Shakespearean Theatre
Latest Contributing Articles
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Shakespeare Quotations for a Macbeth Essay
Is this a dagger that I see before me? asks Macbeth in one of Shakespeare's most powerful and most bloody tragedies.
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Hamlet as a Tragic Hero
Like James Barrie's Peter Pan, William Shakespeare's Hamlet refuses to grow up, and Hamlet's immaturity ultimately leads to tragedy.
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Christmas Theatre at The Globe
This year Shakespeares' Globe Theatre will open for its first Christmas Season. Footsbarn's Christmas Cracker promises a true festive celebration for all the family.
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The Duty of Doubling in Hamlet
More than any other Shakespeare play, Hamlet is packed with doubles of all kinds. These duplicates (and triplicates) affect theme, mood, character, and everything else.
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Hamlet's Love of Words, Words, Words
William Shakespeare loved wordplay, and the English language has rarely enjoyed a larger playground than that of the dramatic masterpiece Hamlet.
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Are U.S. Actors Bad to the Bard?
Apparently film star Nicolas Cage dislikes Shakespeare spoken with an American accent. So, should "Yankee" Shakespeare not even be attempted?
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Hamlet on TV
The RSC's '09 adaptation of its David Tennant-led show proves that TV will always welcome another Hamlet. For more proof, read about major TV versions of the past.
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Major Themes of Shakespeare's The Tempest
The Tempest is Shakespeare's most popular comedy, touching on varied themes throughout the course of the story.
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Hamlet at the Movies
Emile Hirsch is the latest actor to play Hamlet for the big screen. Here's a short primer on the major films about the Melancholy Dane.
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The Minor Characters of Twelfth Night
Shakespeare's Twelfth Night has a variety of characters. Alongside the main roles there are smaller characters who still have their own important part to play.
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Character Analysis in Twelfth Night
Shakespeare's Twelfth Night is a comic play with characters that display intelligence, wit and humour.
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Plot Summary of Twelfth Night
Shakespeare's Twelfth Night is a comedy, showing the humourous problems caused by disguise and mistaken identity.
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Othello's Jealousy and Iago's Revenge
Othello is the second most popular Shakespearean play, dealing with themes of betrayal, revenge, and jealousy in equal measure.
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Madness, Revenge and Loyalty in Hamlet
Madness. Revenge. Loyalty. These major themes blend seamlessly in Shakespeare's Hamlet.
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Shakespeare Authorship Controversy
While William Shakespeare is called the greatest writer in the English language, some speculate that the real author remains unacknowledged.
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See Shakespeare Santa Cruz in a Redwood Forest
Watching a play by the Bard of Stratford is even more enchanting in an outdoor setting with wind blowing through the trees. Here are tips for attending.
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Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida
A summary of the play Troilus and Cressida, considered to be one of Shakespeare's "problem plays." It is not exactly a tragedy and not exactly a comedy either.
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The Element of Disguise in Shakespeare's Plays
In The Merchant of Venice, and The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare shadows the theme of human falseness with physical disguise.
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Race, Gender, and Religion in Othello
In her book Shakespeare, Race, and Colonialism, Ania Loomba talks about the different aspects of race, gender, and religion that work together in the play Othello.
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Shakespeare's Main Story Sources
Shakespeare pulled from many sources the inspiration for his plays, but there were two in particular to which he turned again and again.
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The Real Macbeth
King Macbeth ruled Scotland benevolently for seventeen years. So how did history's Macbeth become Shakespeare's personification of violent ambition?
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Shakespeare's "Bad" Quartos
Scholars call them the "bad" quartos, but the first published versions of Shakespeare's plays offer acting groups a way to produce fresh, exciting stage shows.
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Shakespeare Santa Cruz Summer Festival
This professional repertory company performs plays outdoors among sunny redwoods in the Festival Glen, as well as indoors on the UCSC Theatre Arts Mainstage.
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The Language of Shakespeare
Take the fear out of Shakespeare by learning a few generalities of Early Modern English - the language of the Renaissance.
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The Legacy of William Poel
William Poel proved to be a controversial figure during his lifetime because of his radical ideas and refusal to conform to the established practices of his day.
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Gender and Sexuality in Shakespeare's King Lear
King Lear is another of Shakespeare's plays that has ideas of a patriarchal society running through it.
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Hamlet's "What a Piece of Work Is Man"
Hamlet's Act II, Scene 2 soliloquay shows both the character's changing attitude toward the people around him and prevailing beliefs and dilemmas of the Renaissance
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Alas, Poor Yorick – Mortality in Hamlet
Hamlet's soliloquy about his dearly departed court jester, Yorick, explores both a transformation in his own character and Renaissance ideas concerning death and dying.
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Acting Shakespeare
Shakespeare's plays present a unique set of challenges for actors. Learn some of the best ways to connect onstage with the celebrated playwright.
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The Ill Fated Nature of Prince Hamlet
There are several different tragic elements in Hamlet, including Polonius's death, Ophelia's death and Hamlet's death, for all of which Hamlet can be held accountable.
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Egyptian Love Portrayed in Antony and Cleopatra
This article examines Shakespeare's portrayal of Cleopatra, focusing on the ideas of Cleopatra as an representation of Egypt, her expression of love, and her final death.
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Vastness of Scope in Antony and Cleopatra
This article examines features which go towards creating the epic proportion in the representation of societies and world within Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra.
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Determining The Genre of Antony and Cleopatra
This article considers the fluid identity of Antony and Cleopatra, and the difficulty of pigeon-holing it into a standard Shakespearean dramatic convention.
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Characters in Henry IV Part I
This article explores a classification of the play's characters into four discrete worlds, and the dramatic impact of covering such a diverse cast of characters.
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Falstaff's Relevance in Henry IV Part I
This article examines W.H Auden's opinion that 'the world of historical reality...is not a world which [Falstaff] can inhabit' in Shakespeare's Henry IV Part I.
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Examining Falstaff in Henry IV Part I
This article considers aspects of Falstaff that make him one of Shakespeare's most believable, famous and best loved characters.
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Single Parents in Shakespeare
Many single parents exist in William Shakespeare's plays. This article compares Volumnia and Martius in Coriolanus and Prospero and Miranda in The Tempest.
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The Theme of Love in The Tragedy of King Lear
This articles explores how love is misdirected in the play, and it's contribution in creating a sublime expression of human suffering in King Lear.
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Gender and Sexuality in Shakespeare's Macbeth
Lady Macbeth tries to take on masculine characteristics to make herself a stronger person, and in doing so belittles Macbeth by attacking his own masculinity.
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The Theme of Suffering in King Lear
The motif of suffering is a main concern in The Tragedy of King Lear.
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Heart of the Storm in The Tragedy of King Lear
Weather in Shakespeare's plays is used for various dramatic purposes. This article focuses on analysing the character development of King Lear within the story.
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Shakespeare and Gender Representation
Critics have opposing views on Shakespeare's representation of women. Are Shakespeare's plays about the individual's struggle, or the struggle of women?
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The Universe Within A Midsummer Night's Dream
This article explores how Shakespeare's literary genius captures the hearts of readers and audiences by envisioning a setting that is both magnificent and realistic.
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Worlds of Character in A Midsummer Night's Dream
This article analyses how the intertwining of diverse worlds of characters contribute to creating an atmosphere of dreaming in A Midsummer Night's Dream.
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Marriages in A Midsummer Night's Dream
This article considers the dramatic role of the three marriages between humans in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and the realism of each marriage.
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Burial at Sea and Shakespeare's Pericles
The sailors' desire to immediately throw the body of Thaisa overboard in Act III of Willam Shakespeare's Pericles is rooted in actual beliefs of Shakespeare's time.
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Othello's Final Speech
Othello's last words emphasize his status as a tragic hero and his transformation into an outsider.
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The Taming of the Shrew at the Tobacco Factory
The 2008 production of The Taming of the Shrew at the Tobacco Factory in Bristol fell flat, focusing too much on male characters and forgetting the women's importance.
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How To Understand a Shakespeare Play
Struggling to get to grips with the Bard? Don't worry, you are not alone - try the following fool-proof tips for understanding Shakespeare.
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Shakespeare's King Lear and James I
In King Lear, Shakespeare shows both his opposition and support of King James I and monarchy in general.
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