Past Marlowe Infotainment

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Talks & Lectures

This is an archive of past talks and lectures on Marlowe or related subjects that have all finished. The details and links may still be of interest.

Globe Research: Marlowe in Repertory at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse 2024

Globe Research: Marlowe in Repertory [2024]

  • Event: Research in Action: Marlowe in Repertory
  • Date: Thursday 11 July 2024 at 18:00
  • Duration: 2 hours and 15 minutes.
  • Venue: Sam Wanamaker Indoor Playhouse at Shakespeare's Globe, 21 New Globe Walk, Bankside, London, SE1 9DT. [Map & Directions]
  • Tickets: Priced £12 plus £2.50 booking fee available online or via the Box Office (020-7401-9919). [FAQs]
  • Summary: Shakespeare's Globe Research in Action presents Marlowe in Repertory in association with the Marlowe Society of America. "This special workshop in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse puts the plays of Christopher Marlowe back into the middle of the bustling theatre scene he knew so well. What do we learn about Marlowe's innovative work when we see it in the context of his peers? Robert Greene's Selimus meets Tamburlaine the Great, and the anonymous The Wars of Cyrus casts new light on Dido, Queen of Carthage. Join Professor Lucy Munro (King’s College London) in a celebration of the other colossus of the early modern stage! Part of our ongoing Research in Action series which gives audiences a chance to be part of the Globe's world-leading exploration of early modern and contemporary performance culture and collaborate with academics, educators and artists. Expect discoveries – and expect to be asked for your input!"
  • Website Links: Shakespeare's Globe presents Research in Action: Marlowe in Repertory in association with the Marlowe Society of America at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse.
Webinars organised by the Rose Playhouse

Researching the Rose Webinars [2023]

  • Talks: Researching The Rose Webinars
  • Organiser: The Rose Playhouse on Bankside
  • Speakers: Various academics, historians and theatre experts.
  • Dates: Fortnightly on Monday evenings 18:30 to 19:30 starting 17 April 2023.
  • Venue: Online via Zoom (a link is provided after booking).
  • Tickets: Priced £7 or £5 (Friends, Students) available for online Rose events via the TryBooking website.
  • Summary: Join leading scholars as they share their latest research about the original Rose playhouse — its owners and patrons, plays and playwrights, actors and audiences — and the London of which it was part. These talks will offer fresh perspectives and challenge old assumptions.
  • 17 April 2023: Reconstructing 'Harey the vj' at the Rose by Dr Darren Freebury-Jones (Shakespeare Birthplace Trust): "On 03 March 1592, Philip Henslowe recorded a performance at the Rose of 'Harey the vj' — the play we now know as Shakespeare's Henry VI, Part I. Most modern scholars assign the first act to Thomas Nashe, and about three scenes to Shakespeare — but who wrote the rest of the play? Freebury-Jones will propose that Thomas Kyd was Nashe's co-author, that the play was revised by Shakespeare when it later came into the possession of the Chamberlain's Men, and that it was a prequel to capitalise on the success of what we now know as Parts II and III."
  • 01 May 2023: How to Play on Bankside: Beers, Bears, and Roses by Dr Callan Davies (Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, and author of What is a Playhouse? England at Play 1520–1620): "What might visitors to Bankside in the 1530s, 1580s or 1620s have expected from a good day out? This May Day, join us to discover how Henslowe's Rose fitted into England's dynamic entertainment scene. Take a tour through the entertainment hub that developed on Bankside from the early 16th century, and explore the spatial, social and commercial contexts for an enterprise like the Rose. You will encounter riotous audiences who demanded 'best of' compilations from their favourite dramas, celebrity bears and giant, pyrotechnic roses."
  • 15 May 2023: Women Investors and Performers in the Fortune Playhouse by Lucy Munro (Professor of Shakespeare & Early Modern Literature at King’s College London) and Clare McManus (Professor of Early Modern Literature & Theatre at the University of Roehampton): "The Fortune playhouse was built north of the river in 1600 by Philip Henslowe and Edward Alleyn as the successor to the Rose. New research from the Engendering the Stage project reveals a previously unknown story of women's investment in the Fortune between the 1620s & 1640s, and shows how the playhouse is connected to the history of female performers such as Cicely Peadle — troupe leader, tumbler and rope-dancer."
  • 05 June 2023: Citizen Players, Playgoing Citizens by Tracey Hill (Professor Emerita of Early Modern Literature & Culture at Bath Spa University): "Were the early modern City of London and its livery companies really enemies of the theatre, or actually its friends and sponsors? Contrary to their reputation as dour puritans, the City of London and its constituent livery companies were actually active sponsors of players and playwrights. This talk will explore the manifold connections between the City and the stage, with particular reference to the actors and dramatists who plied their theatrical trade at the Rose."
  • 19 June 2023: The 'Legend of Lies': Romance and Anti-Romance at the Rose by Dr Kim Gilchrist (Lecturer in English Literature at Cardiff University): "Where did romance drama at the Rose come from, and why was it so controversial? In 1593, Sussex's Men performed the now lost play Huon of Bordeaux three times at the Rose, and the talk will use this play to examine a longstanding tradition in which dramatists searched controversial continental and medieval prose romances to bring spectacular and potentially shocking narratives onto the stage."
  • 03 July 2023: Henslowe, Theatrical Novelty, and The Comedy of Humours by Dr Eoin Price (Senior Lecturer in English Literature at Swansea University): "What was it like to see an early performance of a theatrical sensation? On 11 May 1597, the Admiral's Men premiered a play at the Rose playhouse that was to change English theatrical history forever, George Chapman's An Humorous Day's Mirth which inaugurated a comic genre that was to dominate English theatre for well over a decade. What made the play so successful, and why was a spectator at one of the earliest performances so decidedly unimpressed?"
  • 17 July 2023: Who performed at the Rose in 1587? by Laurie Johnson (Professor of English & Cultural Studies at the University of Southern Queensland): "The diary of Philip Henslowe tells us so much about the professional operations of the Rose from 1591 onwards, but how can we fill in the gaps in our knowledge about the years between 1587 when the playhouse was built and when he began his diary? The talk reveals newfound links between the Rose and Leicester's Men that suggests the company was the first to occupy the Rose in their last year under the patronage of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester."
  • Website Links: The Rose Playhouse website | Facebook | Twitter | Wikipedia | Enjoy a virtual tour through a reconstructed model of The Rose by Visualising Lost Theatres.
Webinars organised by the Rose Playhouse

Rose Webinars [2020-22]

Annual Christopher Marlowe Lectures - 2015 onwards

Annual Marlowe Lecture [2015-20]

  • Lecture: Annual Christopher Marlowe Lecture
  • Organiser: The Marlowe Society
  • Speaker: A different academic speaker gives the lecture each year.
  • Date: The Christopher Marlowe Lecture was held annually from 2015 to 2020, usually in November, before the Covid pandemic intervened. Hopefully it will resume soon.
  • Venue: The Lecture has been held at various venues in London.
  • Price: Tickets for the Lecture usually cost around £10 and can be purchased via the Marlowe Society website.
  • 2015 Lecture: A "Mad and Scoffing Poet...Bred of Merlin's Race": Was Marlowe Faustus? given by Ros Barber on Saturday 14 November 2015. Greene's 1588 allusion to Marlowe associates him, very early in his career, with a famous magician. Faustus is the protagonist with whom Marlowe is most often conflated. Is this done with the benefit of hindsight, or did those who knew him personally think of him as Faustus? [Poster]
  • 2016 Lecture: The Maiden's Holiday: Marlowe's Lost Play? given by Matthew Steggle on Saturday 16 November 2016. In 1654, the publisher Humphrey Moseley secured the rights to print 'A Comedy called The Maiden's Holiday by Christopher Marlowe and John Day'. The manuscript was allegedly lost when a cook who turned it into lining paper for pies. What can we say about the lost play? Was it by Marlowe? If it wasn't - what does its attribution to Marlowe say about Marlowe's early reception? [Lost Plays Database | Poster]
  • 2017 Lecture: Critical Reckonings: Marlowe and Shakespeare given by Professor Robert Sawyer on Saturday 18 November 2017. Although a great deal has been written about the interaction between the two dominant writers of the early modern stage and putative 'rival playwrights', here Sawyer for the first time traces the critical reception of the two playwrights and their relationship from the 16th until the 21st century, demonstrating how our perspective of this association has changed over time. [Book]
  • 2018 Lecture: Playing with Power: Christopher Marlowe and Edward Alleyn given by Professor Frank Whately on Saturday 24 November 2018. A symbiotic relationship existed between Marlowe’s dramatic imagination and Alleyn’s performative power which was manifested on the stage of the Rose Theatre. What was the nature of that relationship? What did each contribute to enhancing the reputation of the other, both in the turbulent last years of the sixteenth century and since? [Lecture Video Clip on YouTube]
  • 2019 Lecture: Marlowe in Venice given by Professor Robert U. Ayres on Saturday 16 November 2019. Professor Ayres, whose primary area of scholarly expertise is physics and economics, shares his research into the possibility that Marlowe survived his supposed death in Deptford in 1593, and lived in exile in Venice under the alias Gregorio deMonti, working as a secret agent and continuing his writing career under the pseudonym of Shakespeare. [Book | Article]
  • 2020 Lecture: Can Computers Find Marlowe in Shakespeare given online (due to Covid) by Ros Barber on Saturday 14 November 2020. In 2017, the New Oxford Shakespeare declared that Marlowe was the co-author of Shakespeare's Henry VI trilogy. This conclusion, which made headlines around the world, rests on the work of two teams of scholars who used computer algorithms to analyse the style of Shakespeare and other early modern playwrights. [Report on New Oxford Shakespeare]
  • Website Links: The Marlowe Society.
Cambridge Spies lecture in Canterbury - 2017

Cambridge Spies [2017]

  • Lecture: Cambridge Spies from Christopher Marlowe to Kim Philby
  • Speaker: Professor Christopher Andrew, University of Cambridge.
  • Date: Thursday 11 May 2017 at 19:00
  • Venue: King's School, The Undercroft, St Augustine's, Lady Wootton's Green, Canterbury, Kent CT1 1NG [GoogleMaps]
  • Price: Free for Historical Association members & students. Others: £3
  • Buffet: £10. Reservations / tickets available from Mike Gallagher.
  • Contact: Email the or call 01227 722476.
  • Summary: The Canterbury Branch of the Historical Association present a lecture given by Christopher Andrew, Professor of Modern & Contemporary History, Corpus Christi College at the University Cambridge on Cambridge Spies from Christopher Marlowe to Kim Philby. Amongst various academic and other positions held, Professor Andrew is Official Historian of the Security Service (MI5).
  • Website Links: Historical Association - Canterbury Branch with forthcoming events | Event Poster.
Marlowe450 Lectures in Canterbury - 2014

Marlowe450 Lectures [2014]

  • Lectures: The Marlowe450 Lectures in Canterbury
  • Organiser: The Marlowe Society
  • Speakers: Ros Barber, Louis de Bernières, Jan Leeming and Charles Nicholl.
  • Dates: Three lectures at different Canterbury venues during March 2014, each in conjunction with a different Marlowe play production, to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the playwright's birth in the city.
  • Price: Tickets priced £3 (if purchased with a theatre production ticket) and £5 (without) could be bought via The Marlowe Theatre website.
  • Marlowe450 Previews: The Stage: Shakespeare's Rival Remembered | Guardian: Happy Birthday Marlowe.
  • Lecture 1: A "Mad and Scoffing Poet...Bred of Merlin's Race": Was Marlowe Faustus? given by Ros Barber at 6pm on Wednesday 12 March 2014 at the Eastbridge Hospital in Canterbury. "We do not know exactly when Doctor Faustus was written, but Robert Greene's 1588 allusion to Marlowe associates him, very early in his career, with a famous magician. Faustus is the protagonist with whom Marlowe is most often conflated. Is this simply a case of reading the author's life backwards through the lens of his public atheism and subsequent sticky end? Were elements of Marlowe's biography written in to the play after his death? Did those who knew him personally think of him as Faustus? This talk explores evidence that illuminates Marlowe's relationship with his most famous protagonist." Associated Production: Doctor Faustus at The Marlowe Theatre from 12-14 March 2014.
  • Lecture 2: Lingering Identities: the Huguenot Past given by Louis de Bernières and Jan Leeming at 6pm on Tuesday 18 March 2014 at St Peter's Methodist Church Hall in Canterbury. "Louis de Bernières is the well-known author of Captain Corelli's Mandolin. Among his many passionate interests are music, family and his colorful Huguenot ancestors - the family name is listed in Canterbury Cathedral's Eglise Franciase. Jan Leeming is best known for presenting BBC News. She now lives in Kent, and is, among other things, an Assistant Guide at the Cathedral. She too has French ancestry; the Pettet family has been traced back to 1560 at Coldred and Ringwould in Kent." Associated Production: The Massacre at Paris in the Canterbury Cathedral Crypt from 18-19 March 2014.
  • Lecture 3: Marlowe, Machiavelli and The Jew of Malta given by Charles Nicholl at 6pm on Wednesday 26 March 2014 at the Old Synagogue in Canterbury. "An exploration of the political intrigues and controversies that lie behind Marlowe's most 'Machiavellian' play. Charles Nicholl's books include The Reckoning: The Murder of Christopher Marlowe, 1992 (Crime Writer's Association 'Gold Dagger' Award for Non-Fiction and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize) and The Lodger: Shakespeare on Silver Street, 2007. He is currently Honorary Professor in the School of English at Sussex University." Associated Production: The Jew of Malta at The Marlowe Theatre from 26-28 March 2014.
  • Website Links: The Marlowe Society | Marlowe450 Press Release | Marlowe450 Poster.