Richard Schoch is a distinguished theater historian, author, and scholar whose work illuminates the rich traditions of British theater and Shakespeare in performance. A professor whose academic career has spanned leading universities on both sides of the Atlantic, Schoch has earned wide recognition for his deeply researched, elegantly written studies of how theatrical culture shapes — and is shaped by — the societies in which it thrives. His books include Queen Victoria and the Theatre of Her Age, which explores the monarchy's profound influence on Victorian theatrical life, and Shakespeare's Victorian Stage: Performing History in the Theatre of Charles Kean, a landmark study of historical spectacle in 19th-century Shakespearean production.
Among Schoch's other notable works is Not Shakespeare: Bardolatry and Burlesque in the Nineteenth Century, which examines the irreverent tradition of Shakespeare parody and its role in popular culture. His scholarship bridges the gap between academic rigor and accessible storytelling, making the history of performance vivid and engaging for readers well beyond the university. A sought-after lecturer and a fellow of the Royal Historical Society, Schoch has contributed significantly to the understanding of how the performing arts both reflect and actively construct cultural memory, cementing his reputation as one of the foremost historians of the English-speaking stage.