Category: Shakespeare Plays

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as one of the most influential playwrights in history, and his plays have been performed and studied for centuries. From the timeless tragedy of Romeo and Juliet to the hilarious antics of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare’s plays continue to captivate audiences around the world. Whether you’re a fan of tragedy, comedy, or romance, there’s a Shakespeare play for everyone. So why not revisit these timeless classics and discover the magic of Shakespeare for yourself?

Browse the entire text of Shakespeare’s plays right here on Shakespeare Geek.

When You’re A Jet (West Side Story Reboot Is Coming)

~ duane ~ Leave a comment

Are we ready for a new West Side Story?

What if I told you Stephen Spielberg is directing?

The casting call is up!  September 11.

The announcement comes from the office of casting director Cindy Tolan. Auditions will take place at Gelsey Kirkland Academy of Classical Ballet in Brooklyn, with the sign-in for men beginning at 9AM and the sign-in for women beginning at 1PM.

The call stipulates auditionees should be between 15 and 25 years old with a strong dance background and ability to sing, and also specifies: “the Sharks are Latinx, the Jets are Caucasian.”

The original is certainly dated (look at that dialogue!) so that’s screaming for a rewrite. Will all those dance numbers still hold an audience’s attention?  All the “coming to America” songs and aspects of the story are still as strong as ever, but I hope they don’t go over the top and make it purely commentary on the current administration.

West Side Story
A little bit of West Side Story dialogue.

 

The One Where Shakespeare Geek Is Left Speechless

~ duane ~ Leave a comment

So we’re out driving with the kids this long weekend. I tell them over my shoulder, “So guys, Amazon made a new original version of King Lear that’s going to be on this month, does anybody think they’d want to watch that with me?”

“Yeah.”   “Sure.”   “Are we allowed to?”

“You’re always allowed to watch Shakespeare with me,” I tell them. “I just didn’t want to force anybody.  King Lear’s a tough one.”

“Is that the one where the king dies, and his daughter hates him?” asks my oldest from the far back seat.

And then this happened.  My son, my youngest, who can’t take his head up and away from his phone and his YouTube videos, says, “No, his daughter loves him the most. But she doesn’t want to just say oh blah blah we love you so much we love you more than anything like the two sisters do because all they want is the land. So the father sends her away but then when he figures out that the other two don’t really love him the other daughter comes back with her army to save him.”

I swear I got teary-eyed.  As soon as he started talking I looked my wife, unable to speak, with what I hope was a, “All my life has built to this moment” look.

When he stopped, and when I could speak, I said, “Nice job, son.  That made daddy very happy.  Well done.”

“But I only know it because you told me.”

“Yes but I think the last time I told you the story of King Lear was like six years ago. I didn’t think you were listening.”

 

Bet I Can Predict The Future

~ duane ~ 1 Comment
Which character was he supposed to be?

Finally, finally, my oldest gets to participate in a dedicated Shakespeare course this fall. I don’t have the title in front of me but it’s basically Shakespeare and Modern Film.  Given that my bestest online Shakespeare pal is a dude whose actual name is “Bard Film” I can’t wait until she gets homework.  (“Daddy, can I please do my own homework for once?”  “It’s ok sweetie, Bardfilm and I have got this.”)

Anyway, we had to order textbooks and I see they’ll be studying Othello, Taming of the Shrew and Twelfth Night. Folger editions, for the curious.

Hmmm.  Anybody else seeing a pattern there?

I’m calling it right now – I’m going to have my daughter watch O, 10 Things I Hate About You and She’s The Man before school starts because I’ll bet you anything that’s what they’ll be doing in class. I never thought I’d say this but I’m glad Hamlet’s not among her required texts. If they had her watching Lion King I don’t think I could stand it.

 

 

That’s What Friends Are For

~ duane ~ Leave a comment

One of my favorite things is when people come up to me and say, “I saw something the other day and thought of you,” and it turns out to be a Shakespeare reference of some sort. I especially love it when it’s friends I rarely hear from or coworkers with whom I wouldn’t otherwise interact during the day.  I always relay the story here and I always say “My plan is working.” Because every time that happens, that means that there’s a little more Shakespeare awareness in the world.  Whatever it is that I’m doing, that the people around me are picking up and taking with them in the back of their brains, made them recognize a Shakespeare thing they saw, and pay enough attention to it and think, “I have to tell Duane about that.”  (Seriously, just this week a coworker told me that at an antique store he spotted a coffee mug in the shape of Shakespeare’s head. “I thought you’d like that. But it’s not like I was going to buy an antique for you.”)

I am extra happy to report that the next generation has taken over.  As summer vacations wrap up and the kids get ready to get back into the school schedule, sports practices begin and so on, my daughter texted me a picture and said, “Look what I got!”

Turns out one of her friends went to Italy for vacation and, while in Verona looking at “Juliet’s balcony”, decided that she had to bring my daughter home a present.

On the one hand it’s a just little tchotchke brought back from vacation, like a souvenir spoon or refrigerator magnet. But I see it quite differently. I see it a whole new generation of Shakespeare geeks.  My daughter’s friends know that she’s “into Shakespeare.”  So now they’re the ones seeing Shakespeare things in the world and thinking, “Hey, I should tell her about that.”  Now my daughter’s actually starting her own collection of memories along those lines.  Hopefully one day (NOT soon!) one of her kids sees this hanging out on a knick knack shelf, takes it down to admire, and starts hearing stories about Romeo and Juliet?  

My plan is working better than I could have dreamed.

 

Sir Anthony Hopkins as King Lear : Discussion

~ duane ~ 4 Comments

By now you’ve likely seen the trailer for Amazon’s upcoming production of King Lear, starring Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, Emily Watson and a host of other recognizable names.  If not, here you go:

What do we think?  I’ve been speaking with people about it on a number of fronts, both online and real life.  Naturally, I’m looking forward to it.

But …  I don’t know. I’m wary about something and I can’t quite place it.  I’ve watched the trailer several times now. I wanted to comment on how it’s going to be all about the costumes and scenery and less about the words (“you should be able to hear a great Shakespeare play,” I wrote in one draft of this post). But that’s not it.  Kenneth Branagh made some gorgeous productions that we loved.

And I was going to say that there’s more in the trailer that’s not Shakespeare than actual Shakespeare, but again when I went looking I couldn’t see that the problem was all that bad.  I’m still not sure where the hooded execution comes from, and the machine gun fire.  But for the most part – the cars, the hunting dogs, etc… I can see where they’ll most likely fit naturally into the story.

I think my problem is simply with Anthony Hopkins.  I don’t see King Lear (like I did with Alexander Barnett).  I see Hopkins. I see him acting angry, I see him acting silly, I see him in a jaunty little hat like he’s going fishing (or about to play Waiting for Godot). There are times when this can work, given what we know of his past roles.  Seeing a clearly pissed off Anthony Hopkins say, “Better thou hadst not been born than not to have pleased me better,” you can almost imagine the same line coming out of Hannibal Lecter.

Is it just me?  I can’t really say the same about Ian McKellen, for example. I don’t look at Magneto and Gandalf (and King Lear ;)) and say, “Yup, same guy.” I’ve long praised Daniel Day Lewis’ ability to just absolutely disappear into his roles. But something about Hopkins. All I ever see is Hopkins.

What do you think?