Poor Naked Wretches: A Conversation with Stephen Unwin

The History Of European Theatre

Episode 161

In today’s guest episode I will be discussing Shakespeare’s characterisations of the lower classes and looking at the role they play with Stephen Unwin, who’s book ‘Poor Naked Wretches’ explores the variety of working people in Shakespeare's plays as well as a vast range of cultural sources from which they were drawn and argues that the robust realism of these characters makes them so much more than mere Comic Relief.

Stephen Unwin is an award-winning British theatre and opera director. He has directed almost 100 professional productions and worked with many well-established actors and singers, as well as developing the careers of many younger ones. He studied at the University of Cambridge.

In the 1980s Stephen worked at the Almeida Theatre, London, the Traverse in Edinburgh, in repertoire theatre and at the National Theatre Studio. In 1993, he founded English Touring Theatre, for whom he directed more than 30 productions of classical and new plays, many of which transferred to London. In 2008, he became Artistic Director of the new Rose Theatre in Kingston, which he ran until January 2014. He has worked extensively at the Theatre Royal Bath and has directed more than 20 operas. Ten of his productions have been seen in the West End.

Stephen has taught in conservatoires and universities in Britain and America and written 10 books on theatre and drama, including ‘Poor Naked Wretches’. He has also written five original plays: ‘All Our Children’ was premiered at Jermyn Street Theatre in 2017 and staged in New York in 2019, and ‘Laughing Boy’ opened at Jermyn Street in 2024 and also played at the Theatre Royal Bath.

Stephen is a campaigner for the rights and dignities of learning-disabled people and ‘Beautiful Lives: How We Got Learning Disabilities So Wrong’, is published by Wildfire Book in June 2025.

This is only a shortened version of Stephen’s achievements and I would encourage you to visit his website for much more information.

You can find him at www.stephenunwin.uk

https://reaktionbooks.co.uk/work/poor-naked-wretches

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