All's Well That Ends Well (Arkangel Complete Shakespeare) [Audiobook, CD, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

William Shakespeare (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1932219021 | ISBN-13: 978-1932219029 | Publication Date: October 7, 2005 | Edition: Unabridged

As a reward for her service, the King of France allows Helena to choose a husband from among his court, but Count Bertram heads off to battle rather than marry beneath his station. Helena's daring plan to win the man she loves highlights this dark comedy.

Editorial Reviews

From AudioFile

Having saved the French king's life, Helena is granted Bertrand as husband. But Bertrand is unwilling and flees. The scorned bride must win her husband by a ruse. This dour, uneven "comedy" never gained the popularity of the Bard's better efforts. Still, it has its charms, which the Arkangel cast does its best to emphasize. The pace never lags, the more dramatic moments work well, and the players are uniformly fine. Still, the jokes, such as they are, fall flat, Bertrand remains unredeemable, and Helena comes off whiny. The production is best enjoyed after reading the accompanying printed plot summary, for without it the action is a little muddy. Y.R. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: AudioGO; Unabridged edition (October 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932219021
• ISBN-13: 978-1932219029
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,899,611 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #74 in Books > Books on CD > Authors, A-Z > ( S ) > Shakespeare, William

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great dramatization with one little problem, August 1, 2010

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: All's Well That Ends Well (Arkangel Complete Shakespeare) (Audio CD)

Well, I dislike Amazon's policy of linking dramatization of plays with books about the play - the two are entirely different things. But, that is a subject for another day.

This set of three CDs contains a really great dramatization of Shakespeare's play, All's Well That Ends Well. Arkangel brought together a battery of great actors (including Emily Woof, Sam West, Edward De Souza, and (a personal favorite!) Clive Swift), who really brought the story to life. My one and only complaint is that they story is produced straight out of the book - which means that there is very little introduction of the cast of characters or of the scenes. When you read the play, you see the scene described and the characters listed, and when you see the play performed you see the scenery and see the faces of the actors. But, in this purely audio play you have to get to know the characters from their voices alone, and sometimes it is a little hard to imagine where the action is actually taking place.

But, in spite of that little problem, I really did enjoy the play and had little problem following the broad outline of what was happening to whom and why. Yep, I found this to be a very enjoyable dramatization, and I do not hesitate to recommend it!

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Play with great actors, January 4, 2011

By 

Suzanne Cross "Bibliophilos" (Santa Fe, New Mexico United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: All's Well That Ends Well (Arkangel Complete Shakespeare) (Audio CD)

I am a latecomer to the Arkangel Shakespeares but, having now gone through six of them, I would bet my life on their quality and the creative ways they make an audio play as realistic and fun as possible. I've loved Shakespeare for 40 years but never much liked this particular play - and here I've just listened to a spectacular audio production that was better than any version I've ever seen onstage (as others have said, super actors in all roles). If you've never liked ALL's WELL, or if you've never seen it, or if you've read it and found it a problem play, you'll find in this performance that most of the problems disappear. Will did know how to write a good 'un. Our heroine's travails, the rise and fall of Parolles, the regeneration of Bertram, are delightful and highly recommended. And I say this, not having read the play in 25 years and hearing it cold out of the gate. Well done, Arkangel!

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow. This is the e-a-s-y way to do Shakespeare., July 11, 2009

By 

John E. Horisk (Delaware, a small state just outside of Philadelphia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: All's Well That Ends Well (Arkangel Complete Shakespeare) (Audio CD)

I needed to digest this play before seeing a performance of it. As there are not too many options for this work available, I ordered this after reading the posted reviews of this series. Listening to it reminded me of radio drama (when that medium had such fare) and of how powerful just the spoken word can be. I followed along with a downloaded text and it was a virtually 'effortless' experience. The reviews are of a mind on this and I with them. Looking forward to hearing some others.