube channel, but not officially added to the podcast, during the opening of the 2020 plague and, beyond a few minor tweaks, remains as streamed. It's a First Look, so it's rough as such things are, and obviously we've come a long way since then. This fourt...

This week we have a chat with Allison and Mark Pajor of AMP Theatre Company, who recently produced a version of Mucedorus. Coming soon, a production of Galatea by John Lyly! Find out more about them and their work at https://www.amptheatrecompany.org/ Our patrons received this episode a month in advance. The Beyond Shakespeare Podcast is supported by its patrons – become a patron and you get to ch...

The History of the Damnable Life and Deserved Death of Doctor John Faustus , is the book that is the source for Christopher Marlowe's play. Chapter by chapter we will wander through the twists and turns of this story. Performed by Robert Crighton Chapter Fifteen: How Doctor Faustus desired again of his Spirit, to know the secrets and pains of hell: and whether those damned devils and their company...

Welcome to archived live stream exploring session for Beware the Cat by William Baldwin . It was live streamed on Robert Crighton's private YouTube channel, but not officially added to the podcast, during the opening of the 2020 plague and, beyond a few minor tweaks, remains as streamed. It's a First Look, so it's rough as such things are, and obviously we've come a long way since then. This third...

This is the second of our !Spoilers! episodes on Cleopatra by Samuel Daniel. A walk through of the action of the play, mixed with an initial edit of our recording of the play made at the White Bear during our Revels season on Wednesday 13th December 2023. Featuring the voices of... Pamela Flanagan - Cleopatra Lynsey Beauchamp - Proculeius Karim Kronfli - Rodon Alex Kapila - Messenger Kit McGuire -...

Welcome to archived live stream exploring session for Beware the Cat by William Baldwin . It was live streamed on Robert Crighton's private YouTube channel, but not officially added to the podcast, during the opening of the 2020 plague and, beyond a few minor tweaks, remains as streamed. It's a First Look, so it's rough as such things are, and obviously we've come a long way since then. This secon...

This is a special discussing episode, recorded live as a zoom event last year. Travelling Players in Early Modern England: Civic Spaces and Provincial Performance was an online event on the upcoming exhibition at the Guildhall of Stratford-upon-Avon Featuring Dr William David Green and host Robert Crighton In celebration of an upcoming exhibition at the Guildhall of Stratford-upon-Avon, we discuss...

The History of the Damnable Life and Deserved Death of Doctor John Faustus , is the book that is the source for Christopher Marlowe's play. Chapter by chapter we will wander through the twists and turns of this story. Performed by Robert Crighton Chapter Fourteen: Another disputation betwixt Doctor Faustus and his Spirit, of the power of the Devil, and his envy to mankind.   Our patrons also get a...

Welcome to archived live stream exploring session for Beware the Cat by William Baldwin . It was live streamed on Robert Crighton's private YouTube channel, but not officially added to the podcast, during the opening of the 2020 plague and, beyond a few minor tweaks, remains as streamed. It's a First Look, so it's rough as such things are, and obviously we've come a long way since then. This first...

This is the first of our !Spoilers! episodes on Cleopatra by Samuel Daniel. A walk through of the action of the play, mixed with an initial edit of our recording of the play made at the White Bear during our Revels season on Wednesday 13th December 2023. Featuring the voices of... Pamela Flanagan - Cleopatra Lynsey Beauchamp - Proculeius Keith Hill - Arius Kit McGuire - Seleucus Alexandra Kataigid...

Welcome to this new strand, a return to a promised thing for our patrons - occasional scenes and speeches from plays, voted for by those you support our work. This is a scene from Hymen’s Triumph by Samuel Daniel, recorded live at our Revels season on Wednesday 13th December 2023. It’s a two hander of love – with the love lorn Thirsis, prompted by Palaemon to speak of his troubles. With Keith Hill...

It's my little round up of 2024, all that we've achieved, and what we plan for next year - including the winning play, and the general winners, from our BIG Vote. Recorded at our exploring sessions Christmas Party - I am a tad breathless, doing it all at pace. Helpful links - All the released exploring sessions this year (doesn't include all the episodes we recorded this year and mentioned in the...

The History of the Damnable Life and Deserved Death of Doctor John Faustus , is the book that is the source for Christopher Marlowe's play. Chapter by chapter we will wander through the twists and turns of this story. Performed by Robert Crighton Chapter Thirteen: Another question put forth by Doctor Faustus to his spirit concerning his Lord Lucifer, with the sorrow that Faustus fell afterwards in...

It's our post show discussion following our Revels production of The Old Wives' Tale by George Peele, featuring Dr Annaliese Connolly chatting with Robert Crighton. The full cast audio dropped last week, with more Revels action to follow soon. Also featuring Sarah Blake as Venus in The Arraignment of Paris by George Peele - recorded earlier in the same event. The Old Wives' Tale was directed by Li...

Recorded Live at the White Bear Theatre, we present our full cast audio adaptation of George Peele's The Old Wives' Tale. Recorded on Saturday 16th December 2023. A !Spoilers! episode, breaking down the text is already on the feed, and a post show discussion about Peele will follow soon. Meanwhile, out there in the woods, there is a bear... The Company... Lynsey Beauchamp – Madge Kit McGuire - Ant...

It's very merry episode of Fragments - The Lincoln Crying Christmas Ceremony 1564 It’s December 1564, the place Lincoln – and as today where there’s a little ceremony to switch on the Christmas lights, or open a Christmas Fair, lo the Common Council of Lincoln had a similar event to mark the beginning of Christmas The Crying Christmas text is mostly extant, with just a few edges lost in places - w...

It's Epic Epilogue time - with a fly by of the closing moments to The Tamer Tamed by John Fletcher. The epilogue is performed (a few times) by Fiona Thraille - a British voice actor, narrator and audio producer who has worked in voiceover, podcasts, and who has narrated and produced over a dozen audiobooks through Audible. She is the founder and producer of Dashing Onions Audio - an audio drama po...