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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the most haunting plays ever written...,
By Jena Tesse Fox (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Elizabeth Rex (Hardcover)
In 1601, Queen Elizabeth I was forced by duty to condemn to death a man widely believed to be her former lover. On the night before the execution, she demanded that William Shakespeare's acting troup, The Lord Chamberlain's Men, perform a play to distract her from the heartbreak that would occur in the morning. This much is truth. Timothy Findley takes these historical facts, blends in a few "what if's?" and creates a powerhouse play about men, women, fantasy, death, and ultimately, love. After a performance of Much Ado About Nothing, Queen Elizabeth goes backstage to talk with the actors, and finds them all mourning the iminent death of the Beatrice of the evening, their terminally ill leading "lady," Ned. Ned has lived all his life as a woman, and does not know how to face his upcoming death with the courage of a man. Elizabeth, by contrast, has had to destroy her feminine side in order to rule England successfully. Realising this, the two strike a bargain: Ned will teach Elizabeth how to be a woman, if she can teach him how to be a man. What follows is a heartbreaking journey of self-discovery in which Elizabeth learns how to mourn, Ned learns how to die with grace and how to live with love, and William Shakespeare finds the greatest play never written. This is an excellent choice for any Shakespeare fan, and for any lover of theatre. Powerful, enlightening, heartbreaking and uplifting, Elizabeth Rex is an exquisite journey for the heart, with beautiful dialogue, strong characters, and fascinating arguments. A must-read.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The King and the Queen,
By Andy Vickery (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Elizabeth Rex (Hardcover)
Writing a "book" review on a play that one has not read may seem a bit presumptuous. However, my wife and I saw the US premier of this play at Houston's Stages Theater a few weeks ago and can attest that it is some of the finest entertainment we have seen in many a day. I hope that many people will read it, that college English classes will study it, and, most importantly, that numerous theater groups will stage it.Historical. Hilarious. Poignant. An exhaustive list of appropriate adjectives would exceed Amazon's page limitations. The play has a large cast of memorable characters including a semi-blind theater seamstress and a bear. The scene is a barn in England in 1601, and Queen Elizabeth seeks diversion from the impending beheading of her lover in the company of William Shakespeare and his band of actors. The dialogue is both scholarly and witty, with many echoes from Shakespeare's plays. But the driving force for the drama is the point/counterpoint exchanges between "King" Elizabeth, who feels compelled to shirk her womanly feelings for the good of her country and the actor Ned, a 17th century drag-Queen. More than that I will not tell. See it if you can, but, until it plays in your area, read the book.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great piece of theatre,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Elizabeth Rex (Hardcover)
Elizabeth Rex is a tremendously moving and thoughtful play. Timothy Findley's play is an overlooked gem that rarely gets its do in the United Stares.
Read it, but more importantly see it.
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