Reading the Past, Understanding the Present is a collection of essays written by students from nine European universities, who took part in the Strategic Partnership, 'Facing Europe in Crisis: Shakespeare's World and Present Challenges', aiming to promote historical understanding of the crises plaguing the contemporary Europe and the world. In each chapter, the authors examine early modern theatre, the works by William Shakespeare in particular, and how it interacts with various local and global issues, reflecting on their cultural and socio-political origins and consequences. This book offers an innovative insight into the relationship between the past represented in such plays as 'The Merchant of Venice', 'King Lear', 'The Tempest', or the history plays and the complex contemporary European context - migrant crisis, racial diversity, democracy, or the Covid-19 pandemic.