Shakespearean Adaptations – an Exeter-Fudan Colloquium, 1-2 August

Hosted by the Department of English, the ‘Shakespearean Adaptations Exeter-Fudan Colloquium’ academic seminar will bring together staff and students from the College of Humanities, Fudan University based in Shanghai, China, and beyond, to discuss cross-cultural adaptations of Shakespeare with a particular interest in relationships between China and the West.

The Colloquium will provide an opportunity for discussion on theatrical productions, films, translations, and the use of Shakespeare on the literature and culture of subsequent centuries.

The event will commence with a public lecture on Thursday 1 August led by the prestigious film director Professor Don Boyd, who is also Honorary Professor at the University of Exeter and Governor at the London Film School. Professor Boyd’s lecture, titled ‘Hamlet in China’, will provide staff, students and the general public with an insight into the fascinating discoveries he made in 2006 when commissioned by the BBC to stage a modern-dress production of Shakespeare’s great play, which would examine its relevance to contemporary Chinese audiences across five major cities in China.

The event will continue on Friday 2 August in a series of panels each consisting of three speakers.  The College is particularly delighted to announce that speakers on the panel include three faculty from Fudan University.  Professor Zhang, Professor Zhu and Professor Tan, from Fudan University’s School of Foreign Languages and Literature, will join speakers from The College of Humanities in a series of panels throughout the day.  The guests have been invited to visit the University as part of the College’s exploration of a wide range of opportunities for future collaboration with Fudan University as part of its development of links with key partners in China.

Speakers from the College of Humanities include Professor Nick Groom (Department of English), Dr. Richard Mansell (Department of Modern Languages), Professor Gerald Maclean (Department of English) and Dr. Jennifer Barnes, expert on Laurence Olivier’s cinematic Shakespeare production and lecturer on Exeter’s International Summer School ‘Shakespeare and His World’ pathway.

The event will conclude with a talk delivered by external speaker Professor Mark Thornton-Burnett, Professor at Queen’s University, Belfast, an expert on English Renaissance Drama and Culture, Shakespeare and Film and Shakespeare and Modern Popular Culture.

The ‘Shakespearean Adaptations’ colloquium  is an excellent example of research-led teaching at the University of Exeter, and will provide an opportunity for students and staff from The University of Exeter and Fudan University to experience the excellent teaching on offer within the English Department at Exeter – first in the UK for world-leading research*. 

The lecture on Thursday 1 August is open to public, staff and students and will be followed by an opportunity for drinks and networking. The events taking place on Friday 2 August are available only to University of Exeter staff and postgraduate students.

For more information about the public Don Boyd lecture, please see the College of Humanities Events Page.  To register your interest in attending either the Don Boyd public lecture or the event on Friday 2 August, please email humanities-externalrelations@exeter.ac.uk.  Please note that there are limited spaces available on both events and attendance will be on a first-come, first-served basis.