Shakespeare 2026: Relevance, resilience and no more Hamlet

Thu Jun 04 2026 at 07:15 pm to 08:15 pm UTC+01:00

Room CL/057 - Church Lane Building | York

York Festival of Ideas
Publisher/HostYork Festival of Ideas
Shakespeare 2026: Relevance, resilience and no more Hamlet
Advertisement
Oxford's Emma Smith argues Hamlet isn't the Shakespeare play for the 21st century, proposing a more relevant alternative for our times.
About this Event

Speaker: Emma Smith

Emma Smith of the University of Oxford reviews some of the ways that Shakespeare has been found to be a useful or relevant resource at different historical moments. While some periods and places have found particular go-to plays (Troilus and Cressida during the Vietnam War, for instance, or Julius Caesar during the first Trump presidency), Hamlet has seemed to be a perennial.

During this talk, Emma will be rude about Hamlet and propose an alternative play for our attention in the early 21st century. This play, she’ll argue, can speak to our moment, reflect some of our concerns, and uses its fictions for good. You’ll have to come to the talk to find out which play - and see whether you agree.

The Annual Distinguished Patrides Lecture

The Annual Distinguished Patrides Lecture is a lecture series that began in 1988 as a memorial to C A (Dinos) Patrides, a phenomenal scholar of renaissance literature, who worked at the University of York from 1964 to 1979, in the newly-founded Department of English and Related Literature. The series was intended to run for a decade but is still going strong some 35 years later and has featured many internationally recognised figures.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Please ensure you use the correct email address as this is where your ticket will be sent. If you do not provide the correct address, you will not receive the acknowledgement email or ticket.

Advertisement

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Room CL/057 - Church Lane Building, University of York, York, United Kingdom

Tickets

GBP 0.00

Icon
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.

Ask AI if this event suits you:

More Events in York

York Annual Dinner 2026: Business in Motion
Thu, 04 Jun at 06:00 pm York Annual Dinner 2026: Business in Motion

York Racecourse

Shakespeare's King Lear: Place and the Unplaceable
Thu, 04 Jun at 06:00 pm Shakespeare's King Lear: Place and the Unplaceable

Room CL/057 - Church Lane Building

Chaos or Revolution? AI and jobseeking
Thu, 04 Jun at 06:00 pm Chaos or Revolution? AI and jobseeking

Room LFA/144

Discover the History of Askham Bog (York Festival of Ideas 2026)
Thu, 04 Jun at 06:30 pm Discover the History of Askham Bog (York Festival of Ideas 2026)

Friargate Quaker Meeting House

An Evening with Fiona Mozley at Waterstones York
Thu, 04 Jun at 07:00 pm An Evening with Fiona Mozley at Waterstones York

Waterstones

Spear York Celebration
Thu, 04 Jun at 07:00 pm Spear York Celebration

York Vineyard Church

YWT Members' Wild Ramble: Bank Island to Wheldrake Ings
Fri, 05 Jun at 09:00 am YWT Members' Wild Ramble: Bank Island to Wheldrake Ings

Bank Island Car Park

Street Weekend - Drag & Drive
Fri, 05 Jun at 10:00 am Street Weekend - Drag & Drive

Elvington Airfield

York Air Walk
Fri, 05 Jun at 10:30 am York Air Walk

Bar Lane & Micklegate

A Family Business: Kendrew, printers of York
Fri, 05 Jun at 10:30 am A Family Business: Kendrew, printers of York

York Minster Library

Sax Forte present as part of the fabulous York Festival of Ideas
Fri, 05 Jun at 12:30 pm Sax Forte present as part of the fabulous York Festival of Ideas

St Helen's Church, Stonegate, York

On My Way
Fri, 05 Jun at 01:00 pm On My Way

Rise, 201 acomb rd, York

York is Happening!

Never miss your favorite happenings again!

Explore York Events