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Acclaimed as a modern dramatic masterpiece, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead is the fabulously inventive tale of Hamlet as told from the worm’s-eve view of the bewildered Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two minor characters in Shakespeare’s play. In Tom Stoppard’s best-known work, this Shakespearean Laurel and Hardy finally get a chance to take the lead role, but do so in a world where echoes of Waiting for Godot resound, where reality and illusion intermix, and where fate leads our two heroes to a tragic but inevitable end.
Tom Stoppard was catapulted into the front ranks of modem playwrights overnight when Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead opened in London in 1967. Its subsequent run in New York brought it the same enthusiastic acclaim, and the play has since been performed numerous times in the major theatrical centers of the world. It has won top honors for play and playwright in a poll of London Theater critics, and in its printed form it was chosen one of the “Notable Books of 1967” by the American Library Association.
Anonymous
Posted July 20, 2010
My friend and I were seniors in high school when we were introduced to this book. Alot of the other girls in our class were snots about reading anything that didn't relate to them. However my friend and I could not help but laugh hysterical at parts and read scenes over and over. She got me the book as a present and it is definitely a keeper! Whenever I am feeling sad I can just read a part of the book and be laughing in seconds. I loved it!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.If a play were cooked up like a stew, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead's recipe would be something like this: mix in a large pot Shakespeare's original play Hamlet, adding a liberal portion of Waiting for Godot and Abbot and Costello, with a pinch of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Let sit while you flip coins; serve with a sprig of uncertainty.
Stoppard's play is pure genius. While depending somewhat on Shakespeare's Halmet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern follows what would have been offstage: the (mis)adventures of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.or is it Guildenstern and Rosencrantz? Even they mix each other up. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is a read for everyone, all ages, through the ages. With wit and humor the play disassembles and reassembles life's big questions, calling certain conventions meaningless with playing within those conventions: a play's got to begin and end somewhere. A fabulous read.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted June 12, 2005
I read this play among many others in high school and was smitten with Tom Stoppard's work. His prose and ability to tell a story within another story was fantastic. I rank Tom Stoppard among the best playwrights of all time for this play alone, not to mention all the other pieces he's written. This will make you laugh until your sides hurt and think until you can't think anymore. I loved it.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted May 8, 2013
Hey. This is just a series of stories of some of the funniest things that've happened to me in rl. Youl find them in the results. Now. You probably know me as Foldar, so I'll use that as my name in these stories. You should also know that I have three sets of friends: Fencing, Homeschooling, and Dungeons and Dragons. I'll explain what they're like, but I won't give any real names. So. What are you waiting for? Go read.
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Posted November 19, 2007
I loved this play. In this play the cast I was with was awesome! Tom Stoppard captured such hilaritly writting this play. My favorite line (out of the WHOLE play) was 'Were actors were the opposite of people!'
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Posted September 2, 2003
It's it one of the best plays i've ever read. There is no arguement.
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted September 2, 2003
This book deserves 6 stars...its soooo great!!!!! especially the 'toffee apples' the scene....its definetly worth reading....its my favorite book of all time!!!
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Posted February 2, 2003
This book is wonderful in living two plays at once, and even at some times three. In a small fashion, this describes our everyday life when we encounter others... Other plays, I should say... One of the problems I see with this book is the fact that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern (R+G)are completely different when they interact with Hamlet or whenever the reader crosses over to Shakespeare's work... It seems as if the roles are switched between R+G whenever Hamlet comes along... Utterly strange, but rather enjoyable...
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Posted January 1, 2003
Gives us the insights to meta-levels explored by Stoppard. A literary treat, given the use of vocabulary. Truely the work of a genius.....
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Posted November 30, 2001
This was one of the best books I have ever read. I loved how there was a meaning behind every litle thing in the book. I expecally liked the boat scene.
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Posted November 5, 2000
I have seen this show preformed 2 times now and it makes me feel the same way now as it did then...amazed! If you plan on reading this play or seeing the show, please read the clff's notes or better yet Hamlet...It is an amazing show that should be understood totally. And remember...Yelling 'Fire' in a theatre is an example of the problems with free speech. ;)
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Posted June 2, 2000
Though I have never read the play and have have only seen the movie, knowing that movies are usually of a lesser quality and never do crediit to the original work I would imagine that Rosencrance and gildenstern are dead must be the most intellectually stimulating piece of comedy ever written. Unfortunataly I am very poor and cannot afford a copy of this written work. I saw the movie on public television about 10 years ago and let me tell you It just changed the way I look at the metephysical aspectects of laughter. I mean the expectation has been completely circumvented by unexpected illogical expectation. I am drunk on wine as I write this review, But I am sure that the written work is better than the movie, so if you have $10.00 which is more than I will ever have, go to Barnes and noble and buy this thing which I am sure is a liturary great.
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Posted June 8, 2009
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Posted July 31, 2010
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Posted October 9, 2008
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Posted October 26, 2011
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Posted October 26, 2008
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Posted December 25, 2010
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Posted May 28, 2010
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Posted January 7, 2010
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Overview
Acclaimed as a modern dramatic masterpiece, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead is the fabulously inventive tale of Hamlet as told from the worm’s-eve view of the bewildered Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two minor characters in Shakespeare’s play. In Tom Stoppard’s best-known work, this Shakespearean Laurel and Hardy finally get a chance to take the lead role, but do so in a world where echoes of Waiting for Godot resound, where reality and illusion intermix, and where fate ...