Shakespeare Professor Addresses Julius Caesar Controversy on CNN

Dr. Andrew Hartley, the Robinson Distinguished Professor of Shakespeare Studies in the Department of Theatre, was recently interviewed by CNN reporter Frank Pallotta for an article addressing the controversy surrounding the Public Theater production of Julius Caesar in New York City. The production, directed by Oskar Eustis, places Shakespeare’s tragedy in a contemporary setting, with Julius Caesar as a Donald Trump-like character.

An internationally recognized scholar, Dr. Hartley has written Julius Caesar for the Manchester University Press “Shakespeare in Performance Series” (2014), Shakespeare and Political Theatre in Practice (2014), and The Connell Guide to Julius Caesar (2017), and is editor of Julius Caesar: A Critical Reader (2016). In his comments for CNN, he explains that the practice of setting Julius Caesar in a contemporary political world is common and began with an Orson Welles production in 1937.