Shakespeare Study: Miscellaneous Shakespeare Books

I’m continuing my study of Shakespeare, as I expect I will do for the rest of my life. There are plenty of books to keep me going. Here are notes on those I read in the last several weeks.

Compete Sonnets by William Shakespeare – I picked up this copy of the sonnets recently from a box of free books outside a book store. It’s part of the Dover Thrift Editions, and the price printed on the back cover is one dollar. So you won’t be surprised to learn that it doesn’t contain a lot of notes. There is a one-page introduction that gives a bit of information on the sonnet as a form and about the publication of Shakespeare’s sonnets. And there is a two-page glossary containing words whose meanings have changed over the years. The book was edited by Stanley Appelbaum, but basically presents the sonnets without editorial comment. This book was published in 1991.

Shakespeare, An Island And A Storm by David F. Raine – This book delves into the question of why William Shakespeare wrote about the specific shipwreck that inspired The Tempest. Part of the author’s interest in this story comes from the fact that he was living in Bermuda where the shipwreck occurred. In the first chapter he gives the history of the event of the shipwreck. In the second chapter, he mentions the reason behind the spelling: “Shakespeare unashamedly included several obvious and direct references to those isolated Atlantic islands, which various of the play’s characters describe as ‘The Bermoothes’. The spelling is flagrantly in keeping with that widely used throughout the late Elizabethan Period for those islands known as ‘The Bermudas’” (p. 7). As for the reason for Shakespeare to choose to write about this shipwreck, Raine writes: “William Shakespeare had direct connections with the Ill-fated ‘Sea Venture’. Indeed, he had ties to this particular vessel which were not only extensive, but were significantly more personal than he had ever had with any previous incident of shipwrecking” (p. 13). He goes on to write: “He had enjoyed, for example, a long-standing professional relationship with William Strachey – the Virginia Company’s designated Secretary to Jamestown. Strachey was one of the ship’s passengers” (p. 13). He goes on to detail some of the history of their connection. Raine also gives information on George Somers, and in fact he had previously written a biography on him. This book focuses on possible personal connections between Shakespeare and those associated in one way or another with the ship. Raine does not get into the play itself, into specific scenes or lines that might have been inspired by the shipwreck. He does include a section on the ridiculous question of authorship, which seems largely unrelated to the book’s theme. There is a serious of illustrations at the end of this thin volume. Shakespeare, An Island And A Storm was published in 2000.

Macbeth by William Shakespeare – This is a volume in the Cambridge School Shakespeare series, and was edited by Rex Gibson. The text of the play is on the odd-numbered pages, while thoughts, activities and definitions are on the facing pages. In a suggested activity regarding Duncan, Gibson writes: “But his action in naming Malcolm as his successor has sometimes been interpreted as suggesting that Duncan is devious. It is a sign he wishes to establish his own dynasty rather than follow the established custom by which a small group of noble kinsmen elected the king” (p. 20). In another of the suggested activities, Gibson writes: “Banquo develops an elaborate metaphor as he describes nests of house martins (‘loved mansionry’) under every convenient ledge (‘jutty, frieze, Buttress,…coign of vantage’). He voices the belief that martins choose healthy situations to raise their young (‘pendent bed’, ‘procreant cradle’). But in Shakespeare’s time ‘martlet’ (or martin) could mean someone deceived by appearances, a ‘dope’ or ‘dupe’” (p. 26). Later the book draws comparisons between Lady Macbeth’s taunts and Macbeth’s own taunts toward the murderers: “Just as Lady Macbeth had questioned Macbeth’s manhood, he now similarly needles the Murderers” (p. 70). The book also offers this group activity: “The three Apparitions are invitations to exercise your imagination. Talk together about what each might symbolise: for example, ‘an armed Head’ might forecast Macbeth’s eventual fate at the hands of Macduff, ‘a bloody Child’ the death of Macduff’s children, and ‘a Child crowned, with a tree in his hand’ Malcolm’s victory. In Shakespeare’s theatre they probably appeared through a trapdoor” (p. 102). At the end of the book, there are sections on the play, the characters and witchcraft. In the section on witchcraft, Gibson writes, “Accused witches were examined for the ‘Devil’s mark’: a red mark on their body from which Satan had sucked blood (some of Shakespeare’s audience might interpret Lady Macbeth’s ‘damned spot’ as evidence of the Devil’s mark)” (p. 168). There are also photos from various production of the play throughout the book. This book was first published in 1993. The second edition came out in 2005, and my copy is from the eleventh printing, in 2012.

Macbeth by William Shakespeare – I decided to follow the Cambridge School Shakespeare edition of Macbeth with the Oxford School Shakespeare edition. This book was edited by Roma Gill. It contains a synopsis of the play, and then descriptions and comments on each scene. In the description of the Porter scene, Gill writes: “His jokes are not so funny today as they were in 1606. In Shakespeare’s day, his chatter about the ‘equivocator’ might have reminded the audience of the recent and famous trial of a priest who could ‘swear in both the scales against either scale’” (p. xvi). About the murderers, Gill writes: “It is a surprise, to us as well as to them, when a third hired assassin appears. Macbeth can trust no one, not even the thugs he first hired to murder Banquo” (p. xvii). The commentary about the apparitions tells us: “They appear in symbolic form. The first, ‘an armed head’, represents Macbeth’s own head (wearing a helmet); the ‘bloody child’ that comes next is Macduff, who had been ‘untimely ripp’d’ from his mother’s womb (as he tells Macbeth in Act v, Scene vii); and the last, the royal child with a tree in his hand, is Malcolm, the rightful king of Scotland, who approaches the palace at Dunsinane camouflaged with tree-branches (Act v, Scene iv). Macbeth cannot interpret these symbols, but Shakespeare expects the audience to understand what is meant” (p. xix). Regarding Lady Macbeth’s lines “Thou wouldst be great,/Art not without ambition, but without/The illness should attend it,” Gill writes: “By ‘illness’ Lady Macbeth means ‘evil’, but her metaphor is appropriate: Macbeth ‘catches ‘ evil, as one might catch a disease. The play shows how his symptoms develop, until there is no hope of a cure, and the man must die” (p. xxiii). Regarding the text, Gill writes: “The text here shows some signs of revision (perhaps by Shakespeare himself) and adaptation (probably after Shakespeare’s death). Certainly one scene (III, v) has been added, and another (IV, i) has been adjusted, both of them accommodating songs from The Witch, a much later play of uncertain date by Thomas Middleton” (p. xxix). Notes in this edition are to the left of the text on each page. The note about the phrase “cannot be lost” in Act I Scene iii reads, “The witches could injure human beings, but not kill them” (p. 5). From that same scene, there is a note about the line “The Thane of Cawdor lives/A prosperous gentleman” which reads “Shakespeare seems to have forgotten that Macbeth has just been fighting Cawdor” (p. 7). The note about the knocking reads, “The offstage knocking is the first sign that the outside world is reacting (without yet know it) to the crime that has been committed” (p. 28). A note about the first scene of Act IV reads, “the ingredients of the witches’ cooking-pot are all items thought by the Elizabethans to be poisonous or unnatural” (p. 61). The note about Macduff’s line “He has no children” reads, “Macduff may refer either to Malcolm (who cannot know a father’s feelings), or to Macbeth (who cannot be made to suffer appropriate revenge)” (p. 80). After the text of the play, the book includes extracts from Holinshed’s Chronicles. This book was first published in 1977. It was reprinted in a new edition in 2004, and it’s that edition that I read.

Antony And Cleopatra by William Shakespeare – This time I read The Pelican Shakespeare edition, edited by A.R. Braunmuller. In the introduction, Braunmuller writes: “Antony and Cleopatra dramatizes a deeply fraught moment in European history, one especially significant for Shakespeare’s first audiences: the end of republican Rome, the beginning of imperial Rome, the confusing and to that audience hateful animosity of the Roman-sponsored administration in Judea toward Jesus’ parents and their people, the soon-to-come moment of the Messiah. Cleopatra and her Egyptian monarchy were strange and threatening and puzzling; so too were the Judea and Jewry of Herod. History and culture, belief and prejudice make the moment of Antony and Cleopatra demanding for Shakespeare’s audiences and later ones” (p. xxxiii). About the two main characters, he writes, “Cleopatra and Antony are world actors who act foolishly, who simultaneously play both state tragedy and domestic comedy” (p. xxxvi). He adds, “Still, it is Shakespeare’s last play in this difficult tragic form, and – perhaps as an aging artist’s venture? – it is a play whose lover-heroes are notably middle-aged and aware of time’s passing and authority’s ebb, aware of wrinkles, of gray hair, of fading sexual attractiveness” (pages xxxvii-xxxviii). Braunmuller writes, “Throughout the second half of the play, the interchange of meanings and values, purposes and desires between Cleopatra and Antony makes them, for themselves and for others, so intermingled that all find it difficult and perhaps not even necessary to distinguish queen and triumvir in terms of female and male” (p. xxxix). Notes on the text are included at the bottom of each page. The note regarding Charmian’s line “I love long life better than figs” reads, “figs were a slang analogue of penis and testicles” (p. 9). This new edition was published in 1999.

Antony And Cleopatra edited by John Drakakis – This is a volume in the New Casebooks series, featuring essays by several different authors. John Danby writes: “Throughout the play we are forced by Shakespeare himself not to take comment at its face value. Judgements are more personal here than elsewhere. Goneril and Regan discussing their father’s condition are reliable judges. Caesar, Antony, Enobarbus, the soldiers Demetrius and Philo, are not – or not to the same extent” (p. 35). Later in that same piece, Danby writes: “The outstanding achievement of the first scene is the way in which it begins with the soldiers’ condemnation and returns us at the end to the same thing – allowing for this side eighteen lines out of the sixty-two. Yet at the end we are no longer satisfied as to the adequacy of what Demetrius and Philo say” (p. 40). Danby also writes: “The second messenger brings news of Fulvia’s death. It is characteristic of the play that what is hated during life should find favour once it is dead. Later in this scene that is reported to be the case with Pompey in the popular reaction to him” (p. 42). Janet Adelman in her piece writes, “Love in Shakespeare almost always creates its own imaginative versions of reality; and it is almost always forced to test its version against the realities acknowledged by the rest of the world” p. 59). A little later in that essay she writes, “Throughout, Shakespeare disarms criticism by allowing the sceptics their full say: the whole play is in effect a test of the lovers’ visions of themselves” (p. 62). Phyllis Rackin writes, “Cleopatra’s strategy in love is to present a series of shows, to keep Antony unsure of her feelings and motivations, but in most of the play, the audience is also unsure” (p. 83). Terence Hawkes writes: “If man’s communicative system depends, finally, on two interdependent units, voice and body, the play assigns voice alone to Rome, body alone to Egypt. Rome is a place of words, Egypt a place of actions. Rome is where love is talked of, Egypt is where love is made” (p. 112). Regarding Act IV Scene iv, Barbara C. Vincent writes: “Antony is holding a last supper, at which one of the men present, ‘perchance tomorrow’, will betray him. He talks of a resurrection of his honour, redeemed with his blood, of the identification of one man with many men, of masters and servants changing places, and of being married to his loyal followers” (p. 234). Later in that same piece, Vincent writes, “In dressing up to die, she plays against the conventional association in Renaissance drama of death with undressing. The end of an actor’s role, the dissolution of his identity, is often symbolised by the removal of costume. Antony removes his amour and is ‘no more a soldier’ as he prepares to die” (p. 242). Marilyn French writes: “Antony’s suicide is of the same sort. He performs it – clumsily – after hearing of her death, but if he had won the battle, if there was a chance of mustering his forces and re-engaging Caesar and winning a real victory, the chances are most unlikely he would have done any such thing. Thus, they kill themselves not entirely for love. What both assert by their deaths is that they will not live in worlds too severely diminished” (p. 270). This book was published in 1994.

Shakespeare References in Audition

Michael Shurtleff’s Audition: Everything An Actor Needs To Know To Get The Part contains several references to Shakespeare. The first play mentioned is actually Tom Stoppard’s play about two minor characters from Hamlet. Shurtleff writes about being a casting director for Broadway plays, and lists a few of those plays including Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead (p. 3). The next play he refers to is Romeo And Juliet: “The actor should ask the question, ‘Where is the love?’ of every scene, or he won’t find the deepest emotional content. This does not mean that every scene is about Romeo and Juliet-type love; sometimes the scene is about the absence or deprivation of love” (p. 36). Later Shurtleff asks, “Would Laurence Olivier’s RICHARD III be half so beguiling without that incredible humor that attracts us to the man as we despise ourselves for being so attracted?” (p. 76). Shurtleff mentions Shakespeare when talking about wit: “Ask them what wit is, and most can’t even define it. Since Shakespeare is full of wit, you’d think that would give them a clue; but Shakespeare gives them a clue to nothing, since all that concerns them when they perform him is The Beauty of the Verse. (I see whole productions of Shakespeare in which I can’t follow the plot or determine the basic relationships because neither the actors nor the director ever gave those essential elements a single thought)” (p. 130). He then mentions Hamlet: “All good plays have mystery and secret for actors to explore. Hamlet’s curiosity about his mother’s remarriage is never really answered to his total satisfaction. Something in Gertrude eludes him. And Gertrude is perplexed over her son’s odd conduct. What is the secret he is keeping from her? Why is he acting in this unexpected way? What does he want?” (pages 141-142). A moment later he mentions Hamlet again: “The character that Al Pacino played in DOG DAY AFTERNOON is in some ways almost as complex as Hamlet” (p. 142). Hamlet is again referred to a little later on, when Shurtleff writes, “You don’t have to fit the action to the words in the audition situation the way you do in performing” (p. 181). There the reference is to Hamlet’s advice to the players.

In the chapter on auditioning with a monologue, Shurtleff writes, “When there is more than one character in the scene, as is so frequently the case with Shakespeare (where there can be a whole courtful of people for you to deal with), then place the different characters in widely different locations on stage, give them each a single simple attitude toward you that you are either combating or using as agreement” (p. 189). And regarding soliloquies, Shurtleff writes, “Soliloquies are regarded with great suspicion by most actors as a mean and alarming stage device invented by playwrights, chiefly Shakespeare, to torture the actor” (p. 191). He mentions Shakespeare again a few pages later: “Shakespeare’s plays retain their undiminished popularity because they are everlasting romances” (p. 197). He then tells an anecdote regarding Hamlet: “I didn’t cast all of Richard Burton’s HAMLET but was only called in by producer Alexander Cohen for an emergency one-shot job. Normally I turn them down, figuring I’m not a troubleshooter but a casting director who needs to be part of the creative effort from the beginning, not doing patch work after it’s all too late; but this was to work with director John Gielgud on finding a new Ophelia. I’d never worked with Sir John so I said an immediate yes. It turned out it was not Sir John’s idea to fire the actress he had; the producer and others wanted her replaced, so Sir John pacified them by coming into New York from the pre-Broadway tour for a day of auditioning new Ophelias” (pages 235-236). There is then a reference to The Tempest. Shurtleff is talking about pantomiming props during an audition, and writes, “You don’t have to search for the proper vinyl-topped table to put it on, either; just let it go into thin air” (p. 252). That’s a reference to Prospero’s line, “These our actors,/As I foretold you, were all spirits and/Are melted into air, into thin air.” He then mentions Romeo And Juliet again: “Love is not always Romeo and Juliet. Most actors seem to think it is. Ideal love, or nothing, is how they view it” (p. 253). There is one last reference to Romeo And Juliet: “If love had to have the romance, youth and perfection of Romeo and his Juliet, most of us would never experience love at all” (p. 254).

Audition: Everything An Actor Needs To Know To Get The Part was published in 1978.

Twelfth Night (Actors Co-op 2024 Production) Theatre Review

Though often the first two scenes of Twelfth Night are transposed, the first line of the text is “If music be the food of love, play on!” Not only does this new production of the play at David Schall Theatre open with the scenes in the proper order, it takes that first line to heart, and music becomes a key element of the performance. It feels designed not only to be the food of love for the characters, but for the audience as well. Directed by Michael T. Kachingwe, this production is given a modern setting somewhere in the South Pacific, though still referred to as Illyria, and features a strong cast, with standout performances by Mary Leeholland as Viola, Britny Horton as Maria and Howard Leder as Sir Andrew Aguecheek.

Though, as I mentioned, the opening scenes are presented in the order of the text, there is a moment before that, introducing the importance of music to the production as well as introducing the cast, as each member enters from various spots and engages in a dance to a prominent beat. It is a well-choreographed moment, and just before exiting, Jessica Woehler as Olivia, dons her veil. The stage itself has a spinning platform, so that the shifts in location from Olivia’s home to Orsino’s home are done quickly. Outside Orsino’s home, one of his attendants, played by Gavin Michael Harris, strums on a guitar and sings Sonnet 8, which leads to Orsino’s line “If music be the food of love, play on!” And it is when that attendant sings off-key, that Orsino (Antwon Mason, Jr.) delivers the line “Enough, no more,” which is wonderful. Orsino is dressed in bright gold, in contrast to Olivia’s mournful black, and also suggesting royalty (he is, after all, the Duke of Illyria). A brief sound effect of a storm leads to the second scene, as Viola (Mary Leeholland), with the help of the Captain (Ben Kientz) gets to shore. Viola is actually frightened when delivering her first line, “What country is this,” which works really well. It makes sense that she would be fearful rather than simply inquisitive, finding herself in a strange territory. And her delivery is heartbreaking when she mentions her brother, whom she believes to be drowned. Mary Leeholland is excellent here, even taking a moment to formulate her plan to serve the duke before voicing her intentions. And Mary Leeholland’s Viola is fairly convincing as a boy when dressed as Cesario. I love that on Orsino’s “thou art a man,” she instinctively adjusts her cap.

Sir Toby Belch (Isaac W. Jay) and Maria (Britny Horton) quickly establish a playful relationship, and are immediately loveable. Though Isaac W. Jay might at first seem a bit young for the role (he is uncle to Olivia), he does such a good job that his age is soon forgotten. On his “and drink in Illyria,” he pulls out a hidden bottle, and we get the sense that Sir Toby has bottles hidden all over Olivia’s home. We also sense that that’s not such a bad thing, for we side with those who are enjoying life, who are having fun. Howard Leder’s Sir Andrew Aguecheek is delightfully goofy and awkward and befuddled, while doing his best to not appear so, wearing a shirt that is half pink flamingos and half stripes. Malvolio (William Viriato) is in black shirt and shorts and bow tie, matching the mournful color of his mistress, and maintains a serious countenance and posture, standing straight as a post, his arms down at his sides. It’s particularly funny as the audience is well aware that he will not be able to maintain such a demeanor for long. Feste (Chloe Babbes) is in great contrast to Malvolio, in bright clothes and with a strong, vibrant energy. Maria’s reaction to Malvolio’s clapping for her attention is delightful. Britny Horton does a fantastic job of laying the groundwork so that when she devises the gulling of Malvolio, we in the audience cheer her on as much as Toby does.

Olivia is hilarious when giving the inventory of her beauty to Viola. As Viola says “Hallow your name,” we can see Olivia begin to get interested. And by the time Olivia says, “You might do much,” it is clear she is falling for Cesario. It is a delight watching the transformation of Olivia in this scene, and after Viola exits, she lets show her energy and joy. After “He left” in the line “He left this ring behind him,” Olivia looks around for something that Cesario could have conceivably forgotten, and not spotting anything, quickly removes her ring and finishes the line, a nice moment. Malvolio takes a great deal of joy in “returning” the ring to Cesario. It is clear that he lives for these moments, when he can speak ill of someone on his lady’s behalf. And it is another moment that prepares us to enjoy his gulling.

“O Mistress Mine” is sung to a recorded track with something of a dance beat. It is an interesting way of doing it, for the music comes partially from the characters and partially from the air, the atmosphere. It is as if there is always music about, and the characters can tap into it, join it. Sir Toby tries to join the song on a drum, but Feste is having none of that. However, on “Hold Thy Peace,” which is done without any recorded track, Toby is able to play the drum. When Malvolio is woken by this carousing, he appears in a black robe, a nice touch. He has clearly gone all out to adopt his lady’s mourning color. The most captivating element of this scene is Maria’s reaction to Malvolio. It has gone beyond mere irritation, and now she seems to have a need to strike back at him. Toby asks her, “What wilt thou do?” And that stops her for a moment, though in her expression we see that she is beginning to devise a plan. Andrew Aguecheek’s delivery of “I was ador’d once too” is actually sweet and touching. There is the sense that this poor buffoon was once loved. Feste’s next song is delivered to a track with a beat, but also to the guitar accompaniment of Orsino’s attendant. During the song, Orsino playfully grabs Cesario and engages in a dance, which initially alarms Viola. But then she and Orsino join Feste in the song. There is a wonderful moment when Feste drops out of the song, and the other two continue together, with Feste seeming to be aware of what is happening between them, which is great. Chloe Babbes’ Feste is more and more captivating to watch as the performance goes on. She is perhaps at her very best when pretending to be the priest Sir Topas while Malvolio is caged.

The actual gulling of Malvolio is far and away the funniest scene of the performance, and this production includes Fabian, who is sometimes cut (sometimes his lines are divided between Toby and Andrew, and sometimes Feste is added to the scene). It is great to have him here, and Kevin Shewey does a remarkable job in the role, adding to the spirit of the scene. Andrew’s delivery of “That’s me, I warrant you” is almost joyful, indicating he is happy just to be mentioned, to be thought of at all. And Malvolio’s line “I am happy” is nearly shouted, which is hilarious. But it is also the physical comedy of the scene which makes it so enjoyable, and each of the actors does a fantastic job here. This is where Malvolio comes alive. After he exits, the others come out to laugh at the results of their prank, and we in the audience are sad that the scene is over. But suddenly Malvolio comes running back on, shouting that there is a postscript, to the delight of all. And after that scene, Malvolio’s physical performance becomes different, as he feels more relaxed around Olivia. Apparently William Viriato has a background in dance, as his movement in his yellow cross-gartered stockings displays.

Ben Kientz, who played the Captain in the second scene, also plays Antonio to Victor H. Rodriguez’s Sebastian. It is interesting having the same actor save both Viola and Sebastian, for those two have in a way had the same experience, being rescued from the sea and left in unfamiliar surroundings. And they are, after all, twins. The problem, and it’s not unique to this production, is that the actors playing Viola and Sebastian do not resemble each other. Skin tone, height, build, hair are all markedly different. This Sebastian even has facial hair on his chin. And their voices are also quite different. Apart from their clothes, there are really no similarities at all. Yet, none of the other characters are able to tell the two apart. Orsino says, “One face, one voice, one habit,” and Antonio says, “An apple cleft in two is not more twin/Than these two creatures.” Olivia has married one of them, and still cannot tell them apart. So it really helps if they do resemble each other. But this production provides so much joy and laughter that the audience can largely look past that. As Feste sings the play’s final song, everyone comes out to dance, bringing us back to the beginning of the performance, and letting the music play on.

This production of Twelfth Night runs through May 12, 2024. Visit the theatre’s website for the complete schedule. There is one short intermission, which comes at the end of Act II. David Schall Theatre is located at 1760 N. Gower St. in Los Angeles, California. There is a free parking lot located directly across the street on Carlos Ave.

production photo by Zak Shelby-Szyszko

Shakespeare References in Eden Burning

Belva Plain’s novel Eden Burning contains a few Shakespeare references. The first is to Romeo And Juliet, with Plain writing: “‘I don’t intend to vote at all,’ he answered curtly. ‘What I’m thinking is, A plague on both your houses’” (p. 400). That is a reference to Mercutio’s lines in Act III Scene i when he is dying: “Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man. I am peppered, I warrant, for this world. A plague o’ both your houses!” Then Plain writes: “What happened was, some of these fellows got angry at the lady’s lies about me and decided to do something. That’s the long and the short of the whole business” (p. 409). The phrase “the long and the short” is something Shakespeare used several times, though in his work the order is reversed to “the short and the long.” In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Bottom tells the other Mechanicals, “For the short and the long is, our play is preferred.” In The Merchant Of Venice, Launcelot says, “Indeed, the short and the long is, I serve the Jew.” And in The Merry Wives Of Windsor, Nym says to Page, “He loves your wife; there’s the short and the long.” Later in that play, Mistress Quickly says, “Marry, this is the short and the long of it: you have brought her into such a canaries as ‘tis wonderful.” The phrase might be older than Shakespeare, but it seems he is the one who popularized it. The novel’s final reference is to Romeo And Juliet. Plain writes: “‘We’re early,’ Kate said. ‘Father Baker’s not here yet. I feel like Juliet eloping with Romeo to the friar’s cell’” (p. 472).

Eden Burning was published in 1982. The first Dell printing was in June 1983