Shakespeare Bulletin

Shakespeare Bulletin is a peer-reviewed quarterly journal which publishes articles at the cutting edge of Shakespearean and early modern performance studies and theater history. It is a distinguishing feature of this journal that it welcomes scholarship on the full range of plays not only by Shakespeare but also by other early modern dramatists. The focus of all articles submitted should, in one way or another, be on the performance of these plays, in any medium, whether in the early modern period or in later centuries.

Articles may examine performances of early modern plays in their own period and/or beyond; explore the use of performance in scholarship, activism, or teaching; develop performance-related scholarly methodologies and theoretical approaches to the performance of early modern drama; compare productions or analyze a single production; scrutinize ground-breaking new modes of adaptation into in a variety of media and venues; explore performance traditions of early modern drama around the world; interrogate the intersections of performance with new and existing subfields of research into early modern drama.

All proposals are treated with the strictest confidence, and reviewers will not share submissions with anyone other than the editorial team.

Submitting an article

The journal normally publishes at least two open issues every year. Please submit articles (as Microsoft Word documents) directly to the general editor at SBeditor@marybaldwin.edu. You do not need to include a cover letter, but please include a short abstract (200–250 words) and a confirmation that the article is not under consideration elsewhere and has not been previously published. There is no fee or charge for manuscript processing and/or publishing.

The standard length of articles in the journal is between 6,500 and 9,000 words, though we will consider shorter and longer submissions where appropriate. In recognition of the labor undertaken by authors submitting articles, we do not require initial submissions to be formatted according to the house style, but should the article be accepted it will be the author’s responsibility to format the article to house style. Doing so from the start will help expedite publication.

Proposing a special issue

Shakespeare Bulletin welcomes proposals for guest-edited issues from scholars at all career stages. To propose a special issue, please submit a proposal which includes:

• An overview of the subject of and rationale for the special issue (c. one page)
• A list of contributors with short biographies (200–250 words)
• A list of contents with short abstracts (200–250 words)
• A proposed timeline for completion of the issue

Proposals should be emailed directly to the general editor at SBeditor@marybaldwin.edu. Special issues usually include 4–8 articles, provided the total word count (including notes and works cited lists) is 40,000–55,000 words. Special issues may also include performance and book reviews, in consultation with the journal’s editorial team.

Special issues should reflect appropriately the diversity of the subject area under discussion, in both subject coverage and the choice of contributors.

Following acceptance, the guest editors will have primary responsibility for supporting contributors to the issue through the revision and copy-editing processes, with the support of the General Editor and Assistant Editor.

Open access

Shakespeare Bulletin is a RoMEO green journal and permits authorial archiving of pre-print and post-print articles on author server, departmental server, institutional server, or in Open Access Archives, if required by law. Authors must request prior permission to republish work originally featured in the journal, and the publisher copyright and source must be acknowledged.

For more information about open access, including gold open access options, please consult JHUP’s full guidance.

Archiving

The content published in the journal can be accessed via JHUP’s Project MUSE platform through subscription. JHUP partners with LOCKSS and Portico to ensure that all published content is available long-term.

Shakespeare Bulletin House Style for articles

Shakespeare Bulletin broadly follows the guidelines set down in the most recent MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (currently the 9th edition, 2021), with some tailoring to suit the journal’s content.

Please format your article according to the house style, accessed via this link.

Guidance on using copyright material, including images, in articles can be accessed via this link.

The Hopkins Press Journals Ethics and Malpractice Statement can be found at the ethics-and-malpractice page.

Peer Review Policy

Articles

Shakespeare Bulletin welcomes submissions of original, unpublished work in English that are not under consideration elsewhere. The general editor conducts an initial review to ensure that the submission focuses on early modern drama in performance and is of suitable quality. If an article is unsuitable for the journal, the editor will make recommendations for other outlets that might be more suitable.

A submission that passes this initial review is sent to at least two readers for double-anonymous peer review. Shakespeare Bulletin uses readers at all career stages, chosen for their expertise in the subject area(s) of the submitted article, and readers may or may not be members of the editorial board.

The journal preserves the anonymity of reviewers for two primary reasons:

1. As reviewers may themselves be junior scholars in the field, this allows them to give honest feedback without risk of personal or professional detriment.
2. As reviewers may be at different career stages, it allows the author to respond to feedback based on the merit of the feedback, rather than on the reviewer’s status.

Readers may choose to waive their anonymity at any stage of the process, particularly following the acceptance of articles. Readers agree to the journal’s peer review guidelines for ethical reviewing practice, and all reports will be vetted for their adherence to these guidelines before communication to authors.

Reviewers may recommend one of four outcomes:

• Accept the submission
• Provisionally accept with revisions
• Not accept but resubmit with revisions (with or without another round of peer review)
• Decline publication without the possibility of resubmission.

Based on these recommendations, the general editor will communicate the decision to the author along with their own remarks and a summary of the reviewers’ comments. The general editor accepts ultimate responsibility for the return of ethical, constructive reviews to authors.

We aim to give a full response to authors within six weeks of the original submission. Where circumstances delay a response beyond this period, the general editor will communicate with the author to keep them updated about their article’s progress.

If revisions are required, authors will be given a deadline by which to respond to the reviewer comments and to submit a revised piece, formatted according to the journal’s style guide. Authors are asked to explain in their resubmission how they have responded to the reviewer’s comments. If the revisions and explanations do not fully account for concerns raised at the peer review stage, articles will be returned to the author for further revision, which can delay publication. Accepted submissions are usually published in the next available issue following confirmation that a submission has been definitively accepted.

Special Issues

Special issue proposals are sent to three members of the journal’s editorial board, who will assess the issue’s suitability for inclusion. Submitting editors and authors are not anonymized, as the appropriateness of the contributors to the proposed topic is part of what reviewers will assess.

Once the full issue is complete and submitted, it will usually be sent out in its entirety to one of the original reviewers for a clearance review. The individual articles will each be sent out anonymously to a further specialist reader, who may or may not be a member of the editorial board, and who will give feedback as per our guidelines for article reviewers.

Shakespeare Bulletin is committed to anti-racist and inclusive scholarly practice. Please read the editors’ response to the Race Before Race open letter here.

Annual Reports

As of 2021, Shakespeare Bulletin produces a report at the end of each calendar year, with the aim of increasing transparency around the journal's practices, submission/acceptance rate, and peer review process. These reports may be found below, and any queries may be addressed to the general editor.

2021 annual report report can be accessed from this link.    
2022 annual report report can be accessed from this link.  
2023 annual report report can be accessed from this link.

Complaints and Appeals 

Authors and stakeholders should refer any complaints about journal content to the General Editor. The journal will consider publication of right-of-reply/rebuttal pieces, subject to the same editorial standards and processes as all articles. Any necessary corrections will be published as errata in a future issue. Please refer to the Hopkins Press Journals ethics-and-malpractice statement for further detail, and for the journal’s policies on authorship and contributorship, conflicts of interest, data reproducibility, and ethical oversight. 

Appeals against decisions or feedback/complaints about the journal’s processes should be referred to the General Editor and Assistant Editor (or to the Assistant Editor alone if the complaint relates to the General Editor). In such instances, a sub-committee made up of members of the Editorial Board will be formed in order to assess whether journal processes have been followed correctly.

General Editor           

Peter Kirwan         
Mary Baldwin University          
Email: SBeditor@marybaldwin.edu         
Mailing address: Shakespeare & Performance Program        
Mary Baldwin University        
Staunton, VA 24401

Assistant Editor

Emily Mayne
Mary Baldwin University
Email: esmayne@marybaldwin.edu

Development Editor

Nora J. Willams
BIMM University
Email: norawilliams@bimm.ac.uk

Book Reviews Editor

Elizabeth Zeman Kolkovich
Ohio State University 
Email: kolkovich.1@osu.edu

Performance Reviews Editor

Benjamin Broadribb  
Mary Baldwin University  
Email: SBperformance@marybaldwin.edu

Editorial Board

The Editorial Board of Shakespeare Bulletin includes scholars at all career stages reflecting different constituencies of the journal. During their term on the Editorial Board, members play an active role in reviewing articles and special issue proposals in their areas of expertise and advising on journal policy. We invite the editors of special issues to join the Editorial Board as part of their involvement with the journal. Members of the Editorial Board abide by the Terms of Reference.

Pascale Aebischer, University of Exeter         
David Sterling Brown, Trinity College         
Mark Thornton Burnett, Queen’s University Belfast         
Lauren Eriks Cline, St. Norbert College         
Vanessa Corredera, Andrews University         
Keir Elam, University of Bologna         
Michael D. Friedman, University of Scranton         
Farah Karim-Cooper, Shakespeare’s Globe/King’s College London         
Sawyer Kemp, Queens College, City University of New York         
Amy Kenny, Georgetown University         
Courtney Lehmann, University of the Pacific         
Lucy Munro, King’s College London         
Kathryn Prince, University of Ottawa 
Kathryn Vomero Santos, Trinity University 
Richard Schoch, Queen’s University Belfast         
Greg M. Colón Semenza, University of Connecticut, Storrs         
Kim Solga, Western University         
Ayanna Thompson, Arizona State University         
Evelyn Tribble, University of Connecticut         
W. B. Worthen, Barnard College, Columbia University         
Ramona Wray, Queen’s University Belfast         
Sandra Young, University of Cape Town

Advisory Board

The Advisory Board of Shakespeare Bulletin is made up of longstanding contributors both to the journal and to the field of early modern performance studies, who offer their services both as expert reviewers and as consultants on journal policy.

Stephen M. Buhler, University of Nebraska, Lincoln         
Samuel Crowl, Ohio University         
Katharine Goodland, City University of New York         
Andrew James Hartley, UNC Charlotte         
Naomi C. Liebler, Montclair State University         
Genevieve Love, Colorado College         
Kirk Melnikoff, UNC Charlotte         
Carol Chillington Rutter, University of Warwick         
Tiffany Stern, Shakespeare Institute         
Fran Teague, University of Georgia         
Paul Yachnin, McGill University

Founding Editor

Seymour Isenberg

Previous Editors

James P. Lusardi and June Schlueter, Lafayette College (1983–2003)         
Andrew James Hartley, University of North Carolina, UNC Charlotte (2003–2013)         
Pascale Aebischer, University of Exeter (2013-2017)         
Kathryn Prince, University of Ottawa (2018-2021)

Shakespeare Bulletin publishes reviews of new books within the field of early modern performance studies and theater history.

Authors interested in writing book reviews should first contact the Book Reviews Editor, Elizabeth Zeman Kolkovich, at kolkovich.1@osu.edu to discuss a proposed review. Reviews are usually around 2000 words, and the journal will work with publishers to provide reviewers with complimentary access to the book.

Authors and publishers who would like their books to be reviewed in Shakespeare Bulletin are invited to email the Book Reviews Editor. Review copies should be sent to the address below.

Elizabeth Zeman Kolkovich 
Ohio State University 
1760 University Drive 
Mansfield, OH 44906 
United States

Please send book review copies to the contact above. Review copies received by the Johns Hopkins University Press office will be discarded.

Detailed Book Review guidelines may be accessed from this link.

Shakespeare Bulletin publishes a substantial section of performance reviews in each issue. These may include theater productions, live or “as live” theater broadcasts, digital theater, films, television series, web series, audio drama, and performance art that reinterpret early modern drama for today’s audiences. We welcome reviews of performances from around the world and in any language. 

Authors interested in writing performance reviews for Shakespeare Bulletin are advised to contact the Performance Reviews Editor, Benjamin Broadribb, in the first instance at SBperformance@marybaldwin.edu. Reviewers may use their Shakespeare Bulletin affiliation to request complimentary tickets from theaters, but only if the review has been agreed in advance with the Performance Reviews Editor. Reviews should ideally be 1,000–1,500 words long.

The journal's Performance Review Guidelines document may be accessed from this link. A further document outlining how to structure and format performance reviews is available here.

Abstracting & Indexing Databases

• EBSCOhost
  • Current Abstracts, 6/1/2004-
  • Humanities International Complete, 6/1/2004-
  • Humanities International Index, 6/1/2004-
  • Humanities Source, 6/1/2004-
  • Humanities Source Ultimate, 6/1/2004-
  • International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance with Full Text, 1/1/1999-
  • Literary Reference Center, 1/1/2005-
  • Literary Reference Center Plus, 1/1/2005-
  • MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
  • TOC Premier (Table of Contents), 6/1/2004-
• Gale
  • Book Review Index Plus
  • Gale Academic OneFile, 03/2004-
  • Gale Academic OneFile Select, 03/2004-
  • Gale General OneFile, 03/2004-
  • Gale OneFile: High School Edition, 03/2004-
  • Gale OneFile: Popular Magazines, 03/2004-
  • InfoTrac Custom, 3/2004-
  • MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
  • Shakespeare Collection, 3/2004-
• OCLC
  • ArticleFirst, vol.19, 2001-vol.29, no.4, 2011
  • Electronic Collections Online, vol.24, no.1, 2006-vol.29, no.3, 2011
• ProQuest
  • Arts Premium Collection, 1/1/2006-
  • MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
  • Music & Performing Arts Collection, 01/01/2017-
  • Performing Arts Periodicals Database, 01/01/2006-
  • Periodicals Index Online, 5/1/1983-9/1/1983
  • The Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature (ABELL)

Abstracting & Indexing Sources

• MLA Abstracts of Articles in Scholarly Journals (Ceased) (Print)

Source: Ulrichsweb Global Serials Directory.

Published quarterly

Readers include: Professionals in the theatre world and Shakespeare academicians and practitioners

Print circulation: 69

Print Advertising Rates

Full Page: (4.75 x 7.5”) – $375.00

Half Page: (4.75 x 3.5”) – $281.00

2 Page Spread – $563.00

Print Advertising Deadlines

March Issue – January 15

June Issue – April 15

September Issue – July 15

December Issue – October 15

Online Advertising Rates (per month)

Promotion (400x200 pixels) – $281.00

Online Advertising Deadline

Online advertising reservations are placed on a month-to-month basis.

All online ads are due on the 20th of the month prior to the reservation.

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