Shakespeare: The Rome Quartet: Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, Julius Caesar, Titus Andronicus

by William Shakespeare, Ian McKellen (Read by), a full cast (Read by)

Overview

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present Argo Classics, a historic catalogue of classic prose and verse read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly remastered stories are now available to download for the first time.

All four of Shakespeare’s plays that are considered to form the Rome Quartet, performed by the celebrated Marlowe Dramatic Society and Professional Players.

Power, tragedy and hubris are played out in this quartet, all of which are set in the febrile political atmosphere of ancient Rome. Performed by an incredible array of the 20th century’s greatest actors, Marlowe alumni including Ian McKellen, Prunella Scales, Patrick Wymark and William Devlin can be heard in these recordings.

All of the Shakespeare plays within the Argo Classics catalogue are performed by the Marlowe Dramatic Society and Professional Players. The Marlowe was founded in 1907 with a mission to focus on effective delivery of verse, respect the integrity of texts and rescue neglected plays by Shakespeare’s contemporaries and the less performed plays of Shakespeare himself. The Marlowe has performed annually at Cambridge Arts Theatre since its opening in 1936 and continues to produce some of the finest actors of their generations.

Thurston Dart, professor of music at London University and a fellow of Jesus College Cambridge, directed the music for this production.

This collection includes all four plays considered to form Shakespeare’s Rome Quartet:

• Antony and Cleopatra,

• Coriolanus,

• Julius Caesar, and

• Titus Andronicus.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780008489380
Publisher:	HarperCollins UK
Publication date:	07/13/2021
Series:	Argo Classics Series
Edition description:	Adapted ed.
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 5.70(h) x (d)

About the Author

William Shakespeare (1564–1616), English poet and dramatist of the Elizabethan and early Jacobean period, is the most widely known author in all of English literature and often considered the greatest. He was an active member of a theater company for at least twenty years, during which time he wrote many great plays. Plays were not prized as literature at the time, and Shakespeare was not widely read until the middle of the eighteenth century, when a great upsurge of interest in his works began that continues today.

Sir Ian McKellen is internationally renowned as the leading British actor of his generation. His Shakespeare performances on stage and screen are legendary. His versatility and preeminence in modern work as well as the classics have earned him over forty important acting awards. For over four decades, alongside his prestigious stage appearances worldwide, he has starred in scores of film, television, and radio productions.

Date of Death:

2018

Place of Birth:

Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Place of Death:

Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom