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Category Archives: Shakespeare on Stage
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
Holding the mirror up to nature: acting for a living
Shakespeare knew a thing or two about acting: he observed the struggles of the inexperienced as well as writing guidelines for professionals. In real life the amateur prince Hamlet’s advice might have been unwanted, but as author, actor and theatre shareholder Shakespeare … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare on Stage
Tagged Michael Pennington, Richard Moore, Royal Shakespeare Company
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Plays and performances in Shakespeare’s theatres
I recently wrote about how Shakespeare leaves gaps within the text which actors are able to fill using their own imaginations. I’ve been reading a book that describes how theatres themselves contributed to the writing and performance of plays, an … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare on Stage
Tagged effects, Farah Karim-Cooper, First Folio, Gwilym Jones, Lucy Munro, Nathalie Rivere de Carles, Shakespeare's Globe, The Tempest, theatre, Tiffany Stern
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Shakespearean acting: achieving greatness
Four hundred years on, Shakespeare has lost none of his appeal for actors and directors, with Tom Hiddleston recently winning the Evening Standard Best Actor award for his charismatic portrayal of Coriolanus at the Donmar Warehouse in London. Only 33, … Continue reading
Posted in Shakespeare on Stage
Tagged acting, awards, David Calder, Evening Standard, Jeremy Irons, Judi Dench, Laurence Olivier, Nicholas Hytner, Ralph Myers, Robert Greene, Shakespeare Club, Stanley Wells, Tom Hiddlestone
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Cheek by Jowl and Shakespeare’s Globe in the news
Two theatre companies which have made their mark by performing Shakespeare have recently made announcements about future programming and projects. First, Cheek by Jowl. Since they were formed in 1981 by Declan Donnellan and Nick Ormerod the company has done … Continue reading
Posted in Legacy, Shakespeare on Stage
Tagged archives, As You Like it, Cheek by Jowl, Dominic Dromgoole, King John, Magna Carta, Measure for Measure, National Video Archive of Stage Performance, Russia, Shakespeare's Globe, Victoria and Albert Museum
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Witchcraft on page and stage
The Royal Shakespeare Company is currently staging the multi-authored play The Witch of Edmonton, first performed in 1621. It’s easy to see how attractive the play is since its subject relates so closely to Macbeth. In Shakespeare’s play the weird … Continue reading
Posted in Shakespeare on Stage, Shakespeare's World, Sources
Tagged Gunpowder Plot, Holinshed, James 1, Macbeth, supernatural, The Witch of Edmonton, witchcraft
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Remembering Richard Pasco, Shakespearian actor
On Wednesday 12 November Richard Pasco became the third eminent Shakespeare actor with close associations to Stratford-upon-Avon to die in 2014. Sadly there has been little immediate media interest, unlike that which met the death of Donald Sinden, and, … Continue reading
Marking the centenary of World War 1 with Shakespeare
This week the marking of the centenary of the outbreak of World War 1 has reached its climax with Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day. The installation of the sea of ceramic poppies at the Tower of London has shown how … Continue reading
Posted in Plays and Poems, Shakespeare on Stage
Tagged Charlecote Park, Christmas, Christopher Luscombe, Love's Labour's Lost, Love's Labour's Won, Much Ado About Nothing, Nigel Hess, The Christmas Truce, World War 1
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Exploring Shakespeare’s blank verse
About 10 days ago I wrote about the ways in which actors approach speaking Shakespeare’s poetry to bring it alive in performance. That post was mostly looking at OP or original pronunciation as opposed to modern speech, and some time ago … Continue reading
Posted in Shakespeare on Stage
Tagged Cicely Berry, Henry V, iambic pentameter, John Barton, metre, Playing Shakespeare, Royal Shakespeare Company, verse
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Hugh Quarshie: Othello at last
In 2015 Hugh Quarshie will at last be taking on the role of Othello. It’s been a long wait: having played a whole series of Shakespeare’s characters in the 1980s and 1990s, from the predictable Aaron in Titus Andronicus, through … Continue reading
Posted in Shakespeare on Stage, Sources
Tagged Black History Month, Cinthio, Hugh Quarshie, James Earl Jones, Kwame Kwei Armah, Lucian Msamati, Othello
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