More than four hundred years out of date and written in an idiom of English challenging for many modern readers, William Shakespeare’s plays nonetheless remain classics in the classroom and blockbusters in the box office. Why? With an oeuvre that includes romantic poetry and some thirty to forty plays, Shakespeare set to work investigating the complexities of human relationships: between parents and children, among romantic partners and rivals, between siblings, among groups of friends, and in the clash of enemies – dissecting his characters with cutting wit and embracing them with boundless empathy. This course takes a deep dive into four plays – “King Lear,” “Hamlet,” “Romeo and Juliet,” and “Othello” – and their recent adaptations for screen and stage, offering students an opportunity to forge new connections between past and present while learning more about one of the world’s greatest writers. Along the way we will also cast a critical eye on Shakespeare as a brand, considering the economics and politics of canonicity and evaluating what’s at stake in the battle over the legacy of The Bard. With Actors like Jake Gyllenhaal and Denzel Washington bringing “Othello” to Broadway and gamers staging a full production of “Hamlet” within the world of “Grand Theft Auto,” the time for Shakespeare is Now.