John Wilders - literary advisor to the BBC TV Shakespeare series - brings thorough scholarship and a practical understanding of performance needs to this new edition. Clarity, accessibility and rigour are the hallmarks of an edition which will provide invaluable guidance for all its readers. "This edition has a very helpful introduction and good clear text, as well as the exceptionally excellent and detailed notes." Dr Michael Herbert, St Andrews University 'Â…a useful treatment of a complex play' Barry Gaines, University of New Mexico, Shakespeare Quarterly
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a play full of fascinating characters who are themselves full of pride, avarice, lust, and lies. Octavian, the youngest of the triumvirate with Lepidus and Antony, proves out why he is Caesar with a cold efficiency that makes all tyrants proud. Antony, Herculean character though he claims to be, plays the fool for Cleopatra, and Cleopatra plays the role of Cleopatra with smoke and mirrors. Her famous suicide is actually her triumph and apotheosis of the character she created.
Poor Pompey refused to seize the reins of power through dishonorable murder, and yet receives the same from those he spared. And how many of the attendants to the principles themselves die in this play? We have poisonings, beatings, and death from shame.
This edition is quite fine as we expect from Arden. The notes are extremely helpful to understand the locations and context of this play with its wide-ranging locales and dozens of scenes that fly from place to place. Of course, the notes that help with the language and text emendations are wonderfully done. The longer notes are put in the back.
The first quarter of the book is an extended essay on various aspects of this play that ranges from its origin, performance issues and how they were handled over the centuries, and problems of the text. It is a wonderfully useful essay that added a lot to my enjoyment of reading the play.
This is part of the third Arden series of the Shakespeare plays and is very readable and I enjoyed it a great deal.
By Joan Scheuer
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is one of Shakespeare's least performed plays, but merits reading. After reading this, our Shakespeare play-reading group also read Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra and loved it
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book was very helpful with insights posted throughout for those who may have trouble with Shakespeare's writings. Would recommend it highly.
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