With the holidays approaching, why not give your kids the gift of learning Shakespeare in a low-key, no-pressure scenario? I have classes on Shakespeare’s life, Romeo and Juliet, and my celebrated Stage Combat class! Sign up now for all the fun on Outschool.com!
Shakespeare and Star Wars
Class Description: Using self-paced online activities, your child(ren) will compare the plot and characters of Star Wars to Shakespeare’s plays. We will also discuss Shakespeare’s writing by looking at “William Shakespeare’s Star Wars” by Ian Doescher.
Romeo and Juliet Murder Mystery
Course Description: A flexible schedule class that teaches kids the plot and characters of “Romeo and Juliet,” in the context of a detective story where you solve the mystery of the young lovers’ deaths.
Course Descriptions
How to Write Like Shakespeare: Learn the basics of iambic pentameter, sonnet form, and Shakespeare’s dramatic structure, and practice writing Shakespearean speeches.
So, why Ghostbusters? Well, as William Shakespeare’s Star Wars has shown, it’s not only fun to adapt popular stories into Shakespearean parodies, it can also be educational. I knew I wanted to do a short play for my school’s fall festival, but I didn’t think to do “Ghostbusters” until I saw the final joke in the Simpson’s parody of Hamlet, where Homer says: “Son, [Hamlet] is not only a great play, but also became a great movie, called Ghostbusters!”
This joke got me thinking- Hamlet has a comic scene where the prince and his two friends are running around the stage away from a ghost, one that refuses to speak to them and then terrifies them. This reminds me of the moment where the ghost of the librarian shushes the heroes, and becomes a hideous creature:
The librarian in Ghostbusters is similar to the Ghost of Hamlet’s Father.
From this realization. I took it as a personal challenge to adapt Ghostbusters into a one-act stage play with as much Shakespearean dialogue as possible.
My Process
Re-writing the script of a movie into a Shakespeare text required me to overhaul the story of Ghostbusters, as well as retrofitting Shakespearean lines and speeches from Hamlet, Macbeth, Henry IV & Henry V. I knew I wanted to freely cut-and-paste from Shakespeare, as if he’d written the original Ghostbusters. The result is a sort of stitched together blanket of Shakespeare lines, lines adapted from Ghostbusters, and some lines I created myself.
The Outline
Like I said, I kept the story limited to how the four Ghostbusters learn that ghosts are real, become professional ghost catchers, and then receive a call from a damsel in distress (Ms. Dana Barrett), who allows them to become heroes by defeating the ghost that has possessed her. I also decided to use the commercial in the movie as a framing device:
In my version, the Ghostbusters start by doing a commercial that then becomes a flashback where the heroes recap everything that has happened to them over the past week. I then ended the play by joking referring to the play as “A very long commercial.”
Scenes I Included/ Scenes I Cut
I only had 30 minutes allocated for my show, so I knew I’d have to pare down the story to its bare bones. This meant I had to eliminate a lot of subplots and characters and condense several scenes. As much as I love Walter Peck, Dean Jaeger, Louis Tully, Janine Melnitz, and the guy who gets electrocuted, they are not absolutely essential to the plot, so I cut them from my version. I also combined the characters of Dana and Gozer, eliminating the two terror dogs and limiting the antagonists to Gozer and the Stay Pufft Marshmallow Man. So I watched the film a few times, and created an outline of just 7 scenes.
Character Models
One thing I’ve said again and again is that Shakespeare’s characters are all based on archetypes that we see everywhere throughout literature, theater, and yes, movies. While I was watching Ghostbusters, I tried to find the Shakespearean archetypes that match the best with the characters in the movie:
Ray Stantz- Hamlet from Hamlet– Ray is a bookish man who is obsessed with death and with the occult, which makes him very much like the scholarly Prince Hamlet. He’s also a man on a mission to try and understand the supernatural and help keep it from destroying our world. Dr. Venkman describes him as “The heart of the Ghostbusters”, and that humorous heart gets him into trouble sometimes.
Egon Spangler- Horatio from Hamlet If Ray is the heart of the team, Egon is the brain. He is the no-nonsense scientist who provides the team with data and equipment to help them fight ghosts effectively, much like how Horatio reports to Hamlet that his father’s ghost has returned from the grave.
Dr. Venkman– Sir John Falstaff/ King Henry V
Dana Barret- Ophelia from Hamlet
Gozer– Hecate from Macbeth
The Stay Pufft Marshmallow Man- Snug the Joiner from A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Sneak Peak
Here’s one of the scenes I wrote, with the original scene for context
[The ghostbusters climb the stairway to the penthouse, where Gozer is sitting in a cloud. They have been going for a while and are clearly tired]. Venkman: Though I have not known fair Dana long, I know she must be a virtuous maid. Ascend this penthouse tower and let’s rescue she! Like to the Knights of ancient chivalry! Egon: These apparitions whizzing in the air Give so much light that I may read by them. [They reach the top and behold Gozer] Ray: I am resolved to speak to Gozer. This is the latest parle we will admit. Gozer: Art thou a god? Ray: Nay. Gozer: Then perish, half-man! Winston: Enough Ray of thy diplomacy! Speak, thou proton pack for me! [He fires, then the rest join in] Gozer disappears Venkman: The sky hath bubbles as the water hath, and she be one of them! Gozer [in Voice Over]: Sub creatures! Hark! Tis time! Pick the Destructor’s form Be it a Goblin damned or angel bright! Tornado or a earthy bright Or greatest Monkey with an appetite! Winson: Our thoughts contain the form that seals our doom? Then make them blank as a new-made room! [They all gesture to their heads as if pushing thoughts out] Gozer: Thy choice is made. Prepare to meet thy doom! Venkman: Nay! I chose nothing Winston: Nor I! Egon: Nor I [Pause] All: Ray? Ray: Twas not my fault! It popped into my mind Venkman: What? What hast popped in? Egon: LOOOK!!!
I’m pleased to announce that I’ve created a fully online, interactive Shakespeare class for kids ages 6-11 to start them on a lifelong journey of Shakespeare! The course will include games, videos, webquest activities, and puppet shows!
Title: Shakespeare for Kids!
Purpose:
Video trailer
The goal of this class is to introduce Shakespeare to young children in a fun and interactive way. For example, each lesson starts with a fun and funny introduction to a Shakespearean topic by our friend Puppet Shakespeare. Each class will also feature interactive games and quizzes that break down the poetry, language, characters, and plots of Shakespeare to help kids lose their “Shakes-fear” and begin engaging with classic literature
Each class builds from learning about Shakespeare to learning about the language and poetry of his plays, to finally an in-depth analysis of one play: “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” After watching videos, playing games, and filling out handouts about these topics, the student will go on a “webquest,” that is, a series of webpages that feature activities, outside websites, and a short- puppet show retelling of “Midsummer” for the student. The goal is that by the end of the course, the student will be able to understand the dialogue of the play, summarize the story, know the characters, and enjoy the poetry.
Format: Nearpod with video and web links.
Ages 6-10
Description: 2 week course, $10 per week.
Part I: Who Is Shakespeare?
Learn about Shakespeare’s life and career with an interactive timeline, handouts, and an engaging puppet show! This section will include me reading from the excellent children’s book: William Shakespeare and the Globe by Aliki.
Part II: Words, Words, Words
WIlliam Shakespeare (Or Bill as I like to call him), wrote in a very special way. Back then playwrights were called poets, so not only did he have to make plays, he had to write them so they would sound like lines of poetry.
Part III: Shakespeak
Figure out how to translate all the “thees” and “thous” that make reading Shakespeare a challenge nowadays
Part IV The Play’s the Thing!
What kinds of plays did Shakespeare write? This handy lesson will teach you about the basic types of plays Shakespeare wrote, and give you a quick summary of each!
Part V: Disney vs. Shakespeare
Poster for Disney’s Elemental, which bears many similarities to Shakespeare’s Romeo and JulietContinue reading →
LADY CAPULET Good night. Get thee to bed and rest, for thou hast need. Lady Capulet and the Nurse exit. JULIET Farewell.—God knows when we shall meet again. I have a faint cold fear thrills through my veins That almost freezes up the heat of life. I’ll call them back again to comfort me.— Nurse!—What should she do here? My dismal scene I needs must act alone. Come, vial. She takes out the vial. What if this mixture do not work at all? Shall I be married then tomorrow morning? She takes out her knife and puts it down beside her. No, no, this shall forbid it. Lie thou there. What if it be a poison which the Friar Subtly hath ministered to have me dead, Lest in this marriage he should be dishonored Because he married me before to Romeo? I fear it is. And yet methinks it should not, For he hath still been tried a holy man. How if, when I am laid into the tomb, I wake before the time that Romeo Come to redeem me? There’s a fearful point. Shall I not then be stifled in the vault, To whose foul mouth no healthsome air breathes in, And there die strangled ere my Romeo comes? Or, if I live, is it not very like The horrible conceit of death and night, Together with the terror of the place— As in a vault, an ancient receptacle Where for this many hundred years the bones Of all my buried ancestors are packed; Where bloody Tybalt, yet but green in earth, Lies fest’ring in his shroud; where, as they say, At some hours in the night spirits resort— Alack, alack, is it not like that I, So early waking, what with loathsome smells, And shrieks like mandrakes torn out of the earth, That living mortals, hearing them, run mad— O, if I wake, shall I not be distraught, Environèd with all these hideous fears, And madly play with my forefathers’ joints, And pluck the mangled Tybalt from his shroud, And, in this rage, with some great kinsman’s bone, As with a club, dash out my desp’rate brains? O look, methinks I see my cousin’s ghost Seeking out Romeo that did spit his body Upon a rapier’s point! Stay, Tybalt, stay! Romeo, Romeo, Romeo! Here’s drink. I drink to thee. She drinks and falls upon her bed within the curtains.
The Given Circumstances
This famous soliloquy comes from Act IV, Scene iii. In this speech, Juliet grapples with her fears and anxieties about taking the Friar’s sleeping potion.
Traditional Interpretations
Ellen Terry (Vinal Record Recording, C. 1911)
Ms. Terry, like her famous grandson John Gielgud, is more interested in delivering the text clearly, beautifully, and strongly than getting Juliet’s character across. Consequently, by our standards, her reading of the speech is slow, declamatory, and maybe a bit over-the-top. However, this kind of delivery really brings out the rhythm of the verse, the beauty of the individual words, and the structure of the speech itself, so I recommend actors listen to it as a jumping off point. In my opinion, having a good technical grasp of the speech will keep an actor from going too far with the emotion, (making it hard for the audience to hear and understand them). This is why there’s still value in these dusty old recordings.
Olivia Hussey (Romeo and Juliet directed by Franco Zephirelli, 1966)
Zephirelli was very sparing with the dialogue- choosing to condense this entire speech to one line “Love, give me strength.” Hussey has a great deal of passion in the speech, as if she is absolutely certain that taking the potion will re-unite her with Romeo.
Claire Danes (Romeo +Juliet, 1996)
Claire Danes contemplating the vial in Romeo + Juliet
Danes has a sense of almost macabe trance-like energy when she delivers the speech. Like all the edged weapons in the movie, the dagger is replaced by a gun. Most of the speech is cut because Luhrman wanted to emphasize the character’s obsession with violence, rather than fears about ghosts and arranged marriages. Consequently, Danes does little other than put the gun under her pillow, take out the vial, and drink it.
Ellie Kendrick (Globe Theater, 2009)
Ms. Kendrick is one of my favorite Juliets ever! She is a wonderful blend of sweetness and naivety, tempered with anxiety and practical thinking. She delivers the whole speech to different parts of the audience and makes sure every idea and every horrible thought of Juliet lands. Furthermore, her fast pacing around the stage helps her not only connect with the audience, but to use the Globe theater to make them imagine the Capulet vault.
Verse
As I always say, verse is the heartbeat of a character, and based on this, Juliet’s heart is beating a mile a minute. You’ll notice that five of these lines start with a trochee (T), and five of them have trochees. This means Juliet is unsettled, she’s literally off-beat. In addition, there are frequently pauses in the middle of the lines called cesuras, which might indicate that either Juliet is trying to answer her own questions, or that she is so worried, that she’s gasping for breath.
In this second part of the speech, the lines start running together. Juliet’s pace is quickening and she breathes every 2-3 lines instead of at the end of each line.
Structure
The speech is organized as a series of questions:
“What if…”
“What if…”
“How if…”
“Or if I live…”
“O, if I wake, shall I not…”
and then the terrifying statement: “O look…”
So, with this in mind, the actress needs to convey Juliet’s overactive imagination, her fears, and her ability to answer these fears with inner calm and inner strength.
Imagery
It’s a horrific idea being shut up alive with the dead. Shakespeare gives us the sights and smells and the grim reality of feeling “stifled” in a vault. I created this image to demonstrate the smells, the fear, and the claustrophobic nature of the vault.
I chose to have the vault lit with candles, and to use green smoke to represent decay and possibly noxious gas, like the nitre that sometimes dips from walls of tombs. I also added some stone faces of ancestors to stare down at Juliet.
Historical Research
Sarcophagus in church of San Francesco al Corso, an old Franciscan monastery in Verona.
The plain stone sarcophagus above has become a tourist attraction as the traditional ‘resting place’ of Juliet. As I mentioned in my Friar Lawrence post, the Friar who marries Juliet is a Franciscan, which is probably why they chose this church in Verona as the ‘site’ for Juliet’s grave.
It is a plain, open, and partly decayed sarcophagus, in a wild and desolate conventual garden once a cemetery now ruined to the very graves. The situation struck me as very appropriate to the legend, being blighted as their love.
– Lord Byron, Letters and Journals Vol. III
Since Italy is a small, hot country, bodies in the 16th century were buried almost immediately. First, the body would be wrapped up in a shroud or winding sheet, as Juliet mentions at the end. The corpses might be decorated with Rosemary or other sweet-smelling herbs.
A winding sheet for a corpse
Wealthy families like the Capulets or the church, would store all the bodies of their ancestors in burial vaults or crypts. Some bodies would be anointed with oil or preserved with vinegar.
Literary Inspiration: The Cask of Amontillado
Montressor and Fortunato move through the burial crypt in “The Cask of Amontillado”
When I think of the dark, macabre atmosphere of a family tomb, I think of The Cask of Amontillado, a short story by Edgar Allen Poe where the anti-hero Montressor, tricks his enemy Fortunato into going into his family crypt and buries him alive! There are some interesting parallels between Montressor and Tybalt from Romeo and Juliet- both men belong to ancient families, both men are violent, and both refuse to let any kind of insult stand. I think Juliet sees the vault as a hostile place, where her ancestors are angry at her for “betraying the Capulet name,” after marrying a Montague.
Image Research 4: Tybalt’s Angry Ghost
AI image of Tybalt’s Ghost
Like Montressor in The Cask of Amontillado, Tybalt embodies the Capulet feud, and it makes sense that Juliet would see him when she thinks of being shut up in the vault. The real question is, what does seeing him do to her? Is she terrified? Is she remorseful? Is she moved to protect Romeo? How does seeing Tybalt’s ghost motivate her to take the potion?
Other Questions to consider
Why is Juliet so nervous?
How does Juliet feel about running away from home?
Do the ghosts represent something? Guilt? Judgement? Some kind of ticking clock?
What does she see Tybalt’s ghost doing?
How does Juliet pull it together at the end?
Emotional
Not only is Juiet worried about her health, (mental and physical), I get a sense that she might also be experiencing guilt. The notion of her being tormented by spirits that shriek like mandrakes, suggests that maybe the ancient Capulets aren’t very pleased with Juliet. This makes sense because she married a Montegue. I get the sense that maybe, for the first time, Juliet actually feels guilty, as if she’s failed her ancestors. However, for whatever reason, she definitely re-focuses and thinks about Romeo. Either she rejects her ancestors and Tybalt, or maybe she sees the potion as a way of protecting Romeo, or possibly Juliet just wants these fears and anxieties to end, and takes the potion as a release. My actor and I will no doubt try these ideas out and figure out what works within the structure and within her interpretation of the character.
Our Interpretation
Again, it’s a little too early for me to tell you our interpretation yet, but I’ll post it later.
Resources:
Myshakespeare.com. This website will allow you to look up unfamilliar words, download pictures and videos of the scene, and even watch an ‘interview’ with Juliet, where, just as in this speech, she becomes more and more anxious and fearful until the very end.
For my Shakespeare club, I’m coaching two young actors on Viola’s celebrated soliloquy in Act II, Scene ii.I thought I’d share some of that work with you. In this speech, Viola has an epiphany; the lady she was sent to woo on her master Orsino’s behalf LOVES HER!
Viola has spent an unspecified amount of time disguised as a man. She has just tried (unsuccessfully) to woo Countess Olivia on behalf of her employer, Duke Orsino. Olivia seemed intrigued by her in her disguise as “Cesario,” and refused to hear any more words about Orsino, but asked Viola to come see her again. The Countess then sent her messenger Malvolio to give Viola a ring, which he claims she tried to give to Olivia as a gift. At first, Viola is confused and upset by the accusation, but slowly realizes that the ring is actually a gift for her; in fact, it’s a love token.
Traditional Interpretations
I think the comedy depends on how Viola reacts to the realization that Olivia loves her. I’ve seen some Violas that are embarrassed, some that are a little frightened (after all, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned), and others with sad sympathy. Viola is a good person, so she can’t laugh at the lovesick countess, but she can have a wry laugh at herself and how her disguise has caused all this trouble; making her unable to confess her love to him, while at the same time making Olivia think she is a handsome young man.
Michelle Terry In the Globe Theater (2021)
Michelle Terry as Viola in the 2021 production of “Twelfth Night”
Michelle Terry is very matter-of-fact in her portrayal. She doesn’t pause, she doesn’t drag out the lines. In fact, she seems more annoyed and scandalized than anything else. The comedy comes mainly from her gestures and movements as she talks to the audience as if they were one of her gal-pals- venting her frustration with this ridiculous situation.
Michelle Terry excels as Viola, straight-faced, tormented, only occasionally raising a conspiratorial eyebrow at the audience.
Judy Dench in the RSC TV show “Playing Shakespeare” is very sympathetic to “Poor Olivia, ” and plays the speech with a romantic sentimentality. She’s focused on Olivia, and feels awful for the false hope she’s given her.
Both these interpretations are valid, and they’re a good baseline for two sides of Viola’s personality- the sensitive genteel duke’s daughter who is sympathetic to Olivia, and the down-to-earth funny one who is willing to disguise herself as a boy to survive.
Literary Devices
Imagery
The main image here is the image of the knot- a central image of how convoluted this love triangle is.
I left no Ring with her: what meanes this Lady? Fortune forbid my out‑side haue not charm'd her: [650] She made good view of me, indeed so much, That me thought her eyes had lost her tongue, For she did speake in starts distractedly. She loues me sure, the cunning of her passion Inuites me in this churlish messenger: [655] None of my Lords Ring? Why he sent her none; I am the man, if it be so, as tis, Poore Lady, she were better loue a dreame: Disguise, I see thou art a wickednesse, Wherein the pregnant enemie does much. [660] How easie is it, for the proper false In womens waxen hearts to set their formes: Alas, O frailtie is the cause, not wee, For such as we are made, if such we bee: How will this fadge? My master loues her deerely, [665] And I (poore monster) fond asmuch on him: And she (mistaken) seemes to dote on me: What will become of this? As I am man, My state is desperate for my maisters loue: As I am woman (now alas the day) [670] What thriftlesse sighes shall poore Oliuia breath? O time, thou must vntangle this, not I, It is too hard a knot for me t'vnty.
It’s interesting to note that (in the First Folio text), the verse alternates between being regular, and using a run-on technique called enjabment, where the thoughts continue after the end of the lines, starting with lines three and four. Ironically, when Viola says that Olivia was distracted and confused when she visited her, her own thoughts are disjointed and fragmentary as she reaches the inevitable conclusion that Olivia is infatuated with Viola in her disguise.
Viola’s Emotional Journey
In the book “Shakespeare’s First Texts” by Neil Freeman he describes how the Folio prints the speech in four distinct sections. Freeman hypothesizes that Shakespeare organized this speech into four phrases that chart the stages of emotions Viola goes through:
Each stage has its own easily identifiable quality, reflecting the growing steps of Viola’s journey in what for her is a huge struggle not only to comprehend, but also to deal with the enormous complications of the dreadful love triangle- the potential results of which are now becomming only too clear.
Freeman, 175.
Stage 1: Introduction
In the first three and a half sentences, Viola goes through the facts- she gave no ring to Olivia, Olivia was eying her, and half paying attention to what Viola was saying. The phrase ends with Viola’s conclusion that Olivia must be in love with her.
Stage 2: Complications
The sentences are of very irregular length- sometimes six words per line, sometimes a few as four. According to Freeman, the irregularity of the verse shows how Viola’s emotions are getting the better of her. Viola could be gasping with remorse over the pain she’s caused Olivia, or shocked at how easily she was taken in by Viola’s disguise.
Stage 3: Crisis/ Catharsis
Each line of this section mentions the people in this love triagle: “My master,” “And I,” “And She,” etc. Viola might be thinking about the possible outcomes to this situation- getting fired, getting discovered, getting married, etc.
Stage 4: Summary: “O Time, Thou Must Untangle This, Not I.”
Like Hamlet before her and Macbeth after her, Viola ends her soliloquy by saying she has no conclusion. She has no idea how to solve this problem, but can only hope that Time will provide a solution.
Audience Interaction
As I said, this is a soliloquy, which is to say, a speech where the character is solo or alone onstage. Some people think this means that the characters are talking to themselves, but I firmly disagree with this notion. One reason why Shakespeare writes soliloquies is because they allow a character to share their thoughts and feelings with the audience. They are the ancestors of every aria or solo in opera and musical theater, and every Disney Princess/ Villain song. I’ve even said before that there are some similarities between Viola and a famous Disney Princess:
I’ve written before that Shakespeare helped influence Halloween as we know it- the images of holding skulls, witches chanting over a cauldron, and even ghosts coming back to plague their murderers all have Shakespearean roots. Exhibit A is how these images and tropes can even be found in beloved Halloween costume stores like Spirit Halloween!
If you like creepy Halloween activities and Shakespeare, please sign up for my fully online, fully asynchronous class: “An Immersive Guide To Shakespeare’s Macbeth!” The class features a digital escape room, an interactive quiz, and a special, undead guest!
This list is not about skill or the talent of the actor. This is to honor the contributions of Shakespearean actors who also appeared in one of my favorite film and book franchises of all time: Harry Potter. Accordingly, some of the actors who weren’t essential to either Harry Potter or Shakespeare or both are placed lower on the list even if I personally love the actor or the character they portrayed.
#10: Richard Harris- Albus Dumbledore
The Irish-born actor has been a veteran of stage and screen for decades before his death in 2002, after the second Harry Potter film. Here is him on Johnny Carson, telling a funny story about a production of Macbeth he did early in his career:
#9: Kenneth Branaugh- Gilderoy Lockheart
If you visit this website regularly, you know I’m a fan of Kenneth Branaugh– I’ve reviewed three of his Shakespeare movies and he’s my all-time favorite Hamlet. I’m also aware that he has a reputation of being a bit of an egotist and a womanizer, (since he had affairs with two women on this list), so even though he was a bit too old to play the part, it was nice to see him have a laugh at his own expense as the attention-hogging Gilderoy Lockheart. The humbug professor’s name actually Gilderoy (as in a man painted with false gold), gives away the twist that he takes credit for other witches and wizards’ work and Branaugh shamelessly mugs to the camera whenever he’s on screen. My favorite scene of his though, is the one serious scene where he teaches dueling with the help of the much more competent Professor Snape:
Kenneth Branaugh and Alan Rickman in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, (2002).
If you saw my post on the duel at the end of Hamlet, you can see that the way wizards duel is directly inspired by the way fencers fought in Hamlet, right down to the flashy salute and bow beforehand, and it’s neat to see two legendary Hamlets fight in it.
I couldn’t decide between these fabulous actors, so I grouped them together. After seeing Timothy Spall as the cowardly, foolish incompetent spy and traitor Rosencrantz in Hamlet, I knew that the only Harry Potter role for him would be as Lord Voldemort’s toady and pathetic rat, Peter Pettigrew, aka Wormtail.
Broadbent on the other hand, is completely different and unrecognizable during his excellent portrayal of Lord Buckingham in Ian McKellen’s 1995 film version of Shakespeare’s Richard III. Unlike the meek and easily broken Horace Slughorn, Broadbent as Buckingham is an oily politician who very nearly sells his soul to McKellen’s diabolical Richard:
What unites these two portrayals is that both characters are corrupted by a figure of pure evil, but both have a breaking point- Buckingham, (as you see in the clip above), refuses to be a party to child murder, while Slughorn eventually helps Harry Potter destroy Voldemort. In a way, they’re two sides of a very flawed coin.
#7 Michael Gambon (Albus Dumbledore 2)
Like Richard Harris, Michael Gambon, (who passed away in September of 2023) was an accomplished stage and screen actor, famous for playing King Lear multiple times, including a famous performance with Antony Sher at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Here are some highlights of his stage work:
I feel I have to give Fiona Shaw a good spot on this list, though I think her talent was wasted in the role of Petunia Dursley. She is an icon of British theater and her work in Shakespeare is superb. She famously played Richard II back in 1995, and in the short film below, she talks about her amazing interpretation of Measure For Measure, with fellow Harry Potter alumn, David Tennant.
I’d also like to include the best-deleted scene from Deathly Hallows with Shaw in it, where she admits to Harry for the first time that she misses her sister Lilly.
#5: Ralph Fiennes (Lord Voldemort)
In a way, Lord Voldemort was a role that Fiennes had trained for all his life. He has played smarmy, serpentine characters before in films like Red Dragon and Schindler’s List. But Fiennes’ Shakespeare training allowed him to tap into the evil megalomaniac at the heart of Voldemort when he played roles like Richard III, (another deformed autocrat), and Coriolanus, the Roman general who is himself compared to a dragon. In the video above, YouTube critic Kyle Kalgren analyzes how Fiennes’ past roles and experience with Shakespeare translated well in his performance and his direction of the 2011 film Coriolanus.
#4 Imelda Stanton (Delores Umbridge)
By contrast, I give more credit to Imelda Stanton, who mainly plays sweet mom-like characters (or nurse-like in the case of Shakespeare In Love), for embodying the utterly loathsome Delores Umbridge. Reportedly, the role made Stanton feel physically ill and unlike Richard III, people hate her character with a passion. By contrast, look at her sweet and charming portrayal of Maria in the 1996 film Twelfth Night, (which also starred Helena Bonham Carter):
#3 Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange)/ Emma Thompson (Sybyl Trelawney)
Again, I had to give credit to both of these women for the startling transformations they did for their Harry Potter characters, as well as their stellar work in Shakespeare. Helena Bonham Carter mainly plays apealing aristocratic characters such as Olivia in Twelfth Night, and Ophelia in Hamlet:
Seeing Ms. Carter as the demented Bellatrix Lestrange was quite a shock for me, yet the performance was no less impressive. I especially love this scene in Deathly Hallows where she has to act like a 17 year old girl, TRYING TO BE BELLATRIX LESTRANGE
#2: Alan Rickman (Severus Snape)
I already wrote a tribute to Alan Rickman after his death in 2016, so I don’t wish to repeat myself. Suffice it to say that Mr. Rickman was always a consummate professional, and his iconic portrayal of Severus Snape was the performance of a lifetime.
Alan Rickman as Achilles in Troilus and Cressida, Royal Shakespeare Company.
Honorable Mention: David Tennent (Barty Crouch)
To be honest, I thought Tennant was miscast in Harry Potter- he can play villains, (as Good Omens fans know well), but he just isn’t great at being maniacal and evil. That said, Tennant is a rising Shakespearean star and has created many memorable performances from Richard II, to Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, to Hamlet.
#1: Dame Maggie Smith (Professor McGonigal)
Say it with me… you probably saw this coming. No one can deny that Dame Maggie’s contributions to Shakespeare, as well as her ubiquitous portrayal of Hogwarts’ current Headmistress Minerva McGonigal, stand the test of time as strongly as the animated chess pieces she placed in the school basement. Let’s look at some of her greatest Shakespearean moments.
Plug for my Acting Class
If you enjoyed this list, you might want to sign up for my Intro to Acting class or my extended acting course, where I delve into Shakespearean acting techniques, and answer the big question, “WHY DO SHAKESPEAREAN ACTORS KEEP GETTING CAST AS WITCHES AND WIZARDS?” To sign up, click the link below: https://outschool.com/classes/609658d1-3f9f-4371-8af2-4fe81ad13d8c
Cover art for my Outschool Beginning Acting Class.
“Welcome Spirit, How Camest Thou hither?” The sources for Puck
Puck, in medieval English folklore, a malicious fairy or demon. In Old and Middle English the word meant simply “demon.” In Elizabethan lore he was a mischievous, brownielike fairy also called Robin Goodfellow, or Hobgoblin. As one of the leading characters in William Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream, Puck boasts of his pranks of changing shapes, misleading travelers at night, spoiling milk, frightening young girls, and tripping venerable old dames. The Irish pooka, or púca, and the Welsh pwcca are similar household spirits.
Shakespeare also took inspiration from English poet Edmund Spencer, who visited Ireland in the 1590s and adapted the folklore he picked up into his opera The Fairy Queen, which Shakespeare adapted into A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Types of fairies you can “spot” at the Lullymore Park in Ireland:
Puck/Robin’s Dual Nature
The old stories tell that Fairies are magical creatures who live in hollow places in the earth. Some are benevolent and help give rain and pleasant weather to the Earth, Like the king and Queen of the fairies, Oberon and Titania:
And the mazed world, By their [the tides] increase, now knows not which is which: And this same progeny of evils comes From our debate, from our dissension; We are their parents and original.
— Titania, (Queen of the Faries), A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act II, Scene i.
Titania in this speech shows great concern for nature, humanity, and the planet. She believes it is the responsibility of fairies, particularly herself and her husband Oberon, to control the elements and keep humans and fairies safe. Some fairies, however, are cruel and enjoy playing tricks on mortals, just like Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, or Queen Mab in Romeo and Juliet.
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
Close reading of Puck’s speech (MND II, i)
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This is a short analysis I created of the tricks Puck plays on people in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as part of my acting course on Ouschool.com. Note the different ways Puck is portrayed in photos as a satyr, a rotund elf, and sometimes as an almost- demon like figure.
Punishments or contracts with fairies formed a significant part of Goodfellow’s purpose on earth. While he could issue good fortune and support, this was always at the cost of those involved. As Reginald Scot commented, Goodfellow had a ‘standing fee’ of a ‘mess of white bread and milk’, which he expected after supporting housewives with their chores. If his payment was forgotten, Goodfellow was believed to steal from the home that owed him, often stealing grain and milk from the dairy.
Abigail Sparkes, Historic UK.com
Performing Puck
Because Puck is not human, and somewhat ambiguous in the text, an actor can play Puck in many different ways. Generally speaking, actors tend to explore Puck’s attitude toward humans, their love of mischief, and how to translate that physically and vocally
Puck. My mistress with a monster is in love. Near to her close and consecrated bower, While she was in her dull and sleeping hour, A crew of patches, rude mechanicals, Were met together to rehearse a play The shallowest thick-skin of that barren sort, Who Pyramus presented, in their sport Forsook his scene and enter’d in a brake When I did him at this advantage take, An ass’s nole I fixed on his head:
Anon his Thisbe must be answered, And forth my mimic comes. So, at his sight, away his fellows fly; And, at our stamp, here o’er and o’er one falls; He murder cries and help from Athens calls. I led them on in this distracted fear, And left sweet Pyramus translated there: When in that moment, so it came to pass, Titania waked and straightway loved an ass!
This is an interactive game that teaches the craft of Shakespeare’s writing and stagecraft in the form of an Elizabethan escape room. You must find the lost play of William Shakespeare before a mystery thief destroys it! Solve the clues and learn about Shakespeare’s writing and theater to uncover a historical mystery!
Course Description
In this fully online, fully interactive game, you play as a member of Shakespeare’s company. You’ve just discovered that someone has stolen Shakespeare’s new play “Love’s Labors Won,” and you need to find it before the show tonight! In the course of the game, you search the Globe Theater and Shakespeare’s study. Then a mysterious note reveals that someone has stolen the play! You must figure out who it is, and find the play before the thief burns it! Through the course of the game, you will learn about Shakespeare’s theater, the secrets of how he wrote some of his great plays and beautiful poetry, and the work of his contemporaries in a fun, interactive way.
The class is organized into four parts, based on four locations where you will search for the missing play:
Part I- Search the Theater
Part I- Search the theater (website/ Slides/ Jamboard) You learn the basic parts of an Elizabethan stage (Google slides) You label the parts of the theater (Google Forms) You do a virtual tour of the theater (via Globe Theater.com) Web quest- answer 3 questions about Shakespeare’s Globe: https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/ (handout) You search the tiring house (the backstage area of the Globe), and find the letter from the thief (Sites).
Part II- THe Crime
A video plays where the thief declares that he’s stolen Shakespeare’s play for money and revenge. After the video, you will learn about plays, printing, and theft in Shakespeare’s day through a series of Google Slides Activity- make a folio, quarto, and octavio with just a piece of paper (handout) Web Quest- answer 3 questions about how Shakespeare’s plays were printed and the first folio (Slides) Activity 2: make an actors’ scroll or roll the way that Elizabethans might use (video) Easter egg- find a pair of gloves in the print shop and answer questions.
You’ll gain new understanding of the types of plays Shakespeare wrote and their basic plot structure via Google Slides. You’ll then take a short quiz to confirm what you learned.
-Plot Structure You’ll learn about the basic structure of Elizabethan plays via Google Slides. A second set of slides will demonstrate the plot structure of Romeo &Juliet You’ll mix and match a series of plot elements to create your own Elizabethan play via Jamboard
Tragedy:
A hero is given some unwelcome news
He feels betrayed by those close to him
He agonizes about the ethics of killing someone close to him.
He kills someone (or banishes an honest man) and immediately falls into a downward spiral.
The hero does (this will be a mandatory choice)
Comedy:
The heroine disguises herself as a boy
A hero or heroine swears (s)he will never fall in love and immediately falls in love
The heroine pretends not to be interested in the hero, (but secretly loves him).
A loyal best friend is captured, sent to prison, or bewitched
The hero and heroine hate each other due to a series of misunderstandings.
The hero and heroine get married (this will be a mandatory choice).
History:
An ambitious young man arises to challenge the king for the throne.
The old king dies, (or is murdered)
A new king becomes king
Duels and or battles
Someone dies in battle
Someone is murdered, assassinated, or sentenced to death.
New King gets married
King and Queen reign peacefully (at least for now)
Romance ( if students pick this option, they can mix and match everything (except the main character dying)
Verse practice- You’ll learn about the verse Shakespeare wrote, through a series of slides and a jam board. Activity- You will be given a series of famous lines from plays and movies, (such as a quote from a Disney Movie, a Star Wars film, or a song). You will then determine if it is an iambic pentameter line (Google Slides). Easter egg- you find a second note from the thief (Google Sites).
Part IV- THe Tavern
You will look at a series of pictures and videos about Shakespeare’s contemporaries and try to figure out which of them stole the play. Through the handout, you will conclude who the thief is. You find a dagger in the tavern and take it. Outside the tavern, you will fight the thief in a short animation. GAME OVER.
THe FIrst Class starts April 28th, 2023. CLick here to register!
The Shakespearean Student 