Showing titles in Shakespeare

William Shakespeare had nothing to do with the actor and moneylender William Shaksper from Stratford-upon-Avon. The man behind the nom de plume "William Shakespeare" was, in fact, a very well-educated aristocrat who often frequented the court of Elizabeth and whose real name was Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford. The dramas of Shakespeare were not written for the Globe Theatre but for the Queen's court.

Richard Burton reads Shakespeare's narrative poem about the legendary Lucretia (or 'Lucrece'). The poem tells the story of the Roman leader Tarquin's rape of Lucrece and her subsequent suicide.

Many of the greatest lovers, and the greatest love scenes in Western literature, are to be found in Shakespeare. The fresh but impassioned Romeo and Juliet, the resilient wit of Petruchio and Kate, the ardent exchanges of Lorenzo and Jessica ,and the anguished tragedies of Othello and Desdemona and Antony and Cleopatra - they all show love and courtship in its many forms.

Pericles is the Prince of Tyre but is forced to leave the city due to the atrocities that the wicked Emperor of Greece threatens to bestow should he stay. His courage, wisdom and goodness are recognized wherever he goes so much so that he marries the Queen of Pentapolis who bears him a child at sea, for he is forced to return to Tyre to pacify its citizens who are clamouring for his return as their ruler following the death of the wicked Emperor of Greece.

Two Gentlemen of Verona is believed to be one of Shakespeare's early comedies and as a result provides us with the first examples of a number of themes and devices that are further explored in many of his plays. These include loyalty, friendship and the nature of love.

Valentine sets off from Verona for Milan to see the world. Proteus stays at home because of his love for Julia. She is in love with him, but neither knows of the other's love until Lucetta shows Julia a love letter from Proteus. He is reading her reply when his father, Antonio, sends him to the Duke's court to join Valentine. The lovers take their leave and swear eternal constancy.

Shakespeare’s darkest psychological thriller. Three witches tell the Scottish General Macbeth that he will be king of Scotland. Encouraged by his wife, Macbeth kills the king, becomes the new king and kills more people out of paranoia. Civil war erupts to overthrow Macbeth, resulting in more death.

The ghost of the king of Denmark tells his son Hamlet to avenge his murder by killing the new king, Hamlet's uncle. Hamlet feigns madness, contemplates life and death and seeks revenge. His uncle, fearing for his life, also devises plots to kill Hamlet. The play ends with a duel, during which the king, queen, Hamlet's opponent and Hamlet himself are all killed.

Two Gentlemen of Verona is a comedy with a relatively small cast by Shakespeare's standards. It is possibly one of Shakespeare's first plays, and some regard it as a relatively immature work written between 1587 and 1593. It may even be Shakespeare's first play. This production is abridged in plain English, producing a condensed version of the play without the complexity of Shakespeare's sometimes obtuse language. Though a comedy, the play focuses on the themes of love and friendship and the conflict between them.

These adaptations of Shakespeare's classics Macbeth and Romeo & Juliet are told in plain English as full-cast audio productions. Additional materials and context are included. The set also includes a detailed introduction, adaptation notes, analysis of original Shakespearean speeches and study questions. This offers a fine introduction of perhaps the two most famous Shakespeare works and detailed study materials for those seeking to understand the plays in greater depth.

"Twelfth Night, or What You Will" is a comedy by William Shakespeare. The play centres on the twins Viola and Sebastian, who are separated in a shipwreck. Viola (who is disguised as a boy) falls in love with Duke Orsino, who in turn is in love with the Countess Olivia. Upon meeting Viola, Countess Olivia falls in love with her thinking she is a man. Illyria, the setting of Twelfth Night, is important to the play's romantic atmosphere. Illyria was an ancient region of the Western Balkans.

Leonato, governor of Messina sun that in Sicily, welcomes in his house Don Pedro, Prince of Aragon, who had arrived in the city accompanied by a retinue after the victorious conclusion of the war. Prince thanks for the hospitality and is Leonato two friends, two brave officers, young and noble Florentine Claudio and Signior Benedick of Padua.

Helen heals the king of France, and the king grants her permission to marry Bertram, the man she loves. Bertram rejects her and leaves a list of tasks that she must do to have him acknowledge their marriage. She follows him to Italy, completes all the tasks and Bertram accepts her as his wife. 

Two of Shakespeare’s most revered and elegiac poems. In The Phoenix and the Turtle, the mythical phoenix consumes itself in fire, from the ashes of which another phoenix is born. In Shakespeare's poem, the phoenix is female and the turtle (that is, a turtledove) is male. In A Lover’s Complaint, originally published with the sonnets, a young woman is overheard lamenting her betrayal by a heartless seducer.

En Verona, nos cuenta Shakespeare, dos jóvenes se enamoran profundamente, pero pertenecen a familias enfrentadas por un odio que ninguno de los dos eligió y que está fuera de su control. Una tarde calurosa de verano, Romeo, que se ha casado en secreto con Julieta, se ve envuelto en un conflicto y termina matando al primo de ella. Desde ese momento, la tragedia se desata. El destino, el azar y las malas decisiones conducen la historia hacia un final inevitable y desgarrador.

King Henry IV suffers from illness, so his youngest son, Prince John, fights the rebels, while Prince Hal prepares to be king. Meanwhile, Hal's friend Falstaff causes trouble, recruits and speaks ill of Hal. Henry dies and Hal becomes King Henry V. He banishes Falstaff from court, ready to wage war on France. 

Measure for Measure is one of darkest of Shakespeare’s comedies. Written in about 1603 and first performed in 1604, it immediately preceded the composition of the major tragedies Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth. Duke Vincentino, the ruler of Vienna, fears that under his mild sovereignty, the...

As the generating force of its plot, Twelfth Night uses a device which has since become a staple in comedy: gender confusion. Viola and her twin brother Sebastian, are shipwrecked on the coast of Illyria, a country ruled by the melancholy Duke Orsino. The twins are separated and Viola is led to...

The story revolves around two characters, Othello and Iago. Othello is a Moorish military commander who was serving as a general of the Venetian army in defense of Cyprus against invasion by Ottoman Turks. He has recently married Desdemona, a beautiful and wealthy Venetian lady much younger than himself, against the wishes of her father. Iago is Othello's malevolent ensign, who maliciously stokes his master's jealousy until the usually stoic Mute kills his beloved wife in a fit of blind rage.

Troilus and Cressida is set during the latter years of the Trojan War, faithfully following the plotline of the Iliad from Achilles' refusal to participate in battle to Hector's death. This full-cast dramatization is performed by The Marlowe Society.