Royal Shakespeare Company
1) Richard III
Author
Publisher
Modern Library
Pub. Date
2008.
Language
English
Description
Believed to have been written in 1591, William Shakespeare's "Richard III" is one of the bards first plays, the first installment in a tetralogy of plays which includes "Henry IV, Part I," "Henry IV, Part II," and "Henry V." One of the longest of Shakespeare's plays and consequently rarely performed unabridged, "Richard III" is the story of the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of King Richard III of England. The play begins with...
Author
Series
Publisher
Modern Library
Pub. Date
2008.
Language
English
Description
One of William Shakespeare's most beloved and oft-performed comedies, "Love's Labour's Lost" is a light-hearted romance about love, temptation and the limits of self-discipline.
When the King of Navarre decides to forswear women, drink and other pleasures of the flesh in order to concentrate on study and fasting, he enlists three of his friends to join him in this pursuit and each of them pledges to remain pure for three full years. But their...
3) Henry V
Author
Publisher
Modern Library
Pub. Date
2010.
Language
English
Description
Believed to have been written in 1599, William Shakespeare's "Henry V" forms the final installment of a tetralogy of plays, which includes "Richard II", "Henry IV, Part I", and "Henry IV, Part II". The play focuses on the events surrounding the Battle of Agincourt during the Hundred Years' War. Henry, who is introduced in the earlier plays as a wild and undisciplined youth, has now come of age and ascended to the thrown following the death of his...
Author
Series
Publisher
Modern Library
Pub. Date
2011.
Language
English
Description
Valentine and Proteus are devoted comrades ― until they travel to Milan and meet Silvia, the Duke's ravishing daughter. Torn between the bonds of friendship and the lure of romance, the two gentlemen are further bedeviled by Proteus's prior commitment to Julia, his hometown sweetheart, and the Duke's disdain for Valentine. Thus the stage is set for a comic spree involving a daring escape into a forest, capture by outlaws, and the antics of a clown...
Author
Language
English
Description
One of William Shakespeare's most farcical comedies, "The Comedy of Errors" is notable for its use of mistaken identity to achieve a slapstick comedic effect. Ripe with the bard's characteristic word play, the comedy concerns the lives of two sets of identical twins that were accidentally separated shortly after their birth. The play begins by the elderly Syracusian trader Egeon relating the back-story of his family. When Egeon was young, he married...
7) Coriolanus
Author
Series
Publisher
Modern Library
Pub. Date
2011.
Language
English
Description
Shakespeare's tragic drama about a Roman general tested by rioting, war, rejection-and his own all-consuming anger.
Enraged by the withholding of food, the common people of the Roman Republic are rebelling against the elite. In this battle between plebeians and patricians, Caius Marcius has little patience for those he considers beneath him and his family.
After his military victory in the city of Corioli, Marcius is given the nickname Coriolanus...
Author
Language
English
Description
Measure for Measure - William Shakespeare - Measure for Measure is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603 or 1604. Originally published in the First Folio of 1623, where it was listed as a comedy, the play's first recorded performance occurred in 1604. The play's main themes include justice, "mortality and mercy in Vienna," and the dichotomy between corruption and purity: "some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall." Mercy...
9) Hamlet
Author
Language
English
Formats
Description
One of the greatest plays of all time, the compelling tragedy of the tormented young prince of Denmark continues to capture the imaginations of modern audiences worldwide. Confronted with evidence that his uncle murdered his father, and with his mother's infidelity, Hamlet must find a means of reconciling his longing for oblivion with his duty as avenger. The ghost, Hamlet's feigned madness, Ophelia's death and burial, the play within a play, the...
10) Julius Caesar
Author
Series
Language
English
Formats
Description
William Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" is a gripping political drama that delves into the complex themes of power, betrayal, and the consequences of ambition.
Set in ancient Rome, the play unfolds in the wake of Caesar's triumphant return from war. As the city celebrates his victories, a group of senators, including Brutus and Cassius, grows increasingly concerned about Caesar's growing influence and potential tyranny. They plot his assassination...
11) Othello
Author
Language
English
Description
Presents the unabridged text of Shakespeare's classic tragedy in which Othello, a Moorish general, is led by a jealous and evil ensign to believe his wife, Desdemona, has been unfaithful.
Author
Series
Publisher
Modern Library
Pub. Date
2009.
Language
English
Description
The third part of Shakespeare's impressive "Henriad", this play follows "Richard II" and "Henry IV, Part I", and precedes the final play of the tetralogy, "Henry V". Following the events of "Henry IV, Part I", Prince Hal is once again out of favor with his father, the king, who is in his last months of life. In contrast to their relationship in "Part I", Falstaff, the comical criminal, is rejected by Prince Hal. Falstaff and Prince Hal only share...
14) Henry IV, part I
Author
Series
Publisher
Modern Library
Pub. Date
2009.
Language
English
Description
Memorable historical drama concerns rebellion against King Henry led by Harry Percy ("Hotspur") and other nobles, complicated by the king's difficulties with his wayward son, Prince Hal. Superb blend of courtly intrigue, battlefield action, and low comedy featuring Sir John Falstaff, all expressed in fine blank verse and stirring prose.
15) Romeo and Juliet
Author
Series
Language
English
Description
Presents Shakespeare's tragedy about Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, two young people from noble Veronese houses whose love for one another is doomed by the long-standing feud between their families; and includes textual notes, a scene-by-scene analysis, an overview of Shakespeare's life and career, and more.
16) As you like it
Author
Language
English
Description
As You Like It (1599) is a comedy by William Shakespeare. As You Like It was probably inspired by Thomas Lodge's Rosalynd, Euphues Golden Legacie (1587), a story based on "The Tale of Gamelyn," a Middle English romance. For its deconstruction of traditional gender roles and depiction of homoeroticism, As You Like It remains an important and frequently performed play in Shakespeare's oeuvre. "All the world's a stage, / And all the men and women merely...
17) Macbeth
Publisher
A & E Home Video
Pub. Date
[2004]
Language
English
Description
Shakespeare's tragedy about greed and ambition, and a man driven to murder to gain a kingdom, only to meet his death.
18) Twelfth night
Author
Language
English
Formats
Description
Includes an overview of Shakespeare's theatrical career, commentary on past productions, and a scene-by-scene analysis accompany Shakespeare's play about unrequited love and mistaken identity.
Publisher
BBC Video
Pub. Date
[2008]
Language
English
Description
A performance of the songs of Les Miserables by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, a 150-voice choir, and many of the most celebrated stars to have appeared in the show worldwide, including the original Jean Valjean, Colm Wilkinson. Performed at the Royal Albert Hall, for a 10th Anniversary Concert celebration. [Note: this is a performance of the music and is not the dramatic production].
Home use only.