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As You Like It
Study Guide
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Contents
Interview with Maureen Huskey, Director
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Biography of William Shakespeare
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Peter Brook: Bringing Shakespeare into the Twentieth Century
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Pastoral Comedy and the Forest of Arden
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Glossary of Shakespearian Words
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Expressions Shakespeare Invented
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Modern Adaptations of Shakespeare’s Plays
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Discussion Questions
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Interview with Director Maureen Huskey
What is your concept for the piece?
First and foremost I am in love with the language of Shakespeare: his use of language and his
innate understanding of the power of language and the 'word made flesh.'
AS YOU LIKE IT, as with most all Shakespeare's plays, have been produced in uncountable ways
since its inception. Each time period, culture, social context can interject itself into any
Shakespeare play in search of its everlasting potential to move any audience of any era.
My initial attraction to the play was inspired by the fundamental interweaving of 'duality'
throughout the many levels of the play, e.g. privileged (free) /oppressed (exiled); man/woman;
nature/man; high wealthy society/poor country life (uneducated can be one of many words to
describe the tone of characters in the "forest,"); the ingrained nature of status; honesty =
goodness/lying and deception = evil. I am also interested in investigating the many aspects and
ambiguities of contemporary love, erotica, notions of gender and so on.
And yet, when you probe deeper into the play, you find that these dualities are blurred in
unexpected ways. And they begin to reflect each other, distorting the other and revealing new
meaning and ways of thinking. Lies (Rosalind lying that she is a man) becomes a rite of passage
to wholeness and invitation for a larger cultural unity. Orlando, who is considered "gentle" and
"virtuous", in my interpretation, must embrace his dark side in order to become truly whole-and
full human being: to become the man he claims he has right to be.
Further, Jacques, the 'traveler' and outsider, believes that all people are "greasy citizens" and that
by killing a deer, the exiled Duke Senior and his lords in the forest are "mere usurpers, tyrants,"
themselves. No better than those of the "pompous court." Shakespeare complicates these
themes and Jacques point of view on the world (and thus our own,) by having him meet a 'fool in
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the forest' who came from this "pompous court"; Jacques has an epiphany and begins to see that
there can be a marriage between two opposing forces and they rest in the metaphor of what it
means to travel through life as a "fool." In this way, it doesn't matter what aspect of society you
reside in, you can still have integrity. Jacques has to reconcile his polarization - something so
human in my mind - of what we think is the right way to live and the wrong way.
When people speak generally of AS YOU LIKE IT the words comedy, love, and the character of
Rosalind usually pop up first. For me, while I want to find even the deeper recesses of comedy
in the piece, I also see the play as a fantasy filled with a deep questioning of life, how do we
establish 'new orders' or new societies that are better for all, and how through it all the essence of
love can exist and express itself in infinite ways throughout it all. I am interested in probing to
the fullest extent of the terrains of LOVE and all of ambiguity I can extract that is present in this
play. Thus, I am taking Jacques famous speech of "All's the world a stage" to contextualize the
story's journey. The character of Jacque as the 'outsider' to the world of the play, he will also be
an outsider to the theatrical context itself. He plays a role and stands outside of the theater
context as well. And lastly, but not least importantly, for me the story is, after really absorbing
Orlando's first speech to Adam, about Orlando's journey-both externally and internally. This will
not negate, however, the text playing out in its fullest manner with fully charged characters, but
it is Orlando and his 'state' and 'condition' at the beginning of the play that catapulted my vision.
What era have you set it in and why?
I have set the AS YOU LIKE it a contemporary fictionalized, perhaps, Beverly Hills or upper
class area of Los Angeles and then the play moves to a metaphorical location rooted in the notion
of a nearby surrounding rural area outside of the bustling city. I love Los Angeles and am
surprised every day by its richness and its ability to provide a lens that, for me, reflects a
dizzying portrait of the American experience. Even more so than when I lived in Colorado,
Minneapolis and then New York for 15 years. I am almost psychologically paralyzed daily by
the extreme divide of class and privilege in the Los Angeles area, and am fascinated how this
city holds within in its shaky and sometimes unfeeling arms to the thousands and thousands of
homeless people as well as the myth-made-real life of glamour of "Hollywood": men too bald
and too old to be driving hot convertibles, women wearing clothes that cost more than some
people in this world make in years if not a lifetime, and the endless, undying fantasy -like-quality
of to live is to be a shining star.
What makes ASYL relevant in today's culture?
Mostly for the reasons stated above. We have great divides in class, ideologies, moral stances
etc. We want unity but it takes radical transformations to even imagine its possibility. At the
end of AS YOU LIKE IT, the old order is re-instated to create a new order for
society. Transformations have taken place… this is a vital moment both in theatrical terms and
where we are as a nation and as a citizen of a world going through radical upheavals. And yet, as
Uta Hagan says: people throughout time will always love, always, hate, always feel grief, and
get angry. Ultimately, it’s the humanity in this play that I want to reveal at all moments that
makes it relevant.
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Are there any elements in the design (costume, light, set, etc) that stand out as being
particularly innovative or essential to your concept of the piece?
While I spent many years in New York creating experimental theater with no money in run down
lofts, on rooftops, my own apartment etc., and clearly no how to make something out of nothing,
I have never had to stage a play in a theater of this size and number of actors with such a limited
budget; however as they say, limitations can become liberations. The set and prop design of this
play is proudly ninety-percent if not more all create through found, appropriated, borrowed and
recycled materials. Further, I had to really struggle with the concept of what is the contemporary
equivalent of the "Forest". Because in my mind there are no more places in nature that are free
from the "pompous court". A place where one can truly be changed. So I pushed the notion that
the Forest is really a fantasy, but I also probed the meaning of exile in modern day
society. When I located what that meant to me, through the collaboration of the designers, we
found something that we all think is innovative. We hope the audience will too: we shall see.
Biography of William Shakespeare
Excerpted from The Shakespeare Resource Center
For all his fame and celebration, William Shakespeare remains a mysterious figure with regards
to personal history. There are just two primary sources for information on the Bard: his works,
and various legal and church documents that have survived from Elizabethan times. Naturally,
there are many gaps in this body of information, which tells us little about Shakespeare the man.
William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, allegedly on April 23, 1564. Church
records from Holy Trinity Church indicate that he was baptized there on April 26, 1564. Young
William was born of John Shakespeare, a glover and leather merchant, and Mary Arden, a landed
local heiress. William, according to the church register, was the third of eight children in the
Shakespeare household—three of whom died in childhood. John Shakespeare had a remarkable
run of success as a merchant, alderman, and high bailiff of Stratford, during William's early
childhood. His fortunes declined, however, in the late 1570s.
There is great conjecture about Shakespeare's childhood years, especially regarding his
education. It is surmised by scholars that Shakespeare attended the free grammar school in
Stratford, which at the time had a reputation to rival that of Eton. While there are no records
extant to prove this claim, Shakespeare's knowledge of Latin and Classical Greek would tend to
support this theory. In addition, Shakespeare's first biographer, Nicholas Rowe, wrote that John
Shakespeare had placed William "for some time in a free school." John Shakespeare, as a
Stratford official, would have been granted a waiver of tuition for his son. As the records do not
exist, we do not know how long William attended the school, but certainly the literary quality of
his works suggest a solid education. What is certain is that William Shakespeare never proceeded
to university schooling, which has stirred some of the debate concerning the authorship of his
works.
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The next documented event in Shakespeare's life is his marriage to Anne Hathaway on
November 28, 1582. William was 18 at the time, and Anne was 26—and pregnant. Their first
daughter, Susanna, was born on May 26, 1583. The couple later had twins, Hamnet and Judith,
born February 2, 1585 and christened at Holy Trinity. Hamnet died in childhood at the age of 11,
on August 11, 1596.
For the seven years following the birth of his twins, William Shakespeare disappears from all
records, finally turning up again in London some time in 1592. This period, known as the "Lost
Years," has sparked as much controversy about Shakespeare's life as any period. Rowe notes that
young Shakespeare was quite fond of poaching, and may have had to flee Stratford after an
incident with Sir Thomas Lucy, whose deer and rabbits he allegedly poached. There is also
rumor of Shakespeare working as an assistant schoolmaster in Lancashire for a time, though this
is circumstantial at best.
It is estimated that Shakespeare arrived in London around 1588 and began to establish himself as
an actor and playwright. Evidently, Shakespeare garnered envy early on for his talent, as related
by the critical attack of Robert Greene, a London playwright, in 1592: "...an upstart crow,
beautified with our feathers, that with his Tiger's heart wrapped in a player's hide, supposes he is
as well able to bombast out a blank verse as the best of you: and being an absolute Johannes fac
totum, is in his own conceit the only Shake-scene in a country."
Greene's bombast notwithstanding, Shakespeare must have shown considerable promise. By
1594, he was not only acting and writing for the Lord Chamberlain's Men (called the King's Men
after the ascension of James I in 1603), but was a managing partner in the operation as well.
With Will Kempe, a master comedian, and Richard Burbage, a leading tragic actor of the day,
the Lord Chamberlain's Men became a favorite London troupe, patronized by royalty and made
popular by the theatre-going public.
Shakespeare's success is apparent when studied against other playwrights of this age. His
company was the most successful in London in his day. He had plays published and sold in
octavo editions, or "penny-copies" to the more literate of his audiences. Never before had a
playwright enjoyed sufficient acclaim to see his works published and sold as popular literature in
the midst of his career. In addition, Shakespeare's ownership share in both the theatrical
company and the Globe itself made him as much an entrepeneur as artist. While Shakespeare
might not be accounted wealthy by London standards, his success allowed him to purchase New
House and retire in comfort to Stratford in 1611.
William Shakespeare wrote his will in 1611, bequeathing his properties to his daughter Susanna
(married in 1607 to Dr. John Hall). To his surviving daughter Judith, he left £300, and to his wife
Anne left "my second best bed." William Shakespeare allegedly died on his birthday, April 23,
1616. This is probably more of a romantic myth than reality, but Shakespeare was interred at
Holy Trinity in Stratford on April 25. In 1623, two working companions of Shakespeare from the
Lord Chamberlain's Men, John Heminges and Henry Condell, printed the First Folio edition of
his collected plays, of which half were previously unpublished.
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Peter Brook: Bringing Shakespeare into the Twentieth Century
Peter Brook is an English director influenced by the work of Jerzy Grotowski, Bertolt Brecht,
and most famously Antonin Artuad and his Theatre of Cruelty. Brook revolutionized the way
Shakespeare was conceptualized in the 1950s, and was the first to strip down production and
make minimal use of realistic scenery and props. This minimalism is often copied in modern
productions of Shakespeare.
Of particular note is his production of Titus Andronicus in 1955, in which he "clashed
experimentally with pots and warming pans, played with pencils on Venetian glass phials, turned
wire baskets into harps", and even resorted to a plastic trumpet to compose a suitable score.
When it came to the play's murders, mutilations and cannibalism, he maximised the drama and
minimised the gore,” according to the Evening Standard, as quoted by Samantha Ellis in the
Guardian. For her complete article on the production, see
http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2003/jun/25/theatre.samanthaellis.
He directed a 1970 production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream for the Royal Shakespeare
Company, sometimes referred to as Peter Brook’s Dream, that is extremely influential. In the
production, the lovers were dressed as hippie flower children, Puck was dressed as a Chinese
acrobat, and other incongruent costume pieces were used, signifying no particular time or place.
He cast the fairies, traditionally played by children or women, as men, lending a menacing
quality to the forest. He brought out layers of sexuality in the piece that had previously been
under-explored.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/1970/aug/28/peter-brook-midsummer-nights-dream
Brook also directed an avant garde film of King Lear in the 1970s, based on his groundbreaking
production of the play in 1962.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2009/nov/07/archive-lear-brook-ballet-nuryev-fonteyn
Pastoral Comedy in Elizabethan England and The Forest of Arden
Excerpted from “Variations on a Theme of Love: An Introduction to As You Like It” by Ian
Johnson, 2001.
Pastoral drama, like pastoral literature generally, usually features an idealized vision of country
life, with shepherds and shepherdesses happily united in nature talking all the time about love.
But (and this is key to the pastoral convention) the life is typically seen from a city-goer’s
perspective, a point of view which enables the writer to use the country experience as a means of
critiquing urban values in a manner more sophisticated than a point of view defined entirely by
the country experience would permit. Pastoral literature, in other words, features an interaction
between an urban sophistication and a simplified vision of life away from the city.
Pastoral drama typically features love as its major concern—a romance between country folk, or
the love of an urban man for some country lass, or a romance between two urban people who, for
some reason or another (frequently implausible) find themselves temporarily in the country,
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having to deal with country life (i.e., from an unfamiliar perspective). Because pastoral drama
takes place away from the city or the palace, it permits the characters to explore life in a totally
non-political way, in a setting where their social roles can be momentarily set aside and they can,
to some extent, experiment with possibilities not available in the much more restricted world of
the city, where they are known, have social and political responsibilities, have to observe much
stricter codes of behaviour (e.g., in clothes), and (this is often quite important in the Pastoral
style) have to answer to the demands of the clock (i.e., organize their daily schedule more
rigorously than in the country).
Also, the pastoral setting often encourages a much less naturalistic style, one in which woodland
sprites, fairies, amazing coincidences, enchantment, and so on come with the territory. So
pastoral drama, like popular comedy, can routinely violate naturalistic principles in a way which
would not be acceptable in the more naturalistic world of New Comedy. Since the action is
taking place outside the city, the normal rules of the city do not apply. Thus, anything can
happen.
Pastoral comedy, however, is much more sophisticated than Popular Comedy, since it has a
potentially important theme (the nature of love) and tries to establish a more or less consistent
fictional world (the country setting). While it can often feature the colloquial language of country
folk, it also requires a certain sophistication in the exploration of love through poetry and (a very
important element in much pastoral drama) music and song…
Central to the pastoral vision of As You Like It is the setting in the Forest of Ardenne, especially
the contrast between it and the ducal court. In the former, there is a powerful political presence
which creates dangers. Deception lurks behind many actions, brothers have secret agendas
against their brothers, and people have to answer to the arbitrary demands of power.
In the Forest of Ardenne, however, life is very different. For one thing, there is no urgency to the
agenda. There are no clocks in the forest, and for the exiled courtiers there is no regular work.
They are free to roam around the forest, prompted by their own desires. There is plenty of food
to eat, so the communal hunt takes care of their physical needs. That and the absence of a
complex political hierarchy creates a much stronger sense of communal equality hearkening back
the the mythical good old days. The exiled Duke himself attests to the advantages of living far
from the court, free of the deceits of flattery and double dealing and welcomes Orlando to the
feast without suspicion.
And, most important here, especially in comparison with the history plays, is the importance of
singing. As You Like It is full of songs—not performances by professional court musicians, but
impromptu group singing which expresses better than anything else the spontaneous joy these
people derive from life in the Forest and the joy they give back to others. The songs indicate
clearly the way in which in the Forest people can shape their actions to their moods—a situation
totally unlike the court where one has to consider one’s actions much more carefully.
Hence, the Forest of Ardenne provides for the exiled courtiers an important freedom to
experiment with their lives, to discover things about themselves. In the Forest people can talk
openly with whoever they might happen to meet on a stroll through the trees, and that might be
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anyone, given that in the Forest no one owns any particular territory (there are no rooms, palaces,
roads—unlike the court where there is a preoccupation with property) and thus one might well
meet and have to deal with a person whom one would never get close to in the court (that can
have comic results, of course, as Touchstone’s conversations with Audrey and William
demonstrate). In the Forest life is, as I have observed, lived more immediately in the moment
with whatever life presents at the moment. Such an approach to life is impossible in the
politically charged world of the court.
That freedom makes possible Rosalind’s transformation and her taking charge of the courtship
and makes an interesting contrast between Rosalind and Viola (in Twelfth Night)—the latter is
not nearly so free to take charge, because she is still operating in a social environment with a
clear structure of authority, which she has to respect. Hence, the fortunate outcome of that play
relies upon her patience and luck far more in the case of Rosalind, who is the driving force in her
courtship (Viola’s desires very nearly are unfulfilled).
We should note, however, that the Forest of Ardenne is not an entirely idyllic setting. The Duke
pays tribute to the often brutal weather, and there are some dangerous animals lurking in the
underbrush. Corin, the shepherd, informs us that he works for another man—a slight but
significant reminder that even in this pastoral setting the realities of power are not entirely
absent.
And, of course, there is never any sense here (as there might be if this were a Romantic vision of
life) that the Forest is a suitable place to live on a continuing basis. Given the opportunity to
return to the court, all the exiles (except, significantly, Jaques) seize the chance. The Forest has
done its work—it has educated some, repaired fraternal relationships, brought the lovers to a
fuller awareness of their own feelings. Now, they can return to what will be, we sense, a much
better and fuller life in the court.
A Glossary of Commonly Found Words in Shakespeare
From www.cummingsstudyguides.net
Alack
Pronunciation: uh LAK
Part of speech: interjection
Definition: expression of regret, sorrow, dismay, alarm
Anon
Pronunciation: uh NON
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: now; at once; soon; shortly
Avaunt
Pronunciation: uh VAWNT
Part of speech: interjection
Definition: Go away! Withdraw! Depart!
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Belike
Pronunciation: be LIKE
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: probably; most likely
Beseech
Part of speech: verb
Definition: implore; beg; ask; importune
Betimes
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: immediately; at once
Betwixt
Part of speech: preposition, adverb
Definition: between
Bourn
Part of speech: noun
Definition: boundary
Bruit
Pronunciation: BROOT
Part of speech: noun, verb
Definition: echo, noise, clamor; to make a report or spread a rumor
Cap-a-Pie
Pronunciation: KAP UH PE
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: completely; entirely; in every way
Cozen
Pronunciation: KUZ in
Part of speech: verb
Definition: cheat; trick; deceive
Cuckold
Pronunciation: KUK old
Part of speech: noun
Definition: man married to an adulteress
Durst
Pronunciation: DERST
Part of speech: verb (past tense and past participle of dare)
Definition: dared; had the courage to
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Ere
Pronunciation: AIR
Part of speech: preposition and conjunction
Definition: before; previous to; sooner than
Fain
Pronunciation: FANE
Part of speech: adjective
Definition: ready; willing; eager
Fay
Part of speech: noun
Definition: faith, as used in an oath. (Similar in meaning to "by George" or "by heaven"). Fay
can also mean fairy in other contexts.
Fie
Part of speech: interjection
Definition: For shame! Nonsense! (Used to express disagreement, annoyance, or mild disgust)
Fool
Part of speech: verb or noun
Definition: In the courts of England, a fool was a comic figure with a quick tongue who
entertained the king, queen and their guests. He was allowed to--and even expected to--criticize
anyone at court. Many fools, or jesters, were dwarfs or cripples, their odd appearance enhancing
their appeal and, according to prevail beliefs, bringing good luck to the court. Shakespeare wrote
many fools into his plays.
Fordo (Fordone, Fordoing)
Part of speech: verb
Definition: ruin; kill; destroy
Forsooth
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: Indeed; in truth; verily; in fact
Gaoler
Pronunciation: JALE er
Part of speech: noun
Definition: jailer
Gramercy
Part of speech: interjection
Definition: thanks, thank you
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Haply
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: perhaps; by accident or chance; by happenstance
Holp
Pronunciation: The o is long
Part of speech: verb
Definition: help or helped
Liege
Part of speech: noun
Definition: lord; king; sovereign
Marry (As Introductory Word)
Part of speech: adverb used to introduce a sentence or to provide transition
Definition: by the Virgin Mary (I swear by the Virgin Mary); the meaning and force are similar
to those of the word well. Also used as an exclamation of surprise or emphasis.
Meed
Part of speech: noun
Definition: merit, worth, excellence
Methinks
Part of speech: verb
Definition: I think; it seems to me; it appears as if
Misprise (Misprize in Modern American English)
Part of speech: verb
Definition: undervalue; underestimate; belittle; disparage
Moe
Part of speech: adjective and pronoun
Definition: more
Morris
Part of speech: noun
Definition: dance in which costumed performers act out a story
Morrow
Pronunciation: MAR oh
Part of speech: noun
Definition: morning
Mote
Part of speech: noun
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Definition: dust particle; speck
Nonce
Part of speech: noun
Definition: occasion
Orison
Pronunciation: OR ih zun
Part of speech: noun
Definition: prayer
Palter
Part of speech: verb
Definition: talk insincerely; mislead; equivocate; leave the meaning open to interpretation
Prithee
Part of speech: interjection
Definition: please; I pray thee
Reck
Part of speech: verb
Definition: concern; take heed of
Rede
Pronunciation: REED
Part of speech: noun
Definition: advice; counsel; guidance
Rheum
Pronunciation: ROOM
Part of speech: noun
Definition: tears; eye discharge
Shrive
Part of speech: verb
Definition: absolve from sins; obtain forgiveness by confessing sins
Sirrah
Pronunciation: SIR uh
Part of speech: noun
Definition: fellow; mister. The word is used contemptuously.
Soft
Part of speech: interject
Definition: stop, be quiet; hold up
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Sooth
Part of speech: noun
Definition: truth; fact
Swain
Part of speech: noun
Definition: young fellow; country boy
Thee, Thou, Thine, Thy, Thyself
Part of speech: pronoun
Definition: thee (you), thou (you), thine (yours), thy (your), thyself (yourself)
Verily
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: truly; in truth; indeed; really
Vouchsafe
Part of speech: verb
Definition: grant, bestow
Welkin
Part of speech: noun
Definition: sky; heavenly vault
Whence
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: from where; from what source; from what place
Wherefore
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: why
Withal
Part of speech: adverb
Definition: in addition; notwithstanding; besides
Wonted
Part of speech: adjective
Definition: accustomed; usual; ordinary
Zounds
Pronunciation: zoons (oons as in swoons)
Part of speech: interjection
Definition: expression of surprise, anger, amazement, disappointment. The word is a corruption
of "by His wounds" (meaning the wounds of Christ). The word came about after people began
pronouncing "by His wounds" quickly so that it sounded like a single word--zounds.
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Everyday Expressions from Shakespeare
From www.cummingsstudyguides.net
A foregone conclusion.—Othello.
A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!—Richard III.
Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him.—Hamlet.
All the world's a stage.—As You Like It.
All's well that ends well.—All's Well That Ends Well.
As white as driven snow.—The Winter's Tale.
Beware the ides of March.—Julius Caesar.
Blow, blow, thou winter wind.—As You Like It.
Brave new world.—The Tempest.
Brevity is the soul of wit.—Hamlet.
Come full circle.—King Lear.
Conscience does make cowards of us all.—Hamlet.
Cowards die many times before their deaths.—Julius Caesar.
Dog will have its day.—Hamlet.
Double, double, toil and trouble; fire burn, and cauldron bubble.—Macbeth.
Eaten me out of house and home.—Henry IV.
Elbow room.—King John.
Et tu, Brute! [Latin: And you, Brutus!]—Julius Caesar.
Frailty, thy name is woman.—Hamlet.
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.—Julius Caesar.
Give the devil his due.—Henry IV.
Green-eyed monster.—Othello.
I am fortune's fool.—Romeo and Juliet.
I cannot tell what the dickens his name is.—Merry Wives of Windsor.
I have not slept one wink.—Cymbeline.
I must be cruel, only to be kind.—Hamlet.
In my mind's eye.—Hamlet.
It was Greek to me.—Julius Caesar.
Let slip the dogs of war.—Julius Caesar
Lord, what fools these mortals be!—A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Love is blind.—The Merchant of Venice (Shakespeare appears to have copied this line from
Chaucer's Love Is Blynd).
Lov'd not wisely, but too well.—Othello.
My salad days, when I was green in judgement.—Antony and Cleopatra.
Neither a borrower nor a lender be.—Hamlet.
Neither rhyme nor reason.—As You Like It.
Now is the winter of our discontent.—Richard III.
Once more unto the breach.—Henry V.
One fell swoop.—Macbeth.
Out, damned spot!—Macbeth.
Parting is such sweet sorrow.—Romeo and Juliet.
Play fast and loose.—Love's Labour's Lost.
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Primrose path.—Hamlet.
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.—Hamlet.
Something wicked this way comes.—Macbeth.
Sound and the Fury.—Macbeth.
Star-cross'd lovers.—Romeo and Juliet.
Strange bedfellows.—The Tempest.
Sweets to the sweet.—Hamlet.
The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.—The Merchant of Venice.
The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.—Henry VI.
The lady doth protest too much.—Hamlet.
The play's the thing.—Hamlet. .
The working day world.—As You Like It.
The world's mine oyster.—The Merry Wives of Windsor.
They say an old man is twice a child.—Hamlet.
Though this be madness, yet there is method in't.—Hamlet.
'Tis neither here nor there.—Othello.
To be, or not to be: that is the question.—Hamlet.
Too much of a good thing.—As You Like It.
To thine own self be true.—Hamlet.
Woe is me.—Hamlet.
Modern Shakepeare Adaptations
Films:
“10 Things I Hate About You” (1999) An adaptation (does not use Shakespeare’s text, but is
based on the plot) of Taming of the Shrew, set in a contemporary American high school. Directed
by Gil Junger, starring Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger.
“Hamlet” (2000) Uses Shakespeare’s dialogue, but sets the play in a corporate environment in
New York City. Directed by Michael Almereyda, starring Ethan Hawke as Hamlet. Also features
Julia Stiles as Ophelia.
“Forbidden Planet” (1956) An adaptation of The Tempest, in a sci-fi setting. Directed by Fred
M. Wilcox, starring Walter Pidgeon and Anne Francis.
“Romeo and Juliet” (1996) This slick, modern version uses Shakespeare’s text. Directed by
Baz Luhrmann, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes as the star-crossed lovers.
“Richard III” (1995) Uses Shakespeare’s text, and sets the play in 1930s Fascist England.
Directed by Richard Loncraine, starring Ian McKellen and Annette Bening.
“O” (2001) An adaptation of Othello, using a contemporary high school basketball setting.
Directed by Tim Blake Nelson, and starring Mekhi Phifer and (again) Julia Stiles.
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“She’s the Man” (2006) An adaptation of Twelfth Night, by the same writers (Karen McCullah
Lutz and Kirsten Smith) who adapted Taming of the Shrew into “10 Things I Hate About You.”
Also set in a contemporary American high school. Directed by Andy Fickman, starring Amanda
Bynes.
“West Side Story” (1961, also a stage musical) A musical adaptation of Romeo and Juliet set
in urban New York City and involving rival gangs, the Sharks and the Jets, rather than rival
families. Directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise, and starring Natalie Wood and Richard
Beymer as Maria and Tony.
Productions:
Theater companies worldwide, both professional and amateur, are constantly looking for ways to
update and modernize Shakespeare’s works for a contemporary audience. Some examples of
well-received, updated Broadway productions include:
A Donmar Warehouse theater production of Hamlet starring Jude Law that made its way to
Broadway in 2009 and featured modern dress. A review of the production can be found here:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/10/theater-review-hamlet-onbroadway.html
A production of Macbeth directed by Rupert Goold and starring Patrick Stewart in the title role
premiered at UK’s Chichester Festival Theatre, had a run in London’s West End (the British
equivalent of Broadway), transferred to the Brooklyn Academy of the Arts in Brooklyn, NY, and
finally landed on Broadway in 2008. The production was very well-received and was set in
Stalinist Russia.
http://theater.nytimes.com/2008/04/09/theater/reviews/09macb.html
Rupert Goold also recently directed a production of Romeo and Juliet for Britain’s Royal
Shakespeare Company that fused the traditional with the contemporary, dressing Romeo and
Juliet as modern teenagers but keeping the rest of the characters in Elizabethan garb. The
production transferred to NYC this past summer.
http://theater.nytimes.com/2011/07/13/theater/reviews/royal-shakespeare-companys-romeo-andjuliet-review.html
Discussion Questions
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How does the modern setting affect your experience of the play?
What do you think the primary themes are?
How do the design elements help communicate these themes?
Do you recognize similarities between your approach to love and relationships in any of
the characters?