I've never spent a better month as an English major. As anyone from the casual reader to the career scholar will attest, Shakespeare is dense stuff, but this program drew out the vitality and excitement of his plays in a way that even the best lecture

hall presentation cannot (and I've taken upper-division Shakespeare from an excellent professor). Yes, you can read Shakespeare and then watch a great film adaptation or even have enough luck to catch a good stage production. I have, but for me nothing has ever compared to this program's practice: read and discuss the play, proceed straight to the RSC playhouse, then later debrief and discuss the adaptation process with company members (we had the privilege of speaking to actors, directors, and the head of men's costumes). The English major can often feel like a musty "armchair" sort of pursuit, shut up in its ivory tower and detached from the way most people seek entertainment from literature and theater. This course not only foreshortened the distance between scholarship and entertainment but also demonstrated that these two approaches are interdependent—especially concerning Shakespeare, who was as concerned with exploring philosophical questions as with getting his audience to care and applaud. For him these goals were inextricable, and therefore this course helped me to understand Shakespeare in a more basic way than I ever had before. That is the highest praise I can give any literature course. This course is, however, not a good option for students who want an academically light study-abroad experience. In a month we read six plays, took three exams, and wrote three papers (though the requirements for the latter were somewhat less formal than those usually demanded in upper-division English courses). The work was demanding, but the professor who leads the program every year is brilliant and engaging, and we had a passionate teaching assistant leading our discussion sections. There were several non-English majors in the program who enjoyed it as much as did the English and theater students. The course offers ten upper-division units and satisfies the UCLA English major requirement for literatures in English from 1500 to 1700. Now for some other logistical details: we spent three weeks in Stratford-Upon-Avon and a week in London, staying in hotels the entire time (the professor told me that the program usually spends ten days in London but cut that time to a week this year because hotel rooms were prohibitively expensive during the Olympic Games). Breakfast and dinner were provided in Stratford as part of the program (the food was satisfying but not great), whereas only breakfast was included in London. Be advised: it is nearly impossible to do anything in London without spending a lot, so save as much leisure money as you can if you decide to pursue the program. Stratford is a beautiful and charming little town, but other than Shakespeare it has almost nothing going on (which I, for one, liked and found conducive to studying). London is, of course, thrilling; we were required to visit some museums there as part of our curriculum, but the visits were so much fun that they barely felt like schoolwork. Lecture and discussion meetings took fairly little time, so plenty was left for clubs, other theater, or whatever else we wanted to do. The program was, as I said, rigorous, but it was never a drag, and I left it as invigorated as I was when I arrived.

This trip was amazing. I would recommend it to everyone, especially those in the English major. Although Shakespeare isn't a requirement this program is completely worth your time and money. You get the chance to work closely with a professor and TA and

develop a critical eye for production. It was amazing to see a production then talk about it in class and even meet actors or directors from the plays. The work load is just right and beyond the great education you will receive you will make great friends and get acquainted with an amazing country rich in literary history.

One of the best experiences of my undergrad career. This is the best possibly way to study Shakespeare: seeing brilliant performances of his work. After seeing the plays, we would generally get to talk with some of the people directly involved in putting

it together (actors, assistant directors, costume design, etc.), so there's also insight into the theatrical aspects of the plays. we also got to experience the small-town (Stratford) feel of England as well as the big-city (London) feel. If you're at all interested in plays, theater, Shakespeare, England, amazing things... you will go on this trip.

I loved the Shakespeare program in Stratford and London! Professor Post was so entertaining and made learning about Shakespeare easy! The shows were fabulous! This is one of the easiest classes at UCLA you will ever take and it is a blast. Our year, the

Olympics were going on so we were in Stratford more than unusual and only in London for a week. That was unfortunate because Stratford is adorable, but very small and got boring quickly. However, I became close with all of the students in my program and now when I take an English class I always have someone to study with! If you are an English major and looking to get finish your 1500-1700 requirement, DO THIS TRAVEL STUDY! We stayed in hotels both times. In Stratford the hotel was a Best Western. It was clean and had a gym and a pool. In London we stayed at a fancier one. Both provided breakfast which was a great way to hoard food so I didn't have to buy lunch. On the nights of shows and some other random nights the program also provided dinner. Stratford is an adorable little town and of course, London is London. England in general is pretty pricey because everything is in pounds so keep that in mind when planning your money, but there are definitely ways to live cheaply.