Sometimes it feels like Shakespeare was just doing an experiment in Hamlet, trying to identify ‘how much is it possible for an actor to do in one role?’. This soliloquy, and this scene, Act 3 scene 2, is evidence of this. This scene, this act (the whole play, really), has been an athletic feat of … Read more
Let’s take a look at what is most likely Coriolanus’ most famous speech. This is a dramatic speech and is fantastic for auditions as it allows the actor to go into heightened emotions and stakes that they would not normally get to explore. Let’s take a look. Context We begin in Rome, not long after … Read more
A lot of people overlook Prince Hal as a character, and over the Henriad as a group of plays. They’re revered, but perhaps only in small circles. Just like the very character we’ll be looking at today, Prince Hal. Richard II through to Henry V otherwise known as the Henryd is a remarkable group of … Read more
Photo credit: Jonas Petrovas / Shutterstock.com You never know who your next scene partner will be, whether it is in a commercial, film, television show, the theater, or in class. But no matter who you work with next, you’ll be expected to communicate effectively, artistically, and engage with this person in a meaningful way. After … Read more
Now he might do it. Now he might do it! After three and a half acts of Hamlet not doing it, (it being avenging the murder of his father and generally being the revenge hero the audience is begging him to be) here he is, standing above Claudius, his adversary, ready to finally end this … Read more
You know how you’re having a day where you’re really emotional about something — perhaps something bad has happened in your life or you are overwhelmed with stress, or you could even be grieving? Right, and then you know how when you’re feeling all those feelings, and someone tells you to “get over it” and … Read more
Like so many plays of days gone by, be they tragedy or comedy, they all need some sort of clown, and one my favorite clowns ever is Dogberry from Much Ado About Nothing. Quite often referred to as the first romantic comedy, Much Ado About Nothing is a play about love, deception, and merry wars. … Read more
If ever there was a time to trust your gut, for Clarence – this was the moment. We’re looking at Richard the Third, Act 1, Scene 4. Clarence is recounting a nightmare to Brackenbury about a trip he took into hell – the speech is visceral, filled with imagery, horror and suspense. If only Clarence … Read more
You know how sometimes you’re having a bad day, you miss the bus, spill coffee on yourself, forget to reply to an important email, and the ghost of a dead family member appears and speaks to you and tells you to take revenge for their murder? Wait, so not that last one? Ok, fair enough. … Read more
As You Like It is arguably one of Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies, and with all of the grief of Hamlet, Ambition of Macbeth, Wit of Much Ado about Nothing and Love of Romeo & Juliet, it’s easy to understand why. One of Shakespeare’s most complex lovers is present in Orlando. And today we’re going to … Read more