Othello - William Shakespeare

Authored By: William Shakespeare

Dramatic and powerful in its scope, Othello explores the perils of suspicion and jealousy and the ensuing breakdown of relationships and disaster that can arise from such emotions. Othello, a revered soldier, secretly marries Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian senator, but is led to believe that she has been unfaithful to him by his ensign, Iago, leading to tragic events.‘Thou and I are too wise to woo peaceably.’

Julius Caesar - William Shakespeare

Author: William Shakespeare

Two tribunes, Flavius and Murellus, find scores of Roman citizens wandering the streets, neglecting their work in order to watch Julius Caesar’s triumphal parade: Caesar has defeated the sons of the deceased Roman general Pompey, his archrival, in battle. The tribunes scold the citizens for abandoning their duties and remove decorations from Caesar’s statues. Caesar enters with his entourage, including the military and political figures Brutus, Cassius, and Antony. A Soothsayer calls out to Caesar to “beware the Ides of March,” but Caesar ignores him and proceeds with his victory celebration.

Macbeth - William Shakespeare

Author: William Shakespeare

On their way home from a successful victory against the King of Norway and Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth and his friend, Banquo, encounter three witches on the wild moors of Scotland. They hail Macbeth as the Thane of Cawdor, and when this prophecy comes true, Macbeth recollects another title they addressed him by: King of Scotland. The seeds of ambition have been planted in his heart, and Macbeth, at the urging of his wife, embarks on a path of deceit, lies and murder from which there is no return.

The Tempest - William Shakespeare

Authored By: William Shakespeare

A play that contrasts lyrical fantasy surrounding the spirit Ariel and the savage Calaban, with a tale of political intrigue focused around Prospero, the banished Duke of Milan, a wizard living on a remote island.

Anthony and Cleopatra - William Shakespeare

Author: William Shakespeare

Mark Antony, one of the three rulers of the Roman Empire, spends his time in Egypt, living a life of decadence and conducting an affair with the country’s beautiful queen, Cleopatra. When a message arrives informing him that his wife, Fulvia, is dead and that Pompey is raising an army to rebel against the triumvirate, Antony decides to return to Rome. In Antony’s absence, Octavius Caesar and Lepidus, his fellow triumvirs, worry about Pompey’s increasing strength. Caesar condemns Antony for neglecting his duties as a statesman and military officer in order to live a decadent life by Cleopatra’s side.

Romeo and Juliet - William Shakespeare

Author: William Shakespeare

Romeo belongs to the house of Montague, and Juliet, to the house of Capulet. The two families are sworn enemies, and Romeo and Juliet’s forbidden love leads them to a path that can only end in tragedy and despair. Perhaps Shakespeare’s best-known play, Romeo and Juliet, even today, is synonymous with doomed love.

Comedy of Errors - William Shakespeare

Author: William Shakespeare

Two sets of identical twins, separated at sea as children, find themselves in the same city for the first time as adults. Soon, their friends mistake the twins for one another and bewilderment abounds, as the wife of one man declares the other to be her husband, pronouncing him mad when he denies the claim.

Twelfth Night - William Shakespeare

Author: William Shakespeare

The combination of careful scholarship emphasising the inspiration and excitement of the theatrical experience, with the freshly edited text, should make this one of the most useful new texts of Twelfth Night.

All's Well That Ends Well - William Shakespeare

Author: William Shakespeare

Publisher: Palgrave MacMillan (2011)  

A fresh new edition of Shakespeare's ambiguous, bittersweet fairy tale, developed by and for the RSC, includes new interviews with acclaimed directors Gregory Doran and Stephen Fried, and actor Guy Henry, looks at specific productions in the play's history, and an illuminating introduction by acclaimed scholar Jonathan Bate.

King Lear - William Shakespeare

Authored By: William Shakespeare

Publisher: HarperCollins Publisher (2012)  

Epic and tragic in its scope, King Lear explores a king’s demise into madness and insanity when he is betrayed by two of his manipulative and scheming daughters. It is Cordelia, the third and only daughter who refuses to flatter her father to deceive, who is banished from the kingdom, leading to dramatic and tumultuous events.