Shakespeare is the beginning, the middle, and the end of literature.An intuitive idea with perfect brilliance.I can compare every single one of Shakespeare’s works to the theory of relativity.When I was younger, I didn’t quite grasp how truly great Einstein’s idea was. It seemed paradoxical to me—both intuitive and impossible to prove. Yes, pretty idiotic of me.But as I grew older, I understood what that theory meant. I don’t mean that I *understand* it scientifically (I’m not a physicist), but ...

My security detail says absolutely no to real-time location sharing. Surprise! I have been in New York for the last two weeks!The Catherine Project invited me to a seminar for Much Ado About Nothing when I was already scheduled to be in New York. When destiny knocks, my door is always open.If Shakespeare wasn’t a woman, oooh-wee, he sure did have some very deep insights into women.In this play, there are three women who represent various types of women in society. Hero is society’s idealized wom...

Hey nonny, nonny! <--whatever that means, William.This is one that I've read before but I thought it would be cool to listen to the full cast audiobook.Definitely worth it.Just rewatched the 1993 movie, which is also worth it, but for a different reason.Keanu Reeves + Shakespeare = Unintentionally Hilarious!Alright. This is one of those stories that hold up, stands the test of time, and is still generally enjoyable. And it's from the late 1500s early 1600s, right?Now I know I can occasionally...

here I am reviewing this play exactly 420 years since it came out.... it's what Beatrice and Benedick would've wantedSo... the thing is. This is, in all honesty, the play that got me into Shakespeare. I saw that Kenneth Branagh / Emma Thompson movie of it when I was maybe eight years old and I loved it so much (although I will point out that no adaptation has really understood the vibe of these characters so well as the David Tennant / Catherine Tate edition), and so that's why you can hate on t...

Step aside, Romeo and Juliet! Make room for Master Shakespeare's most amusing and hottest couple!("Beatrice and Benedick," by Hughes Merle)I wasn't expecting this to be so good as it turned out. The Bard is a better dramatist than comedian from what I've read of his work so far, and his comedic plots tend to be borderline silly, which is the point, it being comedy after all. But whatever one thinks of his humorous plays, one thing is undeniable: the man can write beautifully! His command of lang...

Much Ado about Nothing, written in 1598, interweaves the story of two couples. The more interesting and definitely more amusing one is Benedick and Beatrice, who apparently have a rocky romance in their past history.But now they devote all of their energy in their interactions to insulting each other as wittily as possible, each trying to one-up the other.Beatrice wins most of the time. The other romance is between Claudio, a count and military friend of Benedick's, and Beatrice's cousin Hero, a...

Don Pedro Prince of Aragon in Spain, is coming to Messina the capital of Sicily, for a little R&R just having defeated his treacherous half- brother in battle, (with few casualties, nobody important) Don John (the "Bastard") they are now reconciled again ! His army needs it Rest and Relaxation, the governor of that city is his good longtime friend Leonato. The time is unstated but Aragon, ruled that island in the 15th century. Count Claudio who gained glory in battle in the Prince's army and...

I am probably the last person in the whole history of the world to get it, but, just in case there's someone else left, it occurred to me yesterday that the title of this play had to be a rude pun. Five minutes on Google was enough to confirm my suspicions. From this page:In Shakespeare's time "nothing" was a euphemism for a woman's naughty bits. This gave the title three different yet equally appropriate meanings, as the main conflict over the play revolves around the false implication of Hero ...

Let's face it, there aren't too many of Shakespeare's females who kick ass. Yes, we all can name the four or five that don't quite suck (Kat, Portia, Viola, Emilia, etc) but good strong feminine characters were not, it seems, the bard's strong suit. So as you wade through the whiny, conniving, helpless throngs of man worshipping wenches that appear in nearly all Shakespeare plays, it can be tempting to just give up looking for redemption. But alas, it is this lack of strong feminine voice that m...

I don't think Much Ado ranks with Shakespeare's very best for three reasons: 1) the plot is weak, particularly the deception that moves things along during the first act (why does Don Pedro choose to woo by proxy en masque? What is to be gained by it except delay and confusion?), 2) Dogberry and Verges are second-rate clowns, and 3) Claudio, in his readiness to believe ill of Hero, is too unsympathetic a lover for a non-problem comedy. On the other hand, whenever Beatrice and Benedict are sparri...