Internationally renowned and often controversial theatre, film and television director Michael Bogdanov is to give a series of free public lunchtime lectures at Swansea University in conjunction with the Research Institute for Arts and Humanities.
Starting on Thursday March 10, the lectures will be hosted by leading academics from Swansea University, and will take a conversational format with time for questions and answers.
The first lecture ‘INVISIBLE BULLETS – Shakespeare the Subversive’ hosted by Professor Nikki Cooper, and introduced by Director of the College of Arts and Humanities Professor John Spurr, will explore the political and personal dangers inherent in Shakespeare’s drama and the potential for bold political interpretations in modern productions.
On Monday March 14, Professor Julian Preece will host ‘DEUTSCHLAND UEBER ALLES – Simply the Best?’ which will take a look at the differences in attitudes to, and support for, theatre in Britain and the rest of the world, with reference to the USA and continental Europe, especially Germany.
On March 16, the final lecture ‘GWILYM AP SHAKESPEARE – Shakespeare and the Welsh’ will be hosted by Dr Daniel Williams, Director of the Richard Burton Centre for the Study of Wales. In it, Michael Bogdanov will consider the Welsh presence, both notional and physical, in the plays of Shakespeare.
The series has been organised by playwright D.J.Britton, Swansea University Lecturer in Dramatic Writing, who said: “Michael Bogdanov has been an enormously influential figure in British and European theatre. This series of talks is an enormous opportunity for both students and the general public to gain vivid insights drawn from an illustrious career stretching back over almost half a century.”
Dr Michael Bogdanov MA., D.Litt., FRWCMD is an Honorary Fellow of Swansea University. He has won some 19 awards, including two Laurence Olivier Awards for Best Director and two BAFTAs. He made global headlines for his production of The Romans in Britain by Howard Brenton, which included the simulated rape of a Celtic warrior by a Roman soldier.
Michael Bogdanov was an Associate Director of the Royal National Theatre under Sir Peter Hall for eight years, and Intendant (Chief Executive) for four years of the Deutches Schauspielhaus, Germany’s largest National Theatre.
Together with the actor Michael Pennington, Michael co-founded the English Shakespeare Company, touring the world for ten years and winning many awards, particularly for the seven-play Wars of the Roses cycle.
He has directed eight productions for the Royal Shakespeare Company, two Karl-Heinz Stockhausen World Premieres at La Scala, and directed in the West End, on Broadway, in Japan, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Norway, Canada, France, Greece, Denmark, Brazil, Ireland and the USA.
In 2003, in conjunction with the City and County of Swansea, he formed The Wales Theatre Company, whose inaugural production of Under Milk Wood opened at the Grand Theatre, Swansea, followed by a national UK tour. In 2004 the first volume of Michael’s book, Shakespeare the Director’s Cut, was published, with Volume 2 in October 2005.
All the lectures take place in the Callaghan Lecture Theatre, Swansea University. The dates and times are as follows: Thursday 10 March 12noon – 1pm; Monday, 14 March 1pm-2pm; and Wednesday 16 March 1pm-2pm.
Admission is free and all are welcome. If you would like more information, please contact The Research Institute for Arts and Humanities (RIAH), Tel: 01792 295190 or email: [email protected].
