William Shakespeare

Reprint of the original, first published in 1885.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1883.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1883.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1883.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1883.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1883.

A lively contemporary translation of Shakespeare’s sexiest play. In Antony and Cleopatra, Christopher Chen tackles the sweeping epic of love and betrayal at the center of the story of the rulers Antony of Rome and Cleopatra of Egypt. In this contemporary translation of the play, Chen brings the political intrigue and historical storytelling of Shakespeare to modern audiences while preserving the poetic foundation of the play’s language. This translation of Antony and Cleopatra was written as part of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s Play On! project, which commissioned new translations of thirty-nine Shakespeare plays. These translations present the work of “The Bard” in language accessible to modern audiences while never losing the beauty of Shakespeare’s verse. Enlisting the talents of a diverse group of contemporary playwrights, screenwriters, and dramaturges from diverse backgrounds, this project reenvisions Shakespeare for the twenty-first century. These volumes make these works available for the first time in print—a new First Folio for a new era.

GREED, BETRAYAL, MADNESS King Lear, first performed around 1805, and thought to have been written between Othello and Macbeth, is one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies. It is a story of madness and flattery and the struggle for power but above all it is about human suffering, as we watch a monarch who is betrayed by his daughters and robbed of his kingdom descend into madness. It is one of the most relentlessly bleak of Shakespeare's tragedies. The story challenges us with the magnitude, the intensity, and the sheer duration of the pain that it represents. Lear's themes of ingratitude, injustice, and the meaninglessness of life are explored with unsurpassed power and depth. Greed, treachery, and cruelty are everywhere and the final act of the play is both brutal and heartbreaking. As we see old age portrayed in all its vulnerability, along with pride, and, perhaps, wisdom-it is only one reason that this most devastating of Shakespeare's tragedies is also perhaps his most moving. The play has been widely adapted for the stage and motion pictures, with the title role coveted by many of the world's most accomplished actors.

This is a beautifully designed original classic edition of William Shakespeare's tragedy that is considered one of his darkest and most powerful works.

A TALE OF RACISM, REVENGE, BETRAYAL AND JEALOUSY One of Shakespeare's most performed tragedies written in approximately 1603, Othello still resonates today with its themes of racism, revenge, betrayal and jealousy. Shakespeare creates a powerful drama with the story of a marriage between the exotic Moor, Othello and the Venetian lady Desdemona. Despite building many differences into his hero and heroine, including race, age, and cultural background, most audiences believe the couple's strong love could overcome these differences were it not for a once trusted cohort, lago, who sets out to destroy Othello. The play begins in the powerful city state of Venice, a center of trade and banking, known for its military might. War is raging between Venice and Turkey. Two men - Roderigo, a young gentleman and former suitor of Senator Brabantio's daughter Desdemona, and Iago, an ensign who claims to have been passed over for promotion by Othello, are outside Senator Brabantio's house to tell him the news of his daughter's elopement with Othello. Othello is a Moorish general in the Venetian army who is determined to lead his men to victory with his "trusted" ensign lago. But after being passed up for a promotion, Iago has plans of his own. Using Othello's wife, Desdemona, as a pawn, Iago spins an elaborate web of deception leading Othello to believe that his wife is unfaithful and once lago has Othello where he wants him, revenge will be his. In the final dramatic scene of the play Othello strangles his wife, struggling with his love for her to the end.

One of Shakespeare's most famous and controversial plays, The Merchant of Venice, is an intriguing drama of love, greed, and revenge. Believed to have been written in 1596, it is classified as a comedy, but while it shares certain aspects with Shakespeare's other romantic comedies, the play is perhaps remembered more for its dramatic scenes, and especially for the character of Shylock, a vengeful Venetian moneylender. At its heart, the play contrasts the characters of Shylock, with the gracious, level-headed Portia, a wealthy young woman, besieged by suitors. One suitor in particular, Antonio, a merchant in Venice, must default on a large loan provided by Shylock, who insists on the enforcement of the binding contract that will cost the life of Antonio, inciting Portia to mount a memorable defense. In this richly plotted drama, Shylock, whom Shakespeare endowed with the depth and vitality of his greatest characters, is not alone in his villainy. In fact, the large cast of ambitious and scheming characters demonstrates in scene after scene, that honesty is a quality often strained where matters of love and money are concerned. In many of the play's productions, Shylock gives such powerful expression to his alienation due to the hatred around him that, he emerges as the hero. The suspense and gravity of the play's main plot, along with its romance, have made The Merchant of Venice an audience favorite and one of the most studied and performed of Shakespeare's plays.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1856.

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