Theater: Shakespeare

Peter Hyland gives a highly readable account of what is known about Shakespeare's life, and maps out the historical, social and intellectual pressures of his time. He provides a comprehensive description of the development of the theatrical profession in Shakespeare's England, and of the practical constraints under which the dramatist had to work. Half of the book is devoted to a survey of the plays and examines the numerous controversial issues that arise when we ask precisely what we can 'know

A handy little ready-reference guide that provides definitions for characters and literary and historical terms, along with synopses of all the plays.

"A.L. Rowse that represent one of the great historical works of our time. They are a master historian's exploration of the social and cultural history of the Elizabethan Age. In The Life of the Society, Mr. Rowse surveys the life of each class of Englishmen from the Court downward, and presents a remarkable portrait of Elizabethan life and of the mentality, conscious and unconscious, to which the way of life gave rise."

"Many people, however, are puzzled on their first encounter with Shakespeare, because of his language and allusions to the Elizabethan era. To solve this problem, Fallon has written a book for the general reader that is free of academic jargon."

Shakespeare may never have owned a Cristallo-glass goblet made by the craftsmen of Venice. Yet by contemplating such a seventeenth-century object, MacGregor enters the world the Bard creates in Othello and The Merchant of Venice. .... In this volume, 20 well-chosen artifacts open perspectives on both Shakespeare's literary art and his historical circumstances. Readers examine, for instance, a seventeenth-century dagger and suddenly find themselves beside the doomed Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet and among the reckless roughnecks roaming the streets of Elizabethan London. Readers likewise scrutinize a brass-handled iron fork recovered from the Rose theater, an implement amplifying Falstaff's cry in The Merry Wives of Windsor for skies that rain potatoes and prompting reflections on the oysters that groundlings ate at Elizabethan plays....--Christensen, Bryce Copyright 2010 Booklist

"A witty, fascinating exercise, decoding small critical cruxes in several plays using his extraordinary knowledge of performance history, critical traditions, art history, and myth. Detailed illustrations of actors and reproductions of art accompany chapters on Shakespeare's portraiture."Shakespeare never conceived, or even re-conceived, his plays as texts to be read." according to author Stephen Orgel.

The essays provide background for beginners with comments on recent scholarly views. "Contexts" offers pieces on Shakespeare's contributions; a historical background to the composition of these plays; pageants and masques; historiography and Shakespeare's sources; and women's roles in the history plays. "The Plays" provides essays on the first four histories; the "poetical reinvention" of the various Shakespearean kings. "Reference Material," includes characters & genealogical characters.

..."Baconian authorship roped in prestigious advocates including Mark Twain, Henry James, and Helen Keller before the cause of Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford, displaced it in the mid-twentieth century. Shapiro devotes a lengthy chapter to both advocacy movements, the later of which has found new life on the Web, before succinctly explaining why Shakespeare's case has always trumped all challengers and only becomes stronger as new evidence is discovered, as it has been, rather richly, since the 1970s. A book no Shakespearean should miss." Olson, Ray Booklist

" Honan offers voluminous new material about Shakespeare, his family, and his era that has been unearthed in recent years--sometimes literally: the book includes a discussion of the recently excavated Rose theater in London--Honan constructs a compelling portrait of Shakespeare and his times. Honan seems to have combed through every relevant village record office and library in England and America, tracking down birth records, court documents, to verify who was where when and what they were up to." Jack Helbig Booklist