Teaching Shakespeare’s Plays through Scholarship & Performance:
An NEH Summer Institute for School Teachers | Brooklyn, NY | July 11-22, 2022.
Through the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Theatre for a New Audience hosts K-12 teachers from across the country for Teaching Shakespeare’s Plays through Scholarship and Performance.
Designed primarily for middle and high school teachers (grades 6-12), but open to educators of all grade levels, the Institute will introduce a carefully integrated approach to exploring text-based scholarship, contextual and original source material, language, and performance. Under the guidance of leading Shakespeare scholars and theatre practitioners, participants will investigate the theme of the 2022 Institute, “Body Politics: Authority, Sex, and Resistance in Shakespeare’s Plays,” through three Shakespeare plays: Much Ado About Nothing, Measure for Measure, and Othello.
Today, the study of Shakespeare remains at the heart of scholarly investigation, public performance, and literary study in middle schools and high schools, colleges and universities. Teaching Shakespeare’s Plays through Scholarship and Performance offers a holistic approach to deepening teachers’ familiarity with primary source material and historical context, enriching their understanding of both textual analysis and performance (and the relationship between the two), and enhancing their ability to identify and teach common themes across a range of Shakespeare’s plays (as well as other texts).
The two-week Institute allows time for an in-depth analysis of three plays; careful examination of primary and secondary source material; extended interaction with faculty and guest speakers/artists; familiarization with multiple methods of interpretation and practice; exploration of different points of view; and time for assignments, discussion, group dialogue, and break-out sessions on classroom application. By focusing on both textual analysis and performance, the Institute will give teachers multiple entry points to illuminate meaning for themselves and for their students, regardless of age level or prior familiarity with Shakespeare.
ESSENTIAL INFORMATION
Dates: |
July 11-22, 2022* |
Location: |
Polonsky Shakespeare Center, Brooklyn, NY |
Sponsor: |
Theatre for a New Audience |
Application Deadline: |
Monday, March 1, 2022 (by 11:59 PM PST) |
Notification Deadline: |
Friday, March 25, 2022 |
Deadline to Accept/Decline: |
Friday, April 8, 2022 |
Eligibility: |
The Institute is designed for middle and high school teachers (grades 6-12) but open to K-5 educators as well. Educators working in all subject areas are encouraged to apply. Visit our “How to Apply” page for more details. |
*Depending on public health guidelines related to COVID-19, plans for a residential offering are subject to change. |

A copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio, which participants get to view and handle on the Columbia University Rare Book & Manuscript Library tour.
Polonsky Shakespeare Center, home of the NEH Summer Institute
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