Much Ado about Nothing (Shakespeare in Production Series)

by William Shakespeare, John F. Cox (Editor)

Overview

This edition of Much Ado About Nothing focuses wholly on the play in performance. Shifting trends in the production of this popular drama are analyzed in relation to the culture of each period since Shakespeare's time, with particular attention to gender issues. A commentary alongside the New Cambridge edition of the text recreates in lively detail interpretations of each passage in a variety of British, American, Canadian stage, film and TV productions. An essential resource for students, teachers and performers, this is also an illuminating book for theatergoers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521471633
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	02/05/1998
Series:	Shakespeare in Production Series
Pages:	284
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Widely esteemed as the greatest writer in the English language, William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was an actor and theatrical producer in addition to writing plays and sonnets. Dubbed "The Bard of Avon," Shakespeare oversaw the building of the Globe Theatre in London, where a number of his plays were staged, the best-known of which include Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Macbeth. The First Folio, a printed book of 36 of his comedies, tragedies, and history plays, was published in 1623.

Date of Death:

2018

Place of Birth:

Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Place of Death:

Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Table of Contents

List of illustrations; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; List of productions; 1. Introduction; 2. Much Ado About Nothing and commentary; 3. Bibliography; 4. Index.

Editorial Reviews

"...a much-needed and welcome addition to Shakespeare resources." Choice

"...an indispensable resource for theatre historians, dramaturgs, directors, or performers." Studies in English Literature 1500-1900

"This book could also be very useful to a student of gender, history, and language, especially its detailed infromation on lines added and cut, on treatments of the play's cuckoldry humor, and on the critics' anxious iteration of such key binaries as sharp/soft, wit/feeling, salt/sweet, and mannishness/womanliness. I do recommend this book for anyone trying to piece together information about the performance history of the play, especially those interested in Victorian and Edwardian productions. Those who are attempting to chart shifts in myths of gender as they shift over the longue durée of culture, or who are researching particulat productions or players, will find this edition rich, intriguing, sometimes frustrating, but always infomative." Shakespeare Quarterly

From the Publisher