PDA

View Full Version : For the love of Shakespeare!


Pages : [1] 2
cstadt
May 28th, 2009, 06:13 PM
Who's a fan? What's your favorite? Why?
Amy SF
May 28th, 2009, 09:50 PM
A Midsummer Night's Dream

Because there are fairies in it. :D
JessEpiphany
May 28th, 2009, 09:58 PM
I just picked up Shakespeare at the library yesterday ("hey, baby. Come here often?") because I'd never read it before and feel like maybe I'm missing out on something. Reading 2 other books currently so I'll get into Shakespeare in a few days to see what I've been missing.
aliciam712
May 28th, 2009, 10:45 PM
there's not much of shakespeare that i don't like :rockon:
Sewwattsnew
May 28th, 2009, 11:25 PM
I haven't been exposed to nearly enough Shakespeare, but as I'm planning to change my major to Theatre Tech, that's soon to change...

The two I'm most familiar with are Macbeth and, of course, Romeo and Juliet. Macbeth is cool 'cause of the superstition around it, and plus Macbeth himself is somewhere waaaay back there in my family tree, apparently.
Romeo and Juliet is lame (romance, blah. My lonely bitter heart scoffs at such a silly notion. XD ) but Mercutio is awesome.

I plan to read a lot more of his plays soon.
Recently I read a (fiction) book that had a subplot revolving around "the real Shakespeare" (Shakespeare's Secret, I believe it was called) and I'm fascinated by that. My mom's reading a more in-depth (nonfiction) book on the same subject and if I don't have time to read it she'll fill me in on some of it. I'm pretty much sold on the Edward de Vere theory. Anyone have any thoughts on that? (Not to hijack the thread, but it seems related.)
das_nut
May 29th, 2009, 12:02 AM
Not a major fan of Shakespeare, but Kurosawa's adaptations (Throne of Blood/MacBeth and Ran/King Lear) are great.
1815alan
May 29th, 2009, 10:31 AM
Sonnet 18 is perhaps the greatest love poem ever...
Brandon
May 29th, 2009, 10:33 AM
Love Shakespeare. :)

Some faves:
Hamlet
Othello
Twelfth Night
Midsummer Night's Dream
Julius Caesar
Prajnaparamita
May 29th, 2009, 11:08 AM
I love Hamlet and Titus Andronicus. Hamlet for the great dialogue and awesome characters and Titus for the sheer dark twistedness of it. Also love most of The Taming Of The Shrew. I just wish she wasn't "tamed" at the end, I liked her as she was when she was all mean and stuff. ;)
cstadt
May 29th, 2009, 11:15 AM
Sonnet 18 is perhaps the greatest love poem ever...

I disagree! I think Sonnet 130 is right up there
1815alan
May 29th, 2009, 12:27 PM
I disagree! I think Sonnet 130 is right up there

Sonnet 130 is a beautiful poem, I just love the final two lines of sonnet 18, they are so powerful, Shakespeare's words have made his love and his lover immortal.
GingerFoxx
May 29th, 2009, 12:37 PM
there's not much of shakespeare that i don't like :rockon:

ditto. That being said I really enjoy Twelfth Night. My nine-year old rabbit that lives at my mum's hosue is named Viola and at times she tries to get frisky with the cats, we refer to her as Ceasario (=


Not a major fan of Shakespeare, but Kurosawa's adaptations (Throne of Blood/MacBeth and Ran/King Lear) are great.

Kurosawa = Amazing. I really enjoyed Ran as well...
WonderRandy
May 29th, 2009, 01:40 PM
Serious Shakespeare nut here. I've been participating in Shakespeare in the Park (Hilo Hawaii) for the last seven years. I'm currently directing a production of The Taming of the Shrew. My all time favorite is The Tempest - I directed that one three years ago. Every time I act or direct Shakespeare, I'm reminded how stunningly brilliant the work is. The plays are meant to be PERFORMED, not just read. It make a HUGE difference in interpretation and comprehension.
Smurfbabe
May 31st, 2009, 10:04 PM
I've always had a soft spot for Macbeth - I love strong evil female characters and it's a great play. Also like Iago in Othello. My favourite comedy is probably Much Ado about Nothing.
das_nut
June 1st, 2009, 12:28 AM
Nobody else knows about Akira Kurosawa, it seems.

:(

It's a shame, his treatment of Shakespeare is really, really good.
RedLotus
June 1st, 2009, 12:43 AM
I love Shakespeare! I was lucky to have a wonderful English teacher all through HS, and when we did our section on Shakespeare we would read the work aloud in class, with everyone reading a few specific parts (there were only 8 people in my grade, so we had to double up on roles!). It made it a lot more interesting, and really planted the seed for my love of his work. I love his sonnets, but as far as plays go I think I have to say Hamlet for the sheer genius of it, and The Tempest. I read The Tempest while I was living on a sailboat, and so part of it is that I have great memories of reading that play on the deck of a ship, watching the sun go down out on the open ocean.
RedLotus
June 1st, 2009, 12:48 AM
Nobody else knows about Akira Kurosawa, it seems.


I've seen a few of his movies (Throne of Blood and Red Harvest) and really enjoyed them. Didn't he also do a movie based on a Dostoevsky novel (The Idiot, I think)? I haven't seen that one, but Dostoevsky is one of my other favorite classic novelists, so it's on my list of things to look for.

Also, Gingerfoxx mentioned that she likes Kurosawa. :)
das_nut
June 1st, 2009, 12:58 AM
For some reason, the Japanese seem fond of Russian literature.

Haruki Murakami, for example, likes to mention Russian authors.
Miso Jace
June 1st, 2009, 07:23 AM
i LOVE shakespeare, though i'd be hard-pressed to pick a favourite play. king lear, hamlet & twelfth night are probably my top three.

as much as it's considered an exercise in cliche and platitude, i find great power in polonius' advice to his son laertes in hamlet, especially "this above all: to thine own self be true" and "those friends thou hast, and by their adoption tried, grapple them unto thy soul with hooks of steel".
Miso Jace
June 1st, 2009, 07:25 AM
Nobody else knows about Akira Kurosawa, it seems.

:(

It's a shame, his treatment of Shakespeare is really, really good.

i absolutely adore kurosawa! ran & throne of blood are two of the finest shakespeare adaptations i've ever seen! as an english & film student, kurosawa is my bread and butter.
dandy
June 2nd, 2009, 06:48 PM
Shakespeare!!! Oh, I love him so. Lear is my favourite although I was fortunate enough to see Hamlet in Stratford last year starring the very fabulous David Tennant and Patrick Stewart. Squee!
rosiem
June 2nd, 2009, 08:52 PM
Shakespeare!!! Oh, I love him so. Lear is my favourite although I was fortunate enough to see Hamlet in Stratford last year starring the very fabulous David Tennant and Patrick Stewart. Squee!

Oh, lucky!!!! Apparently they are going to show it on TV, though. I can't wait!

Lear is probably my favourite too, just because it's the only Shakespeare I have seen performed live, instead of just watching a movie or reading it.

Anyone else seen the Complete Works of William Shakespeare: Abridged?

It's hilarious!
dormouse
June 2nd, 2009, 09:04 PM
I wouldn't say I am a big Kurosawa fan, but I have seen Ran and Rashomon and I definitely appreciate what he does.

My Shakespeare breadth is limited to high school and middle school: Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Caesar, and Macbeth. Macbeth was, by far, my favorite.
GingerFoxx
June 3rd, 2009, 07:33 AM
Anyone else seen the Complete Works of William Shakespeare: Abridged?

It's hilarious!

Own it! My friend just remarked the other day that we haven't watched it in ages. Looks like I need to watch that DVD again. The Reduced Shakespeare company has other stage shows as well. Not sure if any of them made it to DVD though. There is the Complete History of the World (abridged) and I forget what else...
rosiem
June 4th, 2009, 09:07 PM
Own it! My friend just remarked the other day that we haven't watched it in ages. Looks like I need to watch that DVD again. The Reduced Shakespeare company has other stage shows as well. Not sure if any of them made it to DVD though. There is the Complete History of the World (abridged) and I forget what else...

Oooh, it's on DVD?

I've only seen it on stage at my sister's high school.