In partnership with the Orcas Crossroads Lecture Series, George Washington University Professor Ayanna Thompson presents a most relevant topic. Othello is the best-known black character in Shakespeare’s plays, a traditional role of dignity for black actors. But racial stereotypes of the 17th century create some discomfort among 21st century audiences. Lecture at 7:30 pm at Orcas Center.

Ayanna Thompson is Professor of English at George Washington University. She specializes in Renaissance drama and focuses on issues of race as/in performance. She is the author of Passing Strange: Shakespeare, Race, and Contemporary America (Oxford University Press, 2011) and Performing Race and Torture on the Early Modern Stage (Routledge, 2008), and she is the editor of Weyward Macbeth: Intersections of Race and Performance (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010) (co-edited with Scott Newstok) and Colorblind Shakespeare: New Perspectives on Race and Performance (Routledge, 2006). Professor Thompson is a Trustee of the Shakespeare Association of America. We thank Orcas Crossroads Lecture Series for letting us “join the conversation.”

Tickets for this talk are $10 and are available at the Orcas Crossroads, Darvill’s Bookstore in Eastsound, and through Brown Paper Tickets.