On August 25th, 2026, the world lost an incredible performer. Notable for his film roles in Clue,Muppet Treasuren Island It, the Rocky Horror Picture Show, as well as countless voice-over roles in film, TV, and audiobooks, Mr Curry had an incredible onstage personality and a versitile, commanding voice that landed itself well to slimy villains, megalomaniacal tyrants, and delicate fey characters.
If you’re familiar with his work, you probably won’t be surprised that Curry was a classically trained stage actor with equally impressive credits onstage. He originated the role of Mozart in Amedeus, played Gilbert and Sullivan’s Pirate King to great acclaim, and won numerous theater awards on both sides of the Atlantic.
For a while, I’ve wanted to honor this great performer, but I couldn’t find a way to do it on this platform. That is until I found this:
This was a 1978 British TV mini series about the life of Shakespeare, with Mr Curry as the title character. This is why I will provide a series of summaries of these episodes and discuss how Mr Curry adds to the mythos and historiography of Shakespeare
Episode 1: Dead Shepherd
We’re all dying, for poets it just comes earlier
Christopher Marlowe
We begin with Hamnet, no not Shakespeare’s ill-fated son, but Hamnet Sadler, Shakespeare’s friend from Stratford (and his son’s godfather). The fish-out-of water from Stratford has come to pass along messages (and a roasted chicken) to Shakespeare. As he delivers it, Shakespeare boasts about his success as an actor, performing in Doctor Faustus and winning the acclaim of both his fellow actors and the public. The problem is… this tale is a lie; Shakespeare is just a horse valet for the theater, while the brash and flamboyant Christopher Marlowe (Ian McShane), is the greatest playwright in London…for now.
The title refers to how Shakespeare falls in love with theater at first sight, and how London immediately falls in love with his talents.
Tim Curry on Playing Shakespeare
He’s a kind of ambitious country boy who learns fast” driven by the intense, fast-paced survival energy of the Elizabethan age.
Curry’s Shakespeare is full of energy and bravado. This is best demonstrated in the scene where he gets out of a cart full of straw, jumps up to the rafters of the Globe, jumps onstage, recites Faustus, and sings! He has a fiery energy and you can see how this Shakespeare is a man of ambitious energy, yet still possessed of an idealistic soul.
Ian McShane by contrast, is witty and world-weary with a dangerous edge. He has fallen out of love with theater; more interested in court intrigue. This leads him to spy for the Queen like an Elizabethan James Bond. Unlike Bond however, Marlowe is brutally murdered by agents from his own government! While all the London theater mourns his loss, his death also sets the stage for Shakespeare’s meteoric rise as the premier poet of England.
I’ll continue reviewing each subsequent episode on this page and also my podcast. Stay tuned!
Locrine is an Elizabethan play, first published in 1595, whose author is, sadly, lost to history. The title page says the play was “Newly set forth, corrected, and overseen, by W.S.” As you might expect, scholars and theater practitioners have eagerly tried to prove that this means the play was written, (or at least revised), by Shakespeare. So far, no proof has been found.
“Historical” Context
Notes on the Trojan War
The play is a tragedy based on the founding of Britain. Over 2,000 years ago, a father and his three sons flee the destroyed Troy, tame the wild landscape of England, and become its first kings. After his father’s death, the eldest son, Locrine, must defend his land from barbarian invaders with the help of his brothers.
Semi-mythical characters
Brutus of Troy
Brutus is the patriarch of the Britons who, according to legend, was descended from Aeneas the sole survivor of the infamous Trojan War. Brutus preserves the legacy of Troy by founding a new city in Britain, Troynovant (New Troy), and establishing his three sons as heirs to his kingdom.
Camber, Brutus’ young son
Albanact
Albanact is the great warrior whom Brutus puts in charge of Scotland. He has his hands full defending Britain against the Scithian invaders.
Camber
Camber is given Cambria, (modern day Wales)
Illustration of King Locrine from the Genealogical Chronicle of the Kings of England to Edward IV (c. 1461)
Locrine is Brutus’ eldest son, and as such he is crowned king over all Britain. According to legend, Locrine changes the capital of England from New Troy, to Locrindom, which then became London.
The Plot
Title page illustration from Locrine, 1709
The prologue
Prologue describes Prometheus’ punishment as a tragedy, and his gift is a blessing. Prometheus also warns that Zeus will be overthrow if he succumbs to his desire for Thetis
Ate the Goddess of revenge introduces the play, making it very clear that this is the fall of the royal house of Brutus.
As the play continues, we see Brutus die, leaving his kingdom to his children
4. Humber is humbled- the villainous emperor Humber tries to conquer Britain. Many battles and many tears ensure
Locrine is conquered- without giving too much away, Locrine is defeated in battle by his former wife, Gwendoline. It’s possible that, since the play was written in the last few years of the Elizabethan era, that the writer of Locrine chose Gwendolyn to be a stand in for Queen Elizabeth herself.
Gwendoline, legendary Queen regent of Britain.
A Senecan Tragedy
Locrine probably isn’t a Shakespearean play- it’s characters communicate mainly in operatic speeches that are full of passionate feelings. Plays like this are called Senecan Tragedies, based on the ancient Roman playwright Seneca.
As I mentioned in my podcast, these speeches are fun to give, but it’s a challenge to deliver them in a way that connects with an audience.
Humber’s monologue from Locrine
Dumb Shows
To illustrate key moments of the play, each act begins with a dumb show, a short pantomime which usually involves some kind of animal. For instance, when Humber defeats Brutus’ son Albanact, there is a dumb show where a crocodile kills a fish, echoing how Humber (who carries a crocodile on his shield), deceived and murdered Albanact.
Our version of Locrine chooses to use puppets instead of real animals, most notably crows and vipers. The Mexican folktales that we intertwine with the text of Locrine mention a beautiful serpent named Kwinim Tsan, which represents the power of nature.
Our team works on the great serpent puppet
Our Interpretation
Humber is humbled in the wilderness Gwendoline rallies the troopsBrutus fights the giant Gogmagog Gwendolyn confronts LocrineA massive battle between Locrine’s forces and Gwendolyn’sThe indigenous story of how the crow became black.Cast photo
Our production, Víbora y cuervo: Locrine and Other Tales, pairs this origin myth with other origin myths to explore their power and purpose in our world. Orangemite.org
Poster for Orange Mite’s 2026 production of Locrine and Other Tales
Well, there you go, Hope you enjoyed this overview of the play Locrine. If you like this review, you might like to see the show itself. Click here to purchase tickets:
I’m pleased to announce that I will be playing Humber, the Scithian Emperor who tried to conquer England, in a very special adaptation of Locrine in August of 2026.
What is Locrine?
Locrine is an Elizabethan play, first published in 1595, whose author is, sadly, lost to history. The play is a mythologized history of the founding of Britain, which the play calls New Troy.
Our Interpretation
Our version of Locrine is a hybrid between the original play, and stories from the indigenous people of Mexico in the huasteca region. Our director chose to reinterpret Humber as an existential threat to the natural world of Mexico- a threat to the people and the environment, who is defeated not just by Locrine’s army, but by the forces of nature themselves.
Myth vs History
Ancient Scithian horse warriors
The Scythian Emperor- Scythia was originally modern day Iran, but many Scithian tribes also lived in places like Ukraine and Russia. They were nomads who primarily used their skills in mounted warfare to conquer regional fifedoms, organized under a single emperor.
Function Within the Play
Ancient golden Scithian belt buckle
Ravisher of Nature- as Humber tries to conquer the people of England, he also destroys the natural world.
Usurper/ Conqueror of the Britains- in our version of Locrine, Humber’s war to conquer Britain is analogous to the European colonizers who fought to dominate America such as the French, the Dutch, and of course, the Spanish.
We are retired with joyful victory. The slaughtered trojans squeltering in their blood, infect the air with their carcasses, and are a prey for every ravenous bird.
Locrine, Act 2 Scene 6
Playing Humber
Right now, I am playing Humber as a narcissist, a man who, at his core, is deeply insecure but tries to overcompensate it by acting like an invincible monarch- one who fills the void in his soul with land, slaves, possessions, and gold. He is good at persuading people and inspiring them to fight for him, but he cares for no one but himself.
High on a bank by Nilus’ boistrous streams, Fearfully sat the Egyptian Crocodile, Dreadfully grinding in her sharp long teeth The broken bowels of a silly fish. [A crocodile swims across the stage, eating a fish.] His back was armed against the dint of spear, With shields of brass that shined like burnished gold; And as he stretched forth his cruel paws, A subtle Adder, creeping closely near, Thrusting his forked sting into his claws, Privily shed his poison through his bones. So Humber, having conquered Albanact, Doth yield his glory unto Locrine’s sword. Mark what ensues, and you may easily see, That all our life is but a Tragedy. –Locrine, Act III prologue.
A snake struggling with an alligator, eventually gets the upper hand, or coil.
In the play, Humber is compared to a fearsome predator- a crocodile, which was actually the sigil on his shield. I took inspiration from the animal, and used a serpentine physicality when playing him. I also decided to give myself a crocodile smile- I keep my head down, stared my enemies in the eye, and then- struck!
Gloucester’s show Beguiles him as the mournful crocodile With sorrow snares relenting passengers- Henry VI, Part II.
Inspirations
From History-
Again, Locrine is not a history play and Humber, as far as we know, was not a real person. Rather than a legitimate chronicle, Locrine is a mythologized history of the founding of Britain. The Scithians never actually invaded Britain, (although some early chronicles claim that the Saxons were descended from them). Our version of Locrine conflates the foundation of Britain with the conquest of America, (specifically the struggle between English colonists and the Spanish conquistadors,) and there is one man who has come to symbolize the ruthless might and lust for gold that the Spanish had in the early conquest of the American continent more than any other Conquistador- Hernan Cortez, governor of New Spain, and conqueror of the Mexican empire.
Statue of Cortez. Notice the broken Aztec statue under his foot.
We Spaniards know a sickness of the heart that only gold can cure- Hernan Cortez (allegedly)
Cortez was a man of insatiable greed and lust for power. He was born a minor noble with a gift for diplomacy and exceptional courage. He eventually slaughtered thousands of the Mexican people, supplanted their ruler Montezuma, and razed their capital city of Tenochtitlán, rebranding it as Mexico City, capital of the New Spanish empire.
Mural on the Battle of Centla and the conquest of Tabasco, by Homero Magaña Arellano.
Like Humber, Cortez was more of an administrator than a soldier, but nevertheless, he did lead his army successfully against the native people in several key battles, where they used their cavalry and cannons to devastating effect. He also ravished hundreds of Indigenous women who sired his illegitimate children- like our Humber, he lusted for women in addition to gold.
Cortez was careful to appear pious to his soldiers and respectful to the native people he encountered, but this was a calculated act designed to get loyalty and obedience from the people around him. According to his biography, Cortez had a zero-tolerance policy for blasphemy, and told his soldiers to respect the native Mexica. Again, Cortez’s real goal was to keep his men loyal to their “pious” commander and to make the people trust him…while he robbed them blind. Talk about crocodile tears.
Cortez’s victories allowed him to build palaces for himself to rule over the Mexica, as well as a royal charter for himself, and of course, GOLD.
The Spaniards appeared to be much delighted, they seized upon the gold like monkeys, their faces flushed. For clearly their thirst for gold was insatiable; they starved for it; they lusted for it; they wanted to stuff themselves with it as if they were pigs. They went about fingering handling the streamers of gold, passing them back and forth, grabbing them one to the other babbling, talking gibberish among themselves. – Bernardino de Sahagún
In Locrine, Humber is defeated offstage and forced to starve to death in a desert wilderness. To fill in the blanks, I looked at events from Cortez’s life and death. The real Cortez died of dysentary in 1547, but I like to imagine Humber- Cortez being chased away by Locrine’s army, similar to his narrow escape from Tenochtitlán during the famous Noche Triste (30 June – 1 July 1520)
Cortez and his soldiers narrowly escape Tenochtitlán
From Shakespeare-
Shakespeare rarely writes characters who are wholy evil, so for the first three acts, I mainly thought of another Sythian conqueror- Christopher Marlowe’s Tamborlaine. He is not so
much a man as a force of nature, eager to kill, conquer, and take power and riches from the natural world.
The Roman Goddess Fortuna, with her wheel and orb.
In the later acts of Locrine however, Humber is… well humbled ater losing the war, losing his son, and losing his wife. His laments for his son bear a striking resemblance to Titus Andronicus.
Humber speech III, Scene 5, performed by One Woman Shakespeare
Verse
At the end of his life, Humber reverts to a primitive shadow of his former self- Humber is forced to hide in desert caves, and live on berries and roots. His cruel, bitter laments and desire to cast himself into the sea is almost perfect parallel to Shakespeare’s Timon of Athens.
Timon in the cave
What basilisk was hatched in this place, Where everything consumed is to nought? What fearful Fury haunts these cursed groves, Where not a root is left for me to eat? Hath fell Alecto, with invenomed blasts, Breathed forth poison in these tender plains? What, not a root, no fruit, no beast, no bird, To nourish Humber in this wilderness? My very entrails burn for want of drink, These foul accursed groves afford no meat, The gods, hard-hearted gods, yield me no meat. Was ever land so fruitless as this land? Was ever soil so barren as this soil? No, even the climate of the torrid zone Brings forth more fruit than this accursed grove
In Conclusion
Humber is a great deal of fun- he’s a cartoon-like villain at first, but after he loses to Locrine, he seems more human, longing to be reunited with his son. Even though he’s not the main character, he has a tragic character’s arc. In short, he’s great to play, and I hope he’ll be great to watch!
Two Gentlemen Of Verona is probably Shakespeare’s first comedy, maybe even his first play. A lot of the plot devices and themes Shakespeare explores in later plays were first set down in Two Gentlemen.
The Plot
Two Gentlemen Of Verona is about two best friends, Valentine and Proteus, who start out as young men yearning for adventure and to seek their fortune in Milan. As you might have guessed from his name, Valentine finds love instead of fortune, and so does his friend Proteus. What makes the play unique is that Proteus falls in love with Valentine’s betrothed Silvia, forsaking his faithful sweetheart Julia. The two virtuous girls support each other and fight to stop Proteus from sabotaging their relationships. In the end though, Valentine forgives Proteus and Valentine takes him back, which makes the play a little controversial for modern audiences.
The Concept
What happens in Milan, stays in Milan! Shakespeare’s gleefully silly comedy is set in 1940’s Las Vegas, where love and friendship are put to the test. A charming adventure navigating a love triangle, betrayal, disguises, an escape into the forest, and a dog. -Quoted from the official program.
The play is set in 1940s Las Vegas, which works well with the theme of young, impressionable men trying to make their fortunes in a place where luck can change in an instant. Proteus goes from a lover and loyal friend to a liar and traitor. Meanwhile, Valentine’s luck changes from a favored gentleman at court, to a banished vagabond.
The performances had the air of a 1940s classic comedy, with a lot of stylized slapstick and over-the top characters. It echoes the work of Laurel and Hardy or Abbot and Costello, which I feel was a wise choice- even if the audience couldn’t understand a word of the dialogue, they could still be entertained by the actors’ over-the top comedy.
Free Shakespeare In the Park
The set of “Two Gentlemen Of Verona”
This was my first KY Shakespeare production, and I enjoyed the overall vibe a lot. According to kyShakespeare.com, the company is enjoying its 66th year of being the longest running, non-ticketed Shakespeare festival in the United States. The company prides itself as being accessible, inclusive, anti-racist, and generally committed to welcoming all people to enjoy their shows. From what I saw from my seat on a balmy day in Olmstead Park, Kentucky Shakespeare is doing a great job accomplishing its goals. I saw people from many different walks of life come by, laugh at the jokes, clap and cheer, and have a good time.
The Cast
The cast has a great grasp of Shakespeare’s language and comic timing. Like I said before, the cast performed as if they were in a 1940s classic comedy, which helps sells some of the absurd moments in the play. That said, across the board, the actors also knew how to deliver the serious moments of the play with grace and pathos.
Crystian Wiltshire (Proteus)
As you read earlier, Proteus’ character commits some very questionable actions- betraying his friend and forsaking his girlfriend for no good reason. In order to make the audience feel even a tiny amount of sympathy for him, would require an actor with charm, and a great sense of humor. Fortunately, Chrystian Wiltshire brings both of these qualities, as well as a great deal of skill. His Proteus is basically a young, naive fool, who never considers the long term consequences of his actions. One gets the impression that by the end of the play, he will learn his lesson and become a better man. Still, I heard a few people booing when Valentine forgave him at the end of the play. It’s a testament to Mr Wiltshire’s performance that he inspired such an emotional response from the audience.
Justin Jackson (Valentine) Obviously, anyproduction of Two Gentlemen depends upon the actors playing the title characters. The play’s central tension is Proteus changing from a lover to a liar and Valentine from a libertine to a lover. Fortunately, Mr Jackson is a great foil for Mr Wiltshire as Proteus. He excellently portrays the change of Valentines heart. At the beginning of the play he is charming and devil-may-care. If you haven’t read the play before, you might expect that Valentinemight be the real liar and cheat from the way he teases Proteus about his lovesick behavior. But, once he meets Silvia, Valentine is utterly sincere and his smarmy looks are replaced by a rock solid earnestness. Jackson expertly conveys this startling metamorphosis with his powerful voice, imposing height, and dashing good looks. I wish I could see him in a tragic role like Hamlet or Brutus, but with his masterful portrayal of Valentine, I’m sure he’ll have many more memorable performances in the future.
Kate Drury (Julia) I hope I have established by now that the main idea Shakespeare conveys in this play is that people transform when they fall in love, and neither the exterior nor interior man (or woman), resembles who they were. This is especially true with Julia, who starts out as a simpering, childish girl who tears up Proteus’s love letter to prove that she is not in love, but then agonizes over her cruel destruction of the note. This speech could seem cloyingly sweet or annoying in the wrong hands, but Miss Drury pulls it off to great effect.
Even more impressive is the transformation Julia undergoes in Act 2, where she disguises herself as a man and faces many dangers to find and confront Proteus. She even has the heart to befriend Silvia, the woman Proteus forsakes her for. The childish Julia from Act I might not understand that Proteus is unfaithful, not the virtuous Silvia, but Kate effortlessly shows Julia’s wisdom to see that Silvia never entices Proteus, and scolds his behavior on behalf of Julia herself. It’s rare to see an Elizabethan playwright portray a female friendship that is mature and genuine, but Shakespeare manages to do so, and the actresses mirror this relationship flawlessly.
Tilly as CrabbetheDog
For most people in the audience, the true star of the show was Tilly as Crabbe the dog. When my kids and I took our seats, my son’s immediate question was “When is the dog coming?” To be fair, Tilly is very cute and never once breaks character.
Tilly the Golden Retriever as Crabbe 1Tilly the Golden Retriever as Crabbe 2Tilly the Golden Retriever as Crabbe 3
My Reaction
I tried my best to separate my feelings about Two Gentlemen Of Verona from the production. As I mentioned earlier, as Shakespeare’s first comedy, many of his more famous works are actually derived from this one. For instance, we have an Italian hero who visits his beloved by night, whose love is denied and he is banished from Verona, (sound familiar?) We also have a heroine who disguises herself as a boy, (a device which Shakespeare employs at least six times), a comic servant, a maid, pirates, a foppish suitor, and a bit where the heroine secretly obtains her beloved’s ring. As a hardcore Shakespeare fan, seeing these repeated devices and characters was a little tedious after recognizing them from other plays. I also felt that the dialogue should have been edited a little bit more- the play was about 2 1/2 hours which I felt was a little too long. That said, the skill of the actors and thecreativeuse of the setting helped make Two Gentlemen Of Verona an enjoyable experience for all.
In conclusion, I can see why people like this play and I too enjoy it, despite its questionable subtext.
If you like this analysis, you might be interested in signing up for my Outschool Course on Shakespeare’s Comedies. Link down below. Share this class with a friend and you will get $20 USD off! You’ll also get $20 USD when you sign up with your link and take their first class!
The Child is locked within that room, alack! Too high to fly and the doors are far too thick Perhaps this console I can disarm or hack O Fate! Thou play'st upon me yet another trick. To enter I must show this Droid my face A thing most vile, against my holy creed. Methinks I hear The Armorer's voice 'cross space: "This is the way of Mandalore, take heed." This is MY WAY, MY QUEST, MY SACRIFICE Behold my face, thou cold and lifeless sentry. A few seconds shame should thee suffice Open the gate! Let me have present entry!
Strange, up to now, my face hath been my mystery My Grogu's life is far more dear to me.
What’s a classic book that you think is overrated?
As a big Shakespeare nerd, I love all of Shakespeare’s plays, but even I have to admit some of them have been overhyped and over sold. In fact, I basically started my Shakespeare Club because I wanted my students to read more than this one Shakespeare Play. While I love the poetry and the characters, even I acknowledge the flaws of Romeo and Juliet
The hype around it- People see this story as the ideal love story, which it definitely is not. Shakespeare isn’t trying to put these lovers on a pedestal, he’s trying to show how hard it is for love to flourish in such a toxic, violent world. The feud between the Capulets and Montegues ruins everything and makes Romeo and Juliet make rash, foolish choices.
&Juliet
The creepy age gap- Juliet is only 13 years old in the play. This was a deliberate choice on Shakespeare’s part to make us all wonder if the romance is actually a good idea
The ridiculously short timeline- the play only takes place over six days! As I mentioned in an earlier post, this was another deliberate choice by Shakespeare to make the action more intense.
Fake news report for Romeo and Juliet’s deaths.
There are better plays- I would argue that plays like Hamlet do a better job capturing the experience of young people, and Julius Caesar has more cultural and historical value. That said, this play has still resonated with people for 400 years so, overhyped or not, it still has value!
If you enjoyed this post, please consider signing up for my online courses on Romeo and Juliet
Title image for my online course on “Romeo and Juliet.”Oil painting by Francis Dicksee: “Romeo and Juliet “(1884) course image: Immersive Guide To Romeo and Juliet
Get $10 off my class “Romeo and Juliet: Why Do We Still Read This Play?” with coupon code HTHES4KG1E10 until May 23, 2026. Get started at
With the upcoming release of The Mandalorian and Grogo, I knew there would be lots of tie-in Star Wars merchandise capitalizing on it. What I didn’t expect, was that, after a six year hiatus, playwright Ian Doescher has once again taken up his quills and lightsabers to dramatize the next installment in the Shakespearean Star Wars cannon, The Mandalorian of Nevarro.
What Is William Shakespeare’s Star Wars?
William Shakespeare’s Star Wars is a series of parody plays written by Ian Doescher that takes the prose screenplays of the Star Wars story and transforms them into Elizabethan verse. Last time, I mentioned how much I loved the cheeky references to Shakespeare and Star Wars, and how Doescher adapts the cinematic quality into Elizabethan drama very well. In my podcast, I also emphasized the way Doescher gives each character verbose Shakespearan language that works very well for radio and theater:
I’ve written reviews about Mr Doescher’s versions of the original trilogy, but I never expected him to cover the Disney Plus shows, bit he proved me wrong, and by all accounts, this edition lives up to its predecessors.
Interview with Ian Doescher about “The Mandalorian of Nevarro”
What We Know
I haven’t gotten a copy yet of the full play, so this will be less of a review and more of a prediction and a fun speculation about how Mr Doescher will handle everyone’s favorite green foster child and Beskar- clad dad.
When your main character is, quite frankly, one of the most non-theatrical Star Wars protagonists in existence, forcing that character to come out of his shell and give him that Shakespearean flair was always going to be a test. – Nate Manning, Star Wars News.net
The Mandalorian of Nevarro is a two part series that, like the other William Shakespeare’s Star Wars books, adapts the prose text of episodes 1-4 into Shakespeare’s verse. According to Wookiepedia, the series was originally titled Mandalorius, which is probably a pun on Shakespeare’s play Coriolanus
Prologue and Dramatis Personae for “The Mandalorian of Nevarro”
What We Can Guess
One thing I am very curious about is how far Doescher adapted Coriolanus for Mandolorian. As you might have read in my review for Coriolanus, one reason why the play isn’t as popular as some of Shakespeare’s other tragedies is simply that its hero is not very compelling. Coriolanus is not as articulate or wise as Hamlet, nor does his journey form a cohesive arc like Macbeth or Othello. He seems to flit between loving Rome and hating it, between peace and war, with little agency or understanding of what is happening to him, and even less insight. He is mainly a maddeningly inscrutable man, almost as if he was wearing a mask.
With all this in mind, I can honestly understand why Doescher might choose the Roman general Caius Martius Coriolanus as a model for Jinn Jaran, (assuming that the final play does in fact do so). Like Coriolanus, Mando is a lone warrior in a fragile republic, who goes from planet to planet with nothing but his ship, and his rigid code of behavior to guide him. Therefore it makes total sense that Doescher would use Coriolanus as a model to emulate when adapting The Mandalorian.
With all due respect to Shakespeare, what makes Mando a more interesting character from Coriolanus us that he has a compelling Arc. He starts as a solitary bounty hunter to a surrogate father who finds meaning when he adopts a child. It’s like his helmet and armor are metaphors for the uncaring, uncompromising person he was. Over the course of the series, as Mando becomes a better man and a better father, he is forced to remove his armor and form real relationships.
What I Hope
I hope this adaptation uses Shakespeare’s ability to conjure images and feelings when telling Mando’s story, but only time will tell.
Enjoy this video trailer and a podcast episode to see some of the ways I’ve traveled to a Galaxy Far Far Away, with Shakespeare’s ghost as my Jedi Master:
The Shakespearean Student 