Aspen is a place for leaders to lift their sights above the possessions which possess them. To confront their own nature as human beings, to regain control over their own humanity by becoming more self-aware, more self-correcting, and hence more self-fulfilling.

Walter P. Paepcke, Aspen Institute Co-Founder
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Sharing Shakespeare: King Lear, Act III

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Mon Dec 15, 2025
Aspen, CO

Date

Mon Dec 15, 2025
6:00pm – 8:00pm MST

Location

Aspen Meadows
1000 N. Third St.

Contact

    acp@aspeninstitute.org
    970.544.7992

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  1. Aspen Community Programs

Back by popular demand, the Aspen Institute presents Sharing Shakespeare, a moderated, roundtable discussion series that takes place one night a month for 6 months.  Beginning in October, the 2025-26 session will explore one of Shakespeare’s most significant works, King Lear.  We will focus the entire six-month series on one play, and by doing so, participants will read one act per month and share their insights and questions to reach a deeper understanding of one of Shakespeare’s most beloved and performed plays. Volunteer moderators will lead participants through lively discussions dissecting the intriguing scenes and characters in King Lear while uncovering themes that still resonate today.  

Dates and Times:  Monday nights from 6:00–8:00 pm MT October 20, November 17, December 15, January 12, February 9, March 9.

Location: Aspen Institute, Aspen Meadows Campus

Registration is now closed as the 2025-26 series has begun. Please email acp@aspeninstitute.org for more information.

King Lear, Act III
Into the Storm: Madness, Betrayal, and the Heart of King Lear
King Lear, Act III is the dramatic heart of the play, where Shakespeare shifts from political maneuvering to raw human suffering. As Lear wanders into the storm, stripped of shelter, dignity, and authority, the raging weather becomes an outward reflection of his mental collapse and spiritual awakening. We see disguises and deceptions (Kent as Caius, Edgar as Poor Tom) collide with loyalty and betrayal (Gloucester vs. Edmund, Kent vs. Oswald), while the daughters’ cruelty reaches new extremes. This act raises urgent questions about madness, justice, and what it means to be truly human when all external protections—family, power, and status—are torn away. Watch especially for how the storm reshapes Lear’s understanding of himself and others, and how Shakespeare uses physical violence and elemental chaos to push the story into its tragic depths.

Moderated by Dipika Rai and Michael Onufrak

Module 1
October 20
King Lear, Overview and Act I moderated by Ted Frisbie and Sandi Kister

November 17
King Lear, Act II moderated by Peter Waanders and Morgan Walsh

December 15
King Lear, Act III moderated by Dipika Rai and Michael Onufrak