Just a quickie for now.  Longer post after the kids go to sleep. Tonight, at the dinner table, my 3yr old daughter comes out of the clear blue with, “Daddy?  I wish there was a Cordelia doll, so I could snuggle her and love her.” Daddy offers a wordless “My universe just clicked into place” smile to Mommy. “And I want a Regan doll!” chimes in my 5yr old. “Regan?” I ask.  “She’s a bad guy.” “No, not Regan,” she corrects, “What’s the name of the girl on the island?” “Miranda?” “Yeah, Miranda.  I wish there was a Miranda doll!”   Take that, Disney!

Ok, ok, fine, not everybody celebrates Christmas, yadda yadda yadda. I do, and it’s my blog. As the holidays approach, everybody’s got their gift guide. Gifts for Mom, Gifts for Dad, Gifts for Geeks, Gifts for CoWorkers. How about gifts for the Shakespeare lover? It’s easy to point at Shakespeare’s Den, and say “Go nuts.” But let’s talk details. You hoping for books, or movies? Or toys?

• I’ve got music – Shakespeare In Song, by William Clark. I’ve already got When Love Speaks, and like it.
• I’ve got books – Master of Verona, by David Blixt. I hear it’s good, and not just from the author who hangs out here :). I should be done with Interred With Their Bones by Christmas.
• I’ve even got an action figure hiding somewhere in the house – You know the one that started my kids down their long dark path to Shakespeare geekdom.

I don’t really have time to collect Shakespeare movies. A friend gave me Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead last year, and I’ve actually never even watched it. I know, bad me. I’ve read the actual script, just never seen the performance. What about you?

If you’re a fan of Othello, Stage Matters has a series of film reviews looking at all the classic interpretations of the Moor, including Olivier, Wells, Laurence Fishburne (possibly included because of Branagh’s Iago), and even a BBC version with Anthony Hopkins that includes an Olivier anecdote.  The review, that is, not the film itself.

http://mikeymike.vox.com/library/post/shakespeare-music.html Everybody on this blog by now knows that I’m teaching my kids to memorize Shakespeare by singing it.  Now I’ve got a book to point to that says why that may indeed work better :).  “Music, Language and the Brain” specifically cites Shakespeare for his “wonderfully talented use of rhythm, imagery and auditory patterns.”

I just received an email that Studio 360, a public radio show hosted by Kurt Andersen, will be doing a bit on Hamlet this weekend (Nov 23).    The subject of the piece is actor Scott Shepherd and his experimental “duet” with Richard Burton’s Hamlet in the 1964 film. The show is also available as podcast, which is why it hit my radar to begin with.  In general I’m unfamiliar with the show.  Any fans out there?  Should I be subscribed?  Do they normally do Shakespeare sorts of things?