Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Richard III and many other of Shakespeare's plays have at least one thing in common: they all have fight scenes, usually requiring swordfighting. This is a step-by-step guide to choreographing the stage combat scenes in the plays of Shakespeare, particularly the principal duels (both comic and tragic) in Henry IV, Henry VI, Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Troilus and Cressida, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth, Coriolanus, Cymbeline and The Two Noble Kinsmen. The safety and training of actors is also covered as well as a brief history of Elizabethan swordplay. The work includes over 350 illustrations.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Good for scenes...,
By
This review is from: The Swords of Shakespeare: An Illustrated Guide to Stage Combat Choreography in the Plays of Shakespeare (Hardcover)
Whether or not this book works for you depends on what you're expecting from it. For me, it will see use mostly as a reference for when I'm looking for fight scenes for SAFD certification tests, etc. As such, it is useful. However, I was dissappointed with the choreography and the notation in the book, and would not reccommend it to anyone looking to use it as a source for quick and easy (or interesting) choreography. I found the narrative was an interesting idea as an aide to the notation, but the pictures were not at all clear, nor was the notation. In an attempt to simplify things, an odd and sometimes innaccurate mix of numbered parries and described hits is used... sometimes a thrust to the right means the attacker's right, sometimes the defender's. Only the parry helps you figure it out. I was also not that impressed with the choreography itself- not bad, but rather generic. I suppose it's hard to do anything too unconventional in a book format, since you're limited to what you can put in words or pictures, and I don't think either were used too clearly here. I think the idea is fine- notation systems for choreography could always do with a little help- I just don't think this book accomplished all it sets out to do.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Good overview of Shakespearean swordplay,
By Brian LeTraunik (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Swords of Shakespeare: An Illustrated Guide to Stage Combat Choreography in the Plays of Shakespeare (Hardcover)
Mr. Martinez' book sets out a very good overview of what fights may have looked like in Shakespeare's own time. This work helps the reader to take a very unique look at Shakespeare's work. A must for the Shakespeare or stage combat enthusiast
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