Reddit mentions: The best shakespeare dramas & plays

Understand Shakespeare

The writing of the time is essentially a different language than Modern English, and you'll want to learn that language.

While reading, should you not understand a word, you must look it up. The internet usually has the definitions of such words, but just in case: Shakespearean Lexicons Volume I & Volume II

Learn iambic pentameter.

Learn how to spot operative words. How I do it is to look at a sentence, find the most important words, and see if you can maintain the basic meaning of that statement whilst only using the operative words. As a rule of thumb, operative words are generally not negatives (e.g. never, not, etc.)

Learn how to perform scansion. Scansion is essentially writing out the iambic pentameter and underlining the operative words.

Shakespeare was a poet and was very lyrically gifted, but his stories are often weighed down with non-existent fluffy interpretations. For example, the famous "TO BE... OR... NOT... TO BE!" monologue from Hamlet is too-often used in auditions and is too-often made overly dramatic. A writer/casting director friend of mine said he has only been impressed by one audition of it. The actor walked in, and casually delivered the monologue, hitting the operatives, paying attention to real iambic pentameter, and not over-dramaticizing it. tl;dr Shakespeare may sound like music, but it's not always music... sometimes it is. Be honest with intention.

Audition

Auditioning is a subject in and of itself, but I'll attempt a "quick" guide:

Stay calm and concentrate on the story.

Have monologues with variety, but make sure they are characters you could fit in.

Remember, the people casting the show want you to succeed. They are cheering for you, whether you know it or not.

GOTE or Goals Obstacles Tactics Expectations, and for good measure S for Stakes. What are the character's life goals, play goals, scene goals, and moment goals? What are the obstacles for every goal? What are the tactics used and how often do they change? What do they expect to happen and how do they react?

Most importantly, I am one person. One actor. I can defend my expertise, but still... I am only one opinion. There are no rules in Acting, it is an art. There are good pieces of advice... but that's about it.

Also, everyone loves it when someone usually on the outside of Theatre participates with us! :D I am in love with science, but I pursued my art. We love it, so don't be afraid of us. My only note is that you must treat it with absolute respect. Many of these people are risking absolute destitution, psychological despair, and never-ending passion for a very lofty goal. We have to study as much as anyone else (even those who seem to have the mysterious talent.)

As long as you care about your performance, I'm sure you'll do just fine.

Break legs. :)

EDIT: I seem to have formatted incorrectly earlier. I believe I've fixed it. Sorry. :P
EDIT II: Fixed The Scottish Play*

Welcome to the cool-kids club.

I agree with much of what has already been said. Try to see them live, if you can't, a great "introductory" course is to watch videos while reading. Youtube, [PBS Great Performances}(http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/), Digital Theatreand even cheap used DVDs on Amazon offer a host of free and low-cost options for viewing them at home. It can also be a great tool to start understanding the difference between reading the lines as written and hearing how they rhythmically change in performance.

You will, to be honest, miss some things without reading annotations, but it's also important to note that Shakespeare is incredibly complex-- I've been studying Shakespeare for about 9 years now seriously, and there are STILL days where I open up a script I've read a million times and go "Wait...that's TOTALLY a play on words!"

If you're really serious about getting into references aspect, I would recommend picking up a Lexicon. It's an amazing resource for learning words and references, organized in about every fashion you can think of. You can get them for pretty cheap-- I think I picked both of mine up for around $5 in the "used" section. They usually come in a two volume set, so make sure you get both!

There are all sorts of great reference books available-- a really rare one (but fantastic) is called "Playing Bit Parts in Shakespeare". I tracked down a copy at a used bookstore for about $60, but it's brilliant. It breaks down all of the plays by the smaller roles and gives an explanation of why they are significant and what purpose they serve in the show.
There's also this one. I am unashamed to say I proudly display this on my bookshelf.

You will also find that every Shakespeare scholar has a STRONG opinion on what versions of texts they prefer. I personally hate the versions Penguin publishes and really prefer the Folger Library editions, but much of it has to do with personal preference.

Good luck, new Shakespeare friend!

This line of thinking has been taken even further by some scholars, creating an arc for the entire contiguous series of history plays.

Starting in Richard II, the legitimate throne is usurped by Henry Bolingbroke. He attempts to justify this act to man and God, but his reign is plagued with rebellion and unrest because he has destroyed the natural and divine succession of the English throne. His successor, Henry V is portrayed in Shakespeare as a hero to the English people, and of critical importance, incredibly pious after his "conversion" from that of a trouble-maker upon assuming the throne. He builds numerous churches and supports multitudes of people who pray for forgiveness for his father's actions in usurping Richards crown. In lieu of this, God grants him victory at Agincourt.

But his pious reign is short-lived. The fact remains that the Henrys sit on an illegitimate throne. Henry V dies young, and his son, Henry VI sees great turmoil, losing his father's gains in France as well as serious unrest at home. This period then culminates in the ultimate punishment of the English people for their illegitimate kings in the form of the murderous and misshapen Richard III. A villain without equal who is eventually toppled and replaced by none other than Queen Elizabeth's granddad, Henry VII. Henry VII's claim to the throne is the "true" claim, derived from Old John of Gaunt, the legitimate Edward III's son.

Thus, it is the Tudors who rise to return the line of succession to it's true heirs, restoring the legitimate English monarchy, preserving God's mandate in England, and bringing in an age of prosperity and stability under the current queen.

However believable all that may be, it seems a reasonable arc for a playwright who is portraying the history of relatively recent leaders under the scrutiny of his own monarch, and one that seems to support divine right and the natural laws of succession. And yet, /u/DaitoRyu, you are right in asserting that Shakespeare has a certain knack for portraying the humanity and fallibility of his heroes, even those with a crown on their head. If you ask me, Shakespeare's incredible skill at portraying genuine and fully-developed characters was so unavoidable, that he gave his kings and queens these flaws and touches of humanity in spite of himself, even as he wrote a narrative that supported and perpetuated the idea of divine right.

Whatever conclusion you reach, it is a rich area for debate. We will never truly know Shakespeare's intentions in his writings, but much time and energy has been spent on trying to assert them, and more will undoubtedly follow. I can't remember if this text deals with this matter or not, but I think it does, and either way, it is an immeasurably useful resource when studying Shakespeare's histories, and also a quick read. Check it out! Shakespeare's English Kings

Cousin 1: Ready Player One - Even non-gamers love this book!

Aunt: How To Know if Your Cat is Plotting To Kill You - Collection of comics from The Oatmeal.

Cousin 2: The Maze Runner - Mainly teen male characters in a very action adventure setting. Plus it was recently made into a movie so might catch his interest!

Grandma 1: What about Under the Tuscan Sun? I know it was made into movie (not that I've seen it)... but Italy + travel + food? Or The Wedding Officer Romance + WWII + Italy.

Grandma 2: Have you thought about getting a book of knitting patterns or projects? Knitting subreddit might be more helpful about a specific/unique one.

Girlfriend: Have you looked into getting her a signed copy or a really nicely designed hardbound copy of one of her favorite books? Penguin Classics or Penguin Drop Caps. The Folio Society is another option. These Signature Shakespeare editions have really beautiful paper die cut illustrations that are really special.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1593633750/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1408156971&sr=8-1#productDescription_secondary_view_pageState_1408157034049

If you enjoyed Macbeth and want to know more, look at this text. It analyzes every scene of the play, provides a history, and makes macbeth easier to understand.

A friend recommended it and after buying it, I recommend it too.

Seeing a play performed certainly helps because performance is the way Shakespeare intended audiences to experience his work.

It is generally believed that the plot of Othello, devoid racial issues, was derived from Giovanbatitista Giraldi Cinthio's De glib hecatommithi ("Hundred Tales," third decade, seventh story, 1565), also known as Un Capitano Moro ("A Moorish Captain").

The racial tension present in the play is thought to be drawn primarily from the 1600 translation of A Geographical Historie of Africa written by Leo Africanus, a Moroccan Muslim captured by Christian pirates and brought to Rome, where he converted to Catholicism.

His constructions of Venetian-Turkish affairs is thought to have been taken from Richard Knolle's General History of the Turkes (1603).

Since you are doing a presentation you probability looking for sources. I would recommend The Norton Shakespeare it has a great overview of the history of Shakespeare and his influences. It is quite common and should be found in most libraries, although it might be in the reference section.

If you are looking for something a little more substantive I would recommend:

• Understanding Othello: A Student Casebook to Issues, Sources, and Historical Documents
  by Faith Nostbakken
  
• Othello: Critical Essays edited by Philip Kolin
  
• Critical Essays on Shakespeare's Othello edited by Anthony Barthelemy
  
  Good Luck!
  

I know there is Luminosity, a Twilight fanfic. This was specifically inspired by HPMOR, as far as I know.

And someone from this community started writing a Pokémon fanfic.

Friendship is Optimal is also frequently mentioned in the same breath as HPMOR, but I don't know if it was inspired by it. It's not true fanfic, in that it doesn't really use any of the original characters or even the actual universe of the source material. It's still pretty good, though.

And as always in these conversations, I'd like to point out that Rational!Animorphs would be really cool and probably lends itself to this genre quite a lot. The only real hurdle to overcome is figuring out Z-space. ^(I'd do it myself, but I'm not a good writer.)

Edit: Since this is the top-rated comment, I'm going to update based on what others have said.

There's also Lighting Up the Dark, a Rational!Naruto fanfic that is explicitly based on an HPMOR omake.

And then there's Rationalising Death, a Death Note fanfic.

Edit 2: Hamlet and the Philosopher's Stone which is touched on in one of the omakes. Unlike the others, you have to pay for this one.

This community is not meant for homework help, as the sidebar points out. Does the institution at which you study have a subscription to JSTOR, or its own library? If so, I would recommend searching their databases for articles that mention Troilus and Cressida, with particular attention to the two ideas you've mentioned, because I think they're good starting places that can be narrowed down. Get a feel for what's out there by skimming the articles or the relevant chapters in the books and you might notice some trends in the issues they discuss that can point you at an idea.

If your library has a copy of the Arden edition of Troilus and Cressida, I'd highly recommend that as well. Arden does a really good job of annotating and citing, so you can jump to the passages that you found interesting and see what they have to say about them and what articles they direct you to.

@authorajhartley:
>2015-12-05 15:21:42 UTC

>As promised, the award winning Hamlet audio novel voiced by Richard Armitage is now out on CD... amazon.com

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This isn't exactly what you're looking for but my favorite is from Rene Girard

https://www.amazon.com/Theater-Envy-William-Shakespeare-Carthage/dp/1587318601

You have to be open to Girard's ideas but for me it changed my appreciation for Shakespeare completely.

I enjoyed The Case for Shakespeare by Scott McCrae. It does an excellent job of poking holes in the various secret-author theories (arguing that William S. wrote the plays and poetry that are attributed to him).

https://www.amazon.com/Case-Shakespeare-End-Authorship-Question/dp/0313361770/ref=nodl_

Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:


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What Happens in Hamlet by John Dover Wilson.

Another interesting book is D.S. Savage's Hamlet & The Pirates (1977), in which he explains a lot of cryptic events with an off-stage agreement between Hamlet and Fortinbras.

My favorite is "What Happens in Hamelt" by J. Dover Wilson.

I ordered it from Amazon for $20. A little more expensive than the others, but it was worth it to me to complete the set. As far as I could find, they only ever made these four.

These 2 or 3 or 4 volume sets used to be a lot more common than they are now. And even when they did exist, they tended to not be based on highly regarded critical editions of the text.

With that being said:

Here's a used four volume set on Amazon UK for 10 pounds.

There's also the Everyman's Edition, which would be more expensive but almost certainly have a higher quality text (although I'm not personally familiar with it). (And it still wouldn't be anywhere close to thousands of pounds.)

http://www.amazon.com/The-Dark-Lady-Woman-Shakespeares/dp/1445621606

;)

Alan Gordon's Fool's Guild mysteries.

https://www.amazon.com/Thirteenth-Night-Fools-Guild-Mysteries/dp/1932325034

I have to believe you’ve already seen this, since the title is an obvious google search.

Shakespeare in Japan https://www.amazon.com/dp/0826492703/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_9rZiDbC2T5ES6

https://www.amazon.com/Taming-Shrew-William-Shakespeare/dp/1613829221/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1QA2U6DKE0G7S&keywords=taming+of+the+shrew+book&qid=1549750564&s=gateway&sprefix=Taming+%2Caps%2C617&sr=8-2