The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing (Classics for All Ages) [Paperback]

Cass Foster (Author), William Much Ado About Nothing Shakespeare (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1997 | Series: Classics for All Ages

An abridged version of Shakespeare's comedy about mistaken identities, games, eavesdropping, and unrequited love.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I was never very fond of Shakespeare, with his archaic language and complicated plots that seemed to go on forever. And, while I can still recite parts of Lady MacBeth's soliloquy, compliments of a drama class many (many) years ago, I wouldn't list the great author's works among my favorites to read. Cass Foster has set about to change that with his new series The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare While his versions of the great classics are unchanged in their Old English language and intricate plots, he has successfully shortened the plays to foster accessibility for readers such as myself. The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare series is written with an eye toward the theater. Whether used for scene work in a drama class or as a fully staged production, each play contains staging tips for scenery and pacing. For the classroom teacher or even the avid learner, the books also include images and themes from Shakespeare's works, related websites, and a liberal sprinkling of footnotes throughout each play to explain and/or define the archaic terminology. "Much Ado About Nothing," one of several plays in the series, follows Cass' unique format. The plot, while shortened to an hour runtime (if performed) still tells the story of Claudio, Hero and Don John. When Don John tricks Claudio into believing that his love, Hero, has been unfaithful, he leaves her. Hero's father, upon learning the truth, manipulates Claudio into reuniting with his beloved. Woven into this is the compelling love story between Beatrice and Benedick, tricked by friends into loving each other, only to realize that their feelings for one another were there from the start. The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare series is the perfect compromise for readers wishing to enjoy the brilliance of a true master without spending hours with each play. It is also ideal for the teacher desiring to introduce his/her students to the same experience within the limited time frame of a classroom. On several levels, The Sixty-Minute Shakespea --Marcia Berneger, Muse Book Reviewer

In search of a suitable Shakespeare play for class 10, I finally found my way to Five Star Publications and the Sixty Minute Shakespeare by Cass Foster. Not only that students could experience - and enjoy - the richness of Shakespeare's language and the age that made him, but also that we were able to perform the play in exactly 60 minutes, was really amazing. Mr Foster's abridged version of the midsummer night's dream or any other Shakespeare play is an ideal means for school performances. With thanks, Elke Keller, Germany --Elke Keller, Germany

I want to commend you on an excellent product and fabulous service. I taught Much Ado About Nothing in the seventh for three years. The first year, I used the full text. This was not a very successful endeavor. The students couldn't delve very deeply into the play with the limited amount of school time we had. The next two years, I used the 60 Minute Shakespeare text. It was wonderful. I found it to be much more accessible than the full text, and because of this, my students were able to thoroughly study and enjoy the play. I plan to use it this year to teach Much Ado About Nothing to a group of homeschooling students that range from seventh to tenth grade. This is really the only way to teach a full Shakespearean play in the time allowed in a school year. Thank you again for not only producing a great product but for having excellent customer service as well! --Alyshia Jensen

In search of a suitable Shakespeare play for class 10, I finally found my way to Five Star Publications and the Sixty Minute Shakespeare by Cass Foster. Not only that students could experience - and enjoy - the richness of Shakespeare's language and the age that made him, but also that we were able to perform the play in exactly 60 minutes, was really amazing. Mr Foster's abridged version of the midsummer night's dream or any other Shakespeare play is an ideal means for school performances. With thanks, Elke Keller, Germany --Elke Keller, Germany

I want to commend you on an excellent product and fabulous service. I taught Much Ado About Nothing in the seventh for three years. The first year, I used the full text. This was not a very successful endeavor. The students couldn't delve very deeply into the play with the limited amount of school time we had. The next two years, I used the 60 Minute Shakespeare text. It was wonderful. I found it to be much more accessible than the full text, and because of this, my students were able to thoroughly study and enjoy the play. I plan to use it this year to teach Much Ado About Nothing to a group of homeschooling students that range from seventh to tenth grade. This is really the only way to teach a full Shakespearean play in the time allowed in a school year. Thank you again for not only producing a great product but for having excellent customer service as well! --Alyshia Jensen --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Cass Foster, author of The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare series, Shakespeare for Children: The Story of Romeo and Juliet, and the co-author of Shakespeare: To Teach or Not to Teach has been involved in all aspects of theatre for over thirty-five years. He is the director of a theatre program at a small college in central Arizona and often spends his summers as Fight Choreographer with Shakespeare Festivals. Cass directs productions and stages fights for theatres and universities throughout the country. He earned his bachelors degree in Drama from the University of Washington in Seattle and his Master of Fine Arts in Directing from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. Besides his obvious involvement in the field of Shakespeare, Cass is particularly interested in the development of new plays for young audiences. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Five Star Pubns; 1st edition (October 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1877749230
• ISBN-13: 978-1877749230
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.1 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,812,709 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Many typos, December 6, 2000

By 

"kmmdaley" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sixty-Minute Shakespeare Series: Much Ado About Nothing (The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare Series) (Paperback)

I got this book so that my family could do a living room performance in one night. Although I am fairly pleased with how it was shortened, I found many typos that needed to be corrected before we could even read it. I had to sit down with the full text to check it all the way through. An obvious example is when Beatrice says to Benedick "You always end with a jade's trick. O know you of old." (It should be "I know you of old.") If you are only buying one copy, this isn't too hard to do and is easier than buying the full text and cutting the lines yourself. If you are buying several copies for a classroom, however, correcting the typos would be a lot of work. If you are buying this book to read the play, buy the full text, this in one of Shakespeare's shorter plays and one of our favorites.

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice abridgement, September 9, 2011

By 

Jane Maritz "winning readings" (Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sixty-Minute Shakespeare Series: Much Ado About Nothing (The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare Series) (Paperback)

What I Liked:

When I was in high school, we "sampled" Shakespeare. I remember reading a snippet of Macbeth and maybe a summary of it, but that was it. To be honest, I wasn't terribly fond of the bard, although I do appreciate some of his better-known quotes - I still have the first 5 lines of "To be, or not to be" memorized.

With this series, I'm able to get a complete, albeit fast, meal - so I got a nice taste of the comedy side of Shakespeare's writing in Much Ado About Nothing. The scenes flow together well; it doesn't feel like chunks are missing. And it is most definitely still in beautiful Shakespearean English. Footnotes help the reader understand certain words and phrases.

I think this series would be interesting to work through as a high school co-op group, with multiple people participating to read the different parts.

What I Didn't Like:

I've got nothing negative to say about the abridgment of the book - that is very well done. However, I'm not a big fan of some of Shakespeare's darker themes and the "double, double toil and trouble" stuff. I'm still undecided on whether the his literary genius outweighs the death speak and irreverent humor of some of his characters, which you find even in comedies such as this one.

4.0 out of 5 stars Makes teaching Shakespeare Fun, September 7, 2011

By 

quinnschilling (Virginia USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sixty-Minute Shakespeare Series: Much Ado About Nothing (The Sixty-Minute Shakespeare Series) (Paperback)

I was pleasantly surprised by how easy these are to read and follow. The language of the texts has been condensed, yet not changed or modernized. Just as in some of my college texts, notes are given at the bottom of each page to help the reader follow the language.

But the best thing about these, to me, is that they are formatted both for reading and acting out the plays. I went ahead and read mine and now have my son and daughter acting out several of the exciting individual scenes.

I really felt unable to do this before on my own, but this book allows this non-thespian to make Shakespeare fun for my kids!