Right. I'm a sheep. There we go.

[lareinenoire]

I don't watch enough television for those TV memes, so I am going to do the Shakespeare one that has been going round.

My one caveat: I am indecisive. No, seriously. I am. Most of these questions will have at least two answers if not possibly more. I am just like that.

Day #1: Your favourite play

Comments

[likeadeuce]

Do you know Ann-Marie MacDonald's Good Night, Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet)? Based on your thesis, I'd suspect you of being the heroine of that play, except you would have snuck Richard in there somewhere.

I hadn't realized nearly how popular Richard was, even among more casual Shakespeare fans, until I started doing/reading this meme. I wouldn't say I have a crush on this character, but he's brilliant on many levels. And yes, the women --. I remember the first time I saw Richard III after reading the Henry VI plays (I'd seen it before without knowing much of the context), and just gasping when the Duchess said "I had a Rutland!" Partly it was an "oh my God, I know what they're talking about" but also the emotion of the moment and the weight of all that history.

[lareinenoire]

Based on your thesis, I'd suspect you of being the heroine of that play, except you would have snuck Richard in there somewhere.

No, I haven't read it, and clearly I should! ::adds to Amazon Wish List::

Partly it was an "oh my God, I know what they're talking about" but also the emotion of the moment and the weight of all that history.

That is one of my favourite parts of the First Tet in general (and one of the things I keep coming back to whenever I write about it). Shakespeare is subtler about it in the Second Tet, but there's something about the rawness of the First that I just love.

[likeadeuce]

It is. . .basically about a female academic who has a theory of Romeo & Juliet and Othello as comedies gone wrong and gets sucked into the world of the play to try and "fix" them. I've never read or studied it so I don't remember the details that well but I saw an extremely entertaining production when I was in college.

[jesterjoker]

You make me want to do this, but it would consume so much time. o_o

My Huge Book of The Bard is taunting me to read The Winter's Tale. Things kept me from doing it, but I think it could give me ideas for a shelved fantasy novel.

[lareinenoire]

I have mixed feelings towards The Winter's Tale; there are parts of it that I love, but I have issues with the ending. Actually, once you've read it, check out ides_of_april for two brilliant Hermione-centric fics (one of which features a cameo appearance by a gentleman in a blue telephone box).

[fuunsaiki]

I quite like The Winter's Tale. Leontes's jealousy comes a little *too* out of nowhere, and there's that HORRIFIC expository scene between Bohemia and Sicilia, but other than that, I think it's shplendid. Luckily it doesn't actually say in the text "by the way, Hermione just lived in a box for sixteen years" (or worse, "Hermione totally did die, but in this play, statues totally come to life!") or the issues would multiply. I would be interested in reading further details on your issues. :)

[lareinenoire]

Oh, mostly they are of the completely immature OMG LEONTES SUCKS AND HERMIONE DESERVES SO MUCH BETTER variety. I think it is an incredibly well-crafted play, and that the first three acts are positively harrowing at times, but for some reason it sort of loses me in the last two.

That being said, seeing it in performance is just brilliant. I saw the RSC do it in 2002 and liked it a lot better afterward. They made the last two acts work for me, though I still don't like reading them.

[eisdamme]

I fail so hard at this. I ...can't even remember Shakespeare. *hides*. There is a TV meme? I have been so out of the meme loop. I love so much television I think I'd implode trying to make a choice.

[lareinenoire]

I fail at TV, for what that's worth. ;) This meme was actually based on a 30 Days of TV meme that has been going round for awhile. There's also a Harry Potter-themed one.

[fallingtowers]

I find it quite fascinating that your favourite plays have Shakepeare's two most charismatic villains -- Jago the enigma and Richard the entertainer. I hope you are not harbouring any personal plans for psychological warfare and usurpation yet.

[lareinenoire]

Hee! I don't think so. Though my writing may suggest otherwise. ;)

I think part of why I love these plays so much is how well they engage with the power of words. Both Richard and Iago are so good at manipulating language to change the world around them, and it's really the matter-of-fact nature of their awfulness that I find so frightening -- and fascinating.

[gehayi]

You know, I don't think I could even fill out this meme, mostly because of these questions:

Day #16: Your first play you saw
Day #19: Your favorite movie version of a play
Day #20: Your favorite movie adaptation of a play

Now, I don't know what the difference is between a movie VERSION and a movie ADAPTATION. But the thing is, I can't answer any of those questions as I've never seen Shakespeare performed. Not on the stage, not in the movies. I read annotated plays because that's the only way for me to figure out what the hell is going on. I have heard audio performances, but they've always left me with the feeling of, "Wait, WHAT did she just say? Could someone translate that?"

[lareinenoire]

I think you could still do the meme and just explain on those particular days -- I'd be really curious to see your answers to all the other questions. :)

As far as I can tell, a movie version requires the actual text of the play, while an adaptation would be something like Ten Things I Hate About You or My Own Private Idaho or the Shakespeare Retold series they recently made in the UK.

And, as I am one of those people who is all about Shakespeare being performed and adapted, I am going to ramble at length. Please feel free to ignore it!

For a first-time viewer, I'd probably go with Branagh, because a lot of the older versions (i.e. Olivier, An Age of Kings) have the actors speaking very quickly. Branagh's films are generally aimed at a wider audience as well, which makes them a lot easier to follow and they were among the first Shakespeare films I saw.

My favourite of his is Much Ado About Nothing with Emma Thompson as Beatrice (and she is still honestly my favourite Beatrice). Just ignore Keanu Reeves as best you can and the rest

[angevin2]

Keith Baxter is brilliant in Chimes at Midnight (as is Orson Welles as Falstaff and Gielgud as Henry IV), but as far as I can tell, the film is out of print.

it's on youtube