University Program
University Program
Learn more about Shakespeare at Winedale's college classes!
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"If you're looking for a program that's going to provide you with lifetime friends and experiences you'll always carry with you, this is that program."
- DJ (Winedale Class of 2023)
Spring Class
Learn more about Shakespeare at Winedale's Spring Class and how to apply below!
Mark Metts
Spring Course Description
Join us this spring to explore and stage one of Shakespeare’s most heartbreakingly beautiful plays, The Winter’s Tale. We will spend class time learning about this play and what it means to us in 2026, and will spend three weekends at the Winedale Historical Complex, living in collaborative community in preparation for our April performances.
Instructor: Dr. Katie Brokaw
Mark Metts
Who should apply for the Spring Class?
The course is designed for students interested in Shakespeare and willing to perform in front of others.
Previous experience with acting or Shakespeare's texts is not necessary.
Mark Metts
How do I enroll?
This class will require you to spend three weekends at The University of Texas Winedale Historical Complex, an 80 minute drive outside of Austin, on the following weekends. Meals and accommodations will be provided.
Because of the unusual demands of this course, instructor permission is required to enroll. You can apply for the course using the form below.
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Summer Class
Learn more about Shakespeare at Winedale's Summer Class!
Kari Noser for Lot Five Studios
Summer Course Description
The Shakespeare at Winedale Summer Class (E678A&B—students register for both) is a course dedicated to the study of Shakespeare's plays through performance. The class is open to any university student, and provides the opportunity to perform and produce three of Shakespeare’s plays over the course of the summer. The course is taken in residence at the 250-acre University of Texas Winedale Historical Center, near Round Top, Texas. Scholarship cover most of the associated fees, and further scholarship money is available as needed: we work to make Winedale accessible to anyone.
At Winedale, students live and work in a peaceful pastoral setting and perform in a century-old German hay barn. The isolated wooded landscape provides a special kind of magic and a uniquely focused intensity for the exploration of these supremely demanding plays. Students study Shakespeare 8-11 hours a day, most days of the week. The summer concludes with 20 public performances of the plays studied.
Kari Noser for Lot Five Studios
Who should apply for the Summer Class?
Shakespeare at Winedale is intended for students from all disciplines who are prepared to take risks and commit themselves to a creatively and intellectually demanding style of performance. Application is by interview, not audition, and special consideration is given to students who have never performed before.
Students from any college or university will be considered, with some preference given to undergraduates. The keys to success at Winedale are a fertile imagination, an eagerness to learn, a willingness to play, and a high level of dedication and stamina.
Kari Noser for Lot Five Studios
How do I apply?
Applications will open in Spring 2026.
Please feel free to reach out to shakespeare@austin.utexas.edu with questions.
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