Shakespeare and Democracy

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To Adapt or Not to Adapt: Shakespeare and Democracy with James S. Shapiro, Author and Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University, and Justin Emeka, Pittsburgh Public Theater Resident Director and Professor of Theater and Africana Studies at Oberlin College.

"The health of democracy and theater, twin born in ancient Greece, have always been mutually dependent."- James S. Shapiro, The Playbook: A Story of Theater, Democracy, and the Making of a Culture War (2024)

James S. Shapiro is one of the world’s leading early-modern theatrical authors and scholars. Among his many honors, Shapiro is currently Shakespeare Scholar in Residence at the Public Theater in New York City, serves on the board of the Authors Guild, has been awarded fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Guggenheim Foundation, The New York Public Library Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers, and the American Academy in Berlin.

In his latest book, The Playbook: A Story of Theater, Democracy, and the Making of a Culture War (2024), Shapiro traces the history of the Federal Theater Project, a transformational arm of the New Deal projects that staged over a thousand productions in 29 states that were seen by thirty million (or nearly one in four) Americans, two thirds of whom had never seen a play before.

As we find ourselves in a moment of historic division, the arts can be both our greatest asset, and the most imperiled. Join us for an evening of conversation as we explore Shakespeare and Civic Responsibility.