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Reduced Shakespeare: The Attention-Impaired Reader's Guide to the World's Best Playwright [Abridged] Hardcover – Bargain Price, July 11, 2006

by Reed Martin (Author), Austin Tichenor (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 25 ratings
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From the theater troupe whose sidesplitting production The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [Abridged] is the longest-running comedy in London’s history comes an openly hysterical, yet surprisingly informative, guide to everything you ever wanted to know about the Bard of Avon

Love Shakespeare? You’ll like this book. Hate Shakespeare? You’ll love this book. From the theatrical company that has been cutting the Bard down to size for more than a dozen years comes a single volume boasting everything you always wanted to know about William Shakespeare’s life and work -- but couldn’t be bothered to ask.

In one slim volume, Reduced Shakespeare delivers the plays, the life, and the legend in twelve easy pieces. What’s the theme of Hamlet? Poop or get off the pot. What’s essential preparation for an evening of outdoor Shakespeare? Bring lots of coffee . . . and use the bathroom before the show. Liberally sprinkled with lists, definitions, quizzes, essential vocabulary, and the Reduced Shakespeare Company’s trademark irreverence and wit, this "reduced" handbook will delight enthusiasts, skeptics, and fledgling fans alike.

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  1. Print length
    256 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Hyperion
  4. Publication date
    July 11, 2006
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 8.25 inches
  6. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Pithier than Python. Irresistible." -- New York Times on The Reduced Shakespeare Company

About the Author

Begun as a pass-the-hat act at California renaissance fairs, The Reduced Shakespeare Company has gone on to create five world-renowned stage shows, four TV programs, and numerous radio pieces. The company has performed at such venerable establishments as the White House, the Kennedy Center, and Lincoln Center. Its flagship show, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [Abridged], is London’s longest-running comedy, having been performed daily at the Criterion Theatre in the West End since 1996. Managing partners Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor have been performing and writing with the company for years. Both have performed extensively in the United States, Canada, and Great Britain. They live in California.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004JZWMWQ
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Hyperion (July 11, 2006)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 8.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 25 ratings

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  1. Reed C. Martin

    Reed C. Martin

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  2. Austin Tichenor

    Austin Tichenor

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    I like writing words accompanied by pictures, both on the page and on the stage. I love seeing and hearing the stuff I write said by actors, sung to music, or next to eye-catching illustrations that tell their own story.

    My plays include adaptations of Frankenstein and Kafka's "The Metamorphosis" (called Dancing on the Ceiling), and crowd-pleasing comedies for the Reduced Shakespeare Company, including The Complete History of America (abridged), The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged), All the Great Books (abridged), Completely Hollywood (abridged), The Complete History of Comedy (abridged), The Complete World of Sports (abridged), The Ultimate Christmas Show (abridged), William Shakespeare's Long Lost First Play (abridged), and The Comedy of Hamlet! (a prequel).

    I wrote Daisy, the Littlest Zombie (illustrated by Gary Andrews) inspired by own dark and adorable daughter, and co-wrote Pop-Up Shakespeare with Reed Martin and illustrations by Jennie Maizels.

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4.4 out of 5 stars
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Michael Paynter
    5.0 out of 5 stars Shakespeare's Hilarious Merchants of Venom
    Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    These two self-proclaimed idiots take Shakespeare's greatest masterpieces and make them not only accessible, but utterly hilarious. As an added bonus, they delve into Shakespeare's biography (turns out his life story was largely made up by biographers), as well as the many films based on Shakespeare's plays. A must for the Shakespearean illiterate, and a funny resource for the rest of us.
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  • Kevin W. Parker
    4.0 out of 5 stars Taking the mickey out of Shakespeare
    Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2007
    This RSC (not to be confused with a certain other RSC) has gotten rave reviews for taking the mickey out of Shakespeare on stage. Here, they do the same in print.

    Not to say that they don't have some good points to make: One of their very first is to state that all Shakespeare biographies should be displayed in the Fiction section of bookstores and libraries because there's so little actual information to go on. They also claim that Shakespeare's chief accomplishment was to have been born in 1564, into a hotbed of political intrigue, where "unlike today, people of different religions had no tolerance for each other.... Fortunately, now, these myopic religious views and extremist sectarianism have completely disappeared." (There are numerous side comments along the same lines in the remainder of the book), and at a time when the theater was flourishing.

    They start off with a brief, airy, tongue-in-cheek biography and concluding with four pages that sum up everything we know about Shakespeare's life. Sidebars include "The Olden Globe Awards" (Best Racist Stereotype: Shylock; Best Stage Direction: "Exit, pursued by a bear") and Shakespeare's Favorite Sports (The Iambic Pentathlon, Pin the Blame on the Plantagenets). (The sidebars probably sum up the overall tone better than anything from the text.)

    Next they go to the plays, dividing them into the traditional three categories of Tragedies, Histories, and Comedies, then raising a stink over both this classification (trying to find a difference between the tragedies and histories and failing: "No, wait. The History plays are just as historically inaccurate as the tragedies.") and alternate classifications ("Let's get something straight. Shakespeare wrote nineteen comedies. Not thirteen Comedies, plus six Romances. Not ten Comedies, plus six Romances, plus Six Problem Plays. It's nineteen Comedies. Nineteen. Count 'em.")

    After listing them categorically, chronologically, and alphabetically, they provide a capsule description of each one. This includes the setting, the source, what the play is best known for, the major characters, the plot, a one-sentence plot encapsulation, the moral, a famous quote, the best feature, the worst feature, the rating (scored in bards and illustrated by the number of Shakespeare heads), and an interesting fact. It's not too surprising that when there's no interesting fact to be found, they either come up with something irrelevant or something totally imaginary.

    Oh, and after each one there is an "Essay Question," usually on the order of "In this comedy, Oliver asks a wrestler to break his brother's neck. Explain why this is funny."

    They show no mercy, ruthlessly excoriating the bad plays (of which there are plenty), but rightly praising the best ones.

    Following that, there's a brief section on Shakespeare's poetry, which is possibly the weakest section of the book, particularly the parody sonnets, which aren't funny at all.

    But then we get to "Who Wrote This Stuff?" where they take on both the mainstream view that Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare and the fringe views (Bacon, the Earl of Oxford, etc.). Their own favorite hypothesis is that Shakespeare was a time traveler who went back in time, deposited the plays, burned his notes to cover his tracks, and returned to the future. They figure it's as likely as a number of the others.

    Another brief section focuses on the Shakespeare business, briefly listing companies and tours.

    However, it's the next section that's either the best in the book or right behind the discussion of the plays, as they take on the movies. There's a nod to the BBC Shakespeare series of the 1970s, which were made, as they say, "using excellent actors but budgets of about 23 pence." And again, the reviews make you know just where they stand, and, for most of the ones I've seen, are right on the money. I do regret, though, that there's no mention of the BBC "Twelfth Night," which was my first encounter with the marvelous Felicity Kendal, of whom I've been a fan ever since. I should mention also that they spare space for related movies like "Kiss Me, Kate" and "Rosencrants and Guildenstern are Dead."

    A concluding word, purportedly from Shakespeare himself, isn't very funny, either.

    Overall, though, this book is frequently hilarious, almost always on the mark, and would be a great gift to any fan of Shakespeare's, which we all should be.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • solera
    3.0 out of 5 stars Shakespeare
    Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2013
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    I find this book a funny but very superficial treatment of Shakespeare. I would not recommend this book to any serious student of Shakespeare.
    One person found this helpful
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  • El Paso Crone
    5.0 out of 5 stars Best ever
    Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2014
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    OMG! These guys have really nailed him on the head. They have the actual bio information and have filled it in with logical conjecture which they explain in great hillarious detail. A MUST read for those who love the Bawdy Bard.
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  • JnyB
    5.0 out of 5 stars To Be or Not To Be Fun!!
    Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2014
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    Very lively, funny, and pretty accurate view of Shakespeare, his life, his times, and his style...It's kind of like their stage show with a little more information. It's fun!
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  • Dr. Michael A. Piccuirro
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2017
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    A+++!!!
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  • Blake Petit
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good book hurt by topical humor
    Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2006
    I've been a fan of the Reduced Shakespeare Company ever since I performed in their first play during my college days. I've followed their work since then, and I've enjoyed most of it, disappointed by a little. This book is somewhere in between. Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor (who, ironically, weren't among the originators of the Shakespeare play) are quite successful at giving a lighthearted and very funny retelling of Shakespeare's life, dissection of his plays and poems, and examination of the movies that have been produced based on his work. They give their own theories about who really wrote Shakespeare's plays (their theory involves a flux capacitor) and even the bibliography at the end is full of jokes.

    The biggest problem is their insistence on topical humor. It's one thing to do it on stage, where you can adapt the show as the times change. In a book like this, though, constant jabs at pop culture and current politics get a little tedious and will serve to date this book very badly in a few years. It's a fun book, worth reading for fans of the company, but read it now. Before it's too late.
    6 people found this helpful
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  • John J Rogan
    3.0 out of 5 stars Three Stars
    Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2015
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    Really stupid
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Doug
    4.0 out of 5 stars It is truly a fun read.
    Reviewed in Canada on June 3, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    A Shakespeare fan with a sense of humour wrote thisvexcellent book. I found myself agreeing with the theories and synopses presented. It is truly a fun read.
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  • h cullen
    4.0 out of 5 stars A great gift
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 5, 2016
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    Fun and well put together, a great gift for any Shakespeare fan
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