Tag Archives: Antony and Cleopatra

Shakespeare’s Cleopatra

I recently attended a performance of Antony and Cleopatra at the RSC. Watching Josette Simon playing the Queen of Egypt, I couldn’t help thinking of others I’ve seen in the part, and wondering why it’s such a difficult one. Surely … Continue reading

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Vivien Leigh, Shakespeare’s lass unparalleled

In the theatre gardens in Stratford-upon-Avon is a silver birch tree planted in memory of Vivien Leigh, one of several dedicated to people who have worked at the theatres. At its base is a stone tablet, with her dates of birth … Continue reading

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Shakespeare, performance, emotion and memory

This week I have been attending the British Shakespeare Association’s conference at the University of Stirling. What follows is the text of my paper: The idea for my project Listening to the Audience began when, at an international Shakespeare conference … Continue reading

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Much Ado About Shakespeare at Easter

For Easter, a round-up of some of the many current Shakespeare-related events. First of all, on Easter Sunday BBC Radio 3 is celebrating Shakespeare’s imminent 450th birthday with two programmes. At 6.45pm, in Shakespeare: For and Against, playwright Mark Ravenhill … Continue reading

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T S Eliot and Shakespeare

  Listening to Jeremy Irons’ reading of T S Eliot’s Four Quartets on Radio 4 last weekend reminded me of the power of Eliot’s poetry. The Poetry Foundation’s website includes some information about the reading, and here is an article about Irons’ … Continue reading

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“Far more fair than black”: Cleopatra, Othello and blacks in Renaissance England

The Royal Shakespeare Company’s new production of Antony and Cleopatra will, for the first time in its history, feature a black actress, Joaquina Kalukango, as Cleopatra. It’s a co-production between the RSC, the Public Theatre, New York and Gablestage, Miami, … Continue reading

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Peter Brook: from enfant terrible to grand old man of the theatre

Nobody has been more influential in the world of the theatre in the last 70 years than Peter Brook. And at the age of 88, he’s still involved, setting out his ideas about why theatre is so important. Shakespeare has … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and the first actresses

The National Portrait Gallery in London’s new exhibition celebrates the careers of the earliest English professional actresses. Entitled The First Actresses: Nell Gwynn to Sarah Siddons it neatly documents womens’ increasing respectability in the world of the theatre. In Shakespeare’s … Continue reading

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Shakespeare’s Avon, Act 5: was Shakespeare an angler?

The River Avon is the centre of attention for visitors to Stratford this weekend, with the Stratford River Festival  entertaining people with lots of  events on and by the water. It probably won’t be the best weekend though for those wanting … Continue reading

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