Monthly Archives: August 2013

“Summer’s lease hath all too short a date”: the end of the holidays

26 August was the Summer Bank Holiday in the UK, the last official holiday until Christmas. And the end of August, though still summer, always feels like the end of the holiday season. Holidays have very different meanings to us … Continue reading

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Playing Shakespeare’s and Ibsen’s heroines: the career of Janet Achurch

After Shakespeare’s, Henrik Ibsen’s plays are the most-performed dramas ever written. They were immediately popular and were produced around the world even during his lifetime. Set in his native Norway, the plays explored what lay behind the strict moral regime … Continue reading

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Richard II and Edward II take the stage

Next week rehearsals begin for the most high-profile event of the RSC’s year, Richard II starring David Tennant, directed by Artistic Director Gregory Doran. There is a lot of information on the RSC’s website including a brief interview with Tennant, … Continue reading

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Shakespeare’s collaborators in the Elizabethan and Jacobean theatre

After far too long being seen in isolation, Shakespeare is increasingly seen as but one of many writers of the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean periods. Just recently there have been many studies looking at those other writers who inspired … Continue reading

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All’s Well That Ends Well at the RSC

High summer in Stratford-upon-Avon and at the RST the season is in full swing. Three Shakespeare productions are running in the main theatre, and on Thursday it was possible to see two plays back to back. In the afternoon there … Continue reading

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Art Everywhere: Shakespeare’s Ophelia

For the next ten days, until 25 August, copies of 57 British works of art will be displayed in thousands of locations in the UK: at bus stops, billboards and shopping centres. It’s billed as the world’s largest art show. … Continue reading

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Shakespeare’s mulberries: trees of history and legend

Last Sunday, 4 August 2013, one of Stratford’s mulberry trees split in two. There are many ancient mulberries in the town, principally in the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust’s gardens, and they’re mostly propped up by metal or brick supports, making them look … Continue reading

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The end of chivalry: John Talbot, the terror of the French

According to the messenger who gives the news in the first scene of Henry VI Part 1, Lord Talbot was captured by the French during a battle that took place on 10 August. The tenth of August last this dreadful … Continue reading

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Stratford’s heritage of food and drink

Ever since the town of Stratford-upon-Avon was granted the right to hold a weekly market in 1196 it has thrived on trade. The goods bought and sold were the agricultural produce of the area, still remembered in some of the … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and the ladies

  From the earliest of times, Shakespeare’s works have been specially admired by women. I wrote a couple of weeks ago about the “Sociable Letter” written by Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle and published in 1664. Margaret defended Shakespeare against … Continue reading

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