Author Archives: Sylvia Morris

Gregory Doran’s Royal Shakespeare Company Odyssey

  On 14 September Gregory Doran becomes Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, the most high-profile job in the world of Shakespeare. The RSC was founded in 1961 by the young Peter Hall, renaming and giving new life to … Continue reading

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Our revels now are ended: The Tempest, Olympics and Paralympics

2012 has been the year of The Tempest. During this year of the World Shakespeare Festival at least three productions have been seen in the UK, and the play featured in the opening ceremonies for both the Olympics and Paralympics. … Continue reading

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Shakespeare for women: from Henry V to Julius Caesar

The announcement that an all-female Julius Caesar production is to be staged at the Donmar Warehouse in London from November to February has been greeted with excitement. Here’s Lyn Gardner’s Guardian piece. The production will be directed by Phyllida Lloyd … Continue reading

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Stratford-upon-Avon’s Shakespeare Club

Shakespeare has been celebrated in his home town of Stratford-upon-Avon for centuries. David Garrick’s Jubilee in 1769 was the first major festival, but although it put Stratford on the map it had no lasting legacy. It was another fifty-five years … Continue reading

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Heritage Open Days: history for free

Heritage Open Days have become a regular part of the UK’s cultural calendar. For one weekend doors normally closed are thrown open in some of the most historic buildings in the country. This year, between Thursday 6 and Sunday 9 … Continue reading

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Shakespeare’s Dark Lady of the sonnets: fact or fiction?

People have been trying to identify Shakespeare’s Dark Lady, the mysterious woman who is the subject of some of Shakespeare’s sonnets, since the Victorian period. A few years ago Emilia Lanier was the favoured candidate, and before that Mary Fitton. … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and the Paralympics

We’re now into the Paralympics, and once again Shakespeare is a highlight of the cultural celebrations. The pop-up Shakespeare project is bringing fifty actors including some who are deaf or disabled onto the streets of London. Performing extracts of speeches … Continue reading

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Finding Shakespeare’s Forest of Arden

Even during Shakespeare’s lifetime, the ancient Forest of  Arden was in decline, and I’ve always undertood that all remnants of the forest were long gone, cleared in order to make way for the expansion of human habitation and agriculture. When … Continue reading

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Remembering Shakespeare on stage

Remember thee! Ay, thou poor ghost, whiles memory holds a seat In this distracted globe. When the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre opened in 1879 it was designed to be both a memorial to Shakespeare and a living breathing theatre. Among the … Continue reading

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The rule of law: Anders Breivik and Richard III

This morning the court in Norway has ruled that Anders Behring Breivik, the killer of 77 Norwegians last summer, is sane. He will be sent to high-security prison from where he hopes to be able to argue that his views … Continue reading

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