Shakespeare's Shadows

Henry IV: Actor Harry Lennix and UCSB professor Jim Kearney delve into Henry IV’s fraught relationship with his son (the future King Henry V), his anxieties over creating a legitimate rule after forcefully taking the crown, and the prophecy that keeps him believing he’s destined to fight a holy war in Jerusalem. Lennix also discusses his film adaptation, “H4,” which places the text of “Henry IV Pa...

Twelfth Night’s Viola: The real reason for this Shakespeare heroine’s disguise as a young man, the nuances of a tricky love triangle, and Viola’s curious silence at the end of Act 5 are all discussed with this episode’s guests — actors Sara Bruner and Lisa Wolpe and University of Southern California professor Carla Della Gatta.

King Lear: This episode’s guests — actors Fran Kranz and John Slade and University of California, Irvine professor Julia Lupton — discuss Lear’s descent into madness, varying interpretations of a pivotal moment with his daughter Cordelia, and where there may be optimism within the arc of one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragic characters.