Shakespeare Anyone?, the independent podcast dedicated to making Shakespeare accessible to curious listeners everywhere, has been awarded the 2026 Shakespeare Publics Award (Large Scale) by the Shakespeare Association of America (SAA). 

The Shakespeare Association of America (SAA) is a non-profit professional organization for the advanced academic study of William Shakespeare’s plays and poems, his cultural and theatrical contexts, and the many roles these have played in world culture. The Shakespeare Publics Award recognizes pioneering and/or culturally significant efforts to foster, engage, support and sustain broad and diverse Shakespeare publics through teaching, scholarship, performance and/or activism.

Shakespeare Anyone? was selected from among nominees across the field by an ad hoc committee of Shakespeare scholars. 

Now in its fifth year, Shakespeare Anyone? is co-hosted and produced by Elyse Sharp and Kourtney Smith, two actors turned independent Shakespeare scholars. Released every other week, the podcast examines one play at a time through deep textual analysis and intersectional lenses–exploring feminism, race, class, colonialism, and nationalism–while weaving in historical context through episodes about Shakespeare’s world. The show has earned recognition as a Top 50 Performing Arts Podcast and features interviews with Shakespeare scholars and theatre-makers from around the world. 

“This recognition from the Shakespeare Association of America means a great deal to us,” said co-host Kourtney Smith. “We set out to create a space where Shakespeare and Shakespeare scholarship is genuinely accessible, intellectually rigorous, but never intimidating. This award tells us that this work matters.”

“Shakespeare’s plays belong to everyone,” added co-host Elyse Sharp. “Our goal has always been to bridge the gap between how scholars and theatre artists think about these texts, and to invite our listeners into that conversation.” 

Shakespeare Anyone? is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever podcasts are found. The show is listener-supported through Patreon and can be found at shakespeareanyone.com

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About Shakespeare Anyone?

Shakespeare Anyone? is an independent podcast for the Shakespeare-curious, hosted and produced by Elyse Sharp and Kourtney Smith. The show examines Shakespeare’s plays one at a time through rigorous, intersectional scholarship that makes Shakespeare easier to understand–minus the bardolatry. Available at shakespeareanyone.com

About the Shakespeare Association of America

The Shakespeare Association of America (SAA) is a non-profit professional organization for the advanced academic study of William Shakespeare’s plays and poems, his cultural and theatrical contexts, and the many roles these have played in world culture. The Shakespeare Publics Award recognizes pioneering and/or culturally significant efforts to foster, engage, support and sustain broad and diverse Shakespeare publics through teaching, scholarship, performance and/or activism. Learn more at https://shakespeareassociation.org