On Shakespeare
'So I'm sitting here backstage, waiting for my entrance, caked in fake blood and taking part in a play that is brutal, nihilistic and offensive according to all criteria of 'good taste'. And it's thrilling.'

Did Shakespeare really write all those plays? Why do you do Shakespeare in modern dress? How do you prepare a role? What's it like doing a long run? Did he believe in ghosts? Was he a subversive ...?

Every day, after every performance, around the world, theatregoers ask these sorts of questions. And in On Shakespeare, John Bell, actor and director, a man who thinks, breathes and interprets Shakespeare's canon every day of his life, gives his response based on experience and reflection.

After many years of reading, performing and directing Shakespeare, in the UK and in Australia with the Bell Shakespeare Company, John Bell offers us a unique 'backstage pass' to the histories, tragedies, comedies and romances and a memorable insight into the sonnets.

John Bell's passionate relationship with Shakespeare informs and deepens our understanding of the man and his works. On Shakespeare is vivid, accessible and fascinating-a book that confirms Shakespeare's enduring relevance to our lives.

1110105496
On Shakespeare
'So I'm sitting here backstage, waiting for my entrance, caked in fake blood and taking part in a play that is brutal, nihilistic and offensive according to all criteria of 'good taste'. And it's thrilling.'

Did Shakespeare really write all those plays? Why do you do Shakespeare in modern dress? How do you prepare a role? What's it like doing a long run? Did he believe in ghosts? Was he a subversive ...?

Every day, after every performance, around the world, theatregoers ask these sorts of questions. And in On Shakespeare, John Bell, actor and director, a man who thinks, breathes and interprets Shakespeare's canon every day of his life, gives his response based on experience and reflection.

After many years of reading, performing and directing Shakespeare, in the UK and in Australia with the Bell Shakespeare Company, John Bell offers us a unique 'backstage pass' to the histories, tragedies, comedies and romances and a memorable insight into the sonnets.

John Bell's passionate relationship with Shakespeare informs and deepens our understanding of the man and his works. On Shakespeare is vivid, accessible and fascinating-a book that confirms Shakespeare's enduring relevance to our lives.

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On Shakespeare

On Shakespeare

by John Bell
On Shakespeare

On Shakespeare

by John Bell

eBook

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Overview

'So I'm sitting here backstage, waiting for my entrance, caked in fake blood and taking part in a play that is brutal, nihilistic and offensive according to all criteria of 'good taste'. And it's thrilling.'

Did Shakespeare really write all those plays? Why do you do Shakespeare in modern dress? How do you prepare a role? What's it like doing a long run? Did he believe in ghosts? Was he a subversive ...?

Every day, after every performance, around the world, theatregoers ask these sorts of questions. And in On Shakespeare, John Bell, actor and director, a man who thinks, breathes and interprets Shakespeare's canon every day of his life, gives his response based on experience and reflection.

After many years of reading, performing and directing Shakespeare, in the UK and in Australia with the Bell Shakespeare Company, John Bell offers us a unique 'backstage pass' to the histories, tragedies, comedies and romances and a memorable insight into the sonnets.

John Bell's passionate relationship with Shakespeare informs and deepens our understanding of the man and his works. On Shakespeare is vivid, accessible and fascinating-a book that confirms Shakespeare's enduring relevance to our lives.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781742693835
Publisher: Allen & Unwin Pty., Limited
Publication date: 10/01/2012
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
File size: 3 MB

About the Author

Actor, director, producer, John Bell is one of Australia's theatrical icons. Founder of the Bell Shakespeare Company, he is Australia's leading authority on interpreting, directing and performing Shakespeare.

Table of Contents

Author's note ix

Introduction xiii

1 The great Globe 1

2 Starting out 11

3 Stratford-upon-Avon 19

4 Shakespeare himself 34

5 An interview with Robert Greene 58

6 Acting Shakespeare 66

7 Directing Shakespeare 98

8 An interview with Ben Jonson 112

9 The Histories 128

10 The Tragedies 170

11 The Comedies 215

12 Shakespeare's books 257

13 The Romans 266

14 A fireside chat with John and Harry 297

15 The sonnets 314

16 Romeo and Juliet 332

17 Troilus and Cressida 341

18 Timon of Athens 349

19 The Romances 356

20 The Bell Shakespeare Company 378

Conclusion 385

Appendix A What Shakespeare's contemporaries said about him 389

Appendix B The sequence of the plays 397

Recommended reading 400

Index 401

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