Tag Archives: Henry V

Remembering the Battle of Agincourt

The 600th anniversary of one of the most famous British military victories is being celebrated this month. The actual date is the 25th October 1415, the event the Battle of Agincourt when Henry V, with an outnumbered and outclassed army, … Continue reading

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Reporting War

On Saturday October 3rd the RSC is holding the latest in its series of debates on subjects raised by plays in its repertoire, Reporting War: Whose Truth is Told? The debate specifically accompanies the RSC’s new production of Hecuba, Marina … Continue reading

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Fred J Kormis’s Everyman in Stratford-upon-Avon

Passing the jewellery shop at the top of Sheep Street in Stratford-upon-Avon, I’ve often wondered about the statue of a young man who looks across the road towards the Town Hall. I had always assumed it must have a Shakespeare … Continue reading

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Shakespeare, Rupert Brooke and World War 1

Exactly 100 years ago, on 23 April 1915, the poet Rupert Brooke died aged 27 in the Aegean en route to battle in Gallipoli.  He’s often described as a World War 1 poet, but he was already an established poet destined … Continue reading

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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

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Shakespeare, politics and the history of Stratford-upon-Avon

The Shakespeare Club’s October meeting consisted of a lecture by historian Nicholas Fogg on  Shakespeare and politics. It was perhaps no surprise that he had decided to look at the subject through a historical perspective, suggesting that to understand Shakespeare’s views … Continue reading

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Children at war

Lyse Doucet’s recent BBC2 documentary, Children of Syria made gruelling viewing. She had spent six months following several displaced children in Syria. The children spoke with dignity and maturity beyond their years: all were aware that their childhoods have been … 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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Kenneth Branagh: from Henry V to Macbeth

Now for a treat: a whole hour of video of Kenneth Branagh, Alex Kingston and Rob Ashford discussing with US journalist Charlie Rose the production of Macbeth which has been playing at the Park Avenue Armoury in New York. The … Continue reading

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Howard Blake’s music for Shakespeare in performance

This Friday, 6 June, Stratford-upon-Avon’s Orchestra of the Swan’s celebration of the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth reaches its climax with a concert of music inspired by A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Three of the four concerts in the series have … Continue reading

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