Titles Available as of July 2022
This is a selective list of streaming video holdings in the American University Library. Streaming guides are created by doing multiple keyword searches in the library catalog to capture as many titles on a topic as possible. For complete up-to-date streaming holdings, please refer to our streaming catalog.
DIRECT PRODUCTIONS
All's Well That Ends Well (1981 BBC Production)
The new wife of a young count resorts to chicanery to win her husband's respect, a typical ploy of medieval romance.
Antony and Cleopatra (2014 Stratford Shakespearean Festival of Canada Production)
Reason and judgement prove no match for the tsunami of mutual passion engulfing Mark Antony, one of the three joint rulers of the Roman republic, and Cleopatra, the seductive queen of Egypt. Surrendering everything to their desires, they open the floodgates to a civil conflict that will shake the very foundations of their world. An HD film based on the Stratford Festival’s 2014 production of Antony and Cleopatra.
Antony and Cleopatra (2017 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
Iqbal Khan directs Shakespeare's tragedy of love and duty, picking up the story where Julius Caesar ends. Following Caesar's assassination, Mark Antony has reached the heights of power. Now he has neglected his empire for a life of decadent seduction with his mistress, Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt. Torn between love and duty, Antony's military brilliance deserts him, and his passion leads the lovers to their tragic end.
One of Shakespeare's most charming pastoral comedies, chock-a-block with famous lines and songs, was somehow selected by Hollywood as a vehicle for Laurence Olivier and Elisabeth Bergner. The result is a gentle introduction for those who don't know the play, a mixture of the exalted and the inane for those who do, and an inspiration for all students of the theatre, who can see the enormous leaps of conception, execution, style, and insight that Olivier achieved in the seven years between this Orlando and Henry V.
As You Like It (1979 BBC Production)
Women have the upper hand in this pastoral romance in which two ladies of the court resist the advances of an aged and portly knight who wishes to advance his station in life by marrying one of them. Explores the roles in society as some characters discard their roles while others adopt new ones. Starring Helen Mirren.
The Comedy of Errors (1984 BBC Production)
Twin sons, whose servants are also twins, must find their father before sundown or he will be executed.
The Comedy or Errors (1989 Stratford Shakespearean Festival of Canada Production)
One of the earliest and perhaps crudest of his plays, The Comedy of Errors is Shakespeare's adaptation of the Menaechmi of Plautus. This romantic comedy from the Stratford Shakespeare Festival tells of the complications which follow when the merchant Aegeon, played masterfully in this production by Nicholas Pennell, enters the enemy state of Ephesus in hopes of reuniting his family years after a shipwreck separates him from his twin sons, their twin slaves, and his wife.
Coriolanus (1984 BBC Production)
Presents a dramatization of William Shakespeare's play entitled Coriolanus.
Coriolanus (2014 National Theatre Production)
This Donmar Warehouse production was recorded through National Theatre Live on 30th January, 2014 When an old adversary threatens Rome, the city calls once more on her hero and defender: Coriolanus. But he has enemies at home too. Famine threatens the city, the citizens' hunger swells to an appetite for change, and on returning from the field Coriolanus must confront the march of realpolitik and the voice of an angry people. Shakespeare's searing tragedy of political manipulation and revenge, Coriolanus features an Evening Standard Award-winning performance from Tom Hiddleston in the title role, directed by the Donmar's former Artistic Director Josie Rourke.
Britain is in crisis. An ineffectual Queen Cymbeline rules over a divided dystopian Britain. Consumed with grief at the death of two of her children, Cymbeline's judgment is clouded. When Innogen, the only living heir, marries her sweetheart Posthumus in secret, an enraged Cymbeline banishes him. Behind the throne, a power-hungry figure plots to seize power by murdering them both. In exile Innogen's husband is tricked into believing she has been unfaithful to him and in an act of impulsive jealousy begins a scheme to have her murdered. Warned of the danger, Innogen runs away from court in disguise and begins a journey fraught with danger that will eventually reunite Cymbeline with a long-lost heir and reconcile the young lovers.
An adaptation of the story of a young prince facing the challenge of avenging his father's death. Key scenes from the play are acted out then explained by the actors.
Film adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet, the story of a young prince of Denmark whose father is murdered by his uncle Claudius in order to gain the throne. Hamlet is torn between the desire to avenge his father's death and his reluctance to shed blood. The play examines the fundamental issues of justice, guilt, and death. Starring Patrick Stewart and Hamlet.
Hamlet (2009 Royal Shakespeare Theatre Production)
The UK's eminent Royal Shakespeare Company brought Hamlet - Shakespeare's most famous and perhaps most influential play - back to the stage, spoken in verse but with contemporary dress and David Tennant in the eponymous role. Tennant's interpretation garnered critical approval and Patrick Stewart - playing Claudius - was praised for a performance of great depth and complexity. In this specially-shot screen version of the stage play (filmed on location rather than in the theatre), Tennant and Stewart reprise their roles.
Hamlet (2010 National Theatre Production)
This production was recorded through National Theatre Live on 9th December, 2010. Director Nicholas Hytner offers a detailed political, social and psychological context to Hamlet's dilemma: whether or not to avenge the death of his father. Rory Kinnear plays Hamlet in this dynamic production of Shakespeare's complex and profound play about the human condition. His performance earned him an Evening Standard Award.
Henry IV Part I (1979 BBC Production)
First part of King Henry the fourth with the life and death of Henry surnamed Hotspur
Henry IV Part I (2014 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
With his crown under threat from enemies both foreign and domestic, Henry IV prepares for war. As his father gets ready to defend his crown, Prince Hal is languishing in the taverns and brothels of London, revelling in the company of his friend, the notorious Sir John Falstaff. With the onset of war, Hal must confront his responsibilities to family and throne.
Henry IV Part II (2014 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
King Henry's health is failing but he is uncertain Hal is a worthy heir. Meanwhile, Falstaff is sent to the countryside to recruit fresh troops, where he gleefully indulges in the business of lining his own pockets. As the King's health continues to worsen, Hal must choose between duty and loyalty to an old friend in Shakespeare's heartbreaking conclusion to this pair of plays.
Henry V (Laurence Olivier Film)
Is there a Shakespeare lover who does not know this superb film? Two entire generations were introduced to Shakespeare by this expansive production, which is as fresh and dramatic and deeply touching today as when first it ushered in the contemporary style of Shakespearean production and taught us to see the vast and rich panoply beyond the lines of Shakespeare's Henry V.
England's most admired hero, Henry V unites his people, invades France, deals with traitors and cements the peace by marrying the Princess of France. Examines the qualities that make a successful ruler and show also the isolation and responsibility that leadership entails.
Henry V (2015 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
Henry IV is dead and Hal is King. With England in a state of unrest, he must leave his rebellious youth behind, striving to gain the respect of his nobility and people. Laying claim to parts of France and following an insult from the French Dauphin, Henry gathers his troops and prepares for a war that he hopes will unite his country.
Shakespeare's Roman play Julius Caesar, one of his first masterpieces, contains some the most famous speeches in Western literature. This 1970 star-studded film adaption stars John Gielgud as Caesar, Charlton Heston as Mark Antony, Jason Robards as Brutus, and Richard Chamberlain as Octavian.
Julius Caesar (1979 BBC Production)
Adaptation of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, portraying the conflicts inside the Roman Empire. Portrays how Brutus, best friend of the Roman ruler Caesar, reluctantly joins a successful plot to murder Caesar and subsequently destroys himself.
Julius Caesar (2018 Bridge Theatre Production)
Caesar returns in triumph to Rome and the people pour out of their homes to celebrate. Alarmed by the autocrat's popularity, the educated élite conspire to bring him down. After his assassination, civil war erupts on the streets of the capital. Nicholas Hytner's production thrusts the audience into the street party that greets Caesar's return, the congress that witnesses his murder, the rally that assembles for his funeral and the chaos that explodes in its wake.
King John (1984 BBC Production)
The only one of Shakespeare's histories for which he used a dramatic source without working directly from the chronicles themselves. Concerns the rivalry between the wicked King and Faulconbridge, who would become champion of England.
This 73-minute television adaptation of King Lear stars the great Orson Welles in the title role. The play was condensed by omitting the characters Edgar and Edmund entirely to focus on Lear himself.
This Russian adaptation of King Lear, based on Boris Pasternak's translation, is considered one of the greatest of all filmed versions of Shakespeare. It was the final film of the renowned Soviet director Grigori Kozintsev. The masterful black-and-white cinematography and the memorable score by Dmitri Shostakovich make the film all the more powerful.
King Lear (1983 BBC Production)
Intending to divide his realm among his three daughters, the dictatorial Lear commands each give a testimony of her love. But after the gushing of malevolent Goneril and Regan, loyal Cordelia states: "I love your majesty according to my bond; nor more nor less." She is banished, and Lear's descent into madness begins.
King Lear (2011 National Theatre Production)
This Donmar Warehouse production was recorded through National Theatre Live on 3rd February, 2011. An aged king decides to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, according to which of them is most eloquent in praising him. His favourite, Cordelia, says nothing. As Lear's world descends into chaos, all that he once believed is brought into question. One of the greatest works in western literature, King Lear explores the very nature of human existence: love and duty, power and loss, good and evil. The acclaimed Donmar Warehouse production of Shakespeare's most harrowing tragedy, starring Sir Derek Jacobi and directed by Tony Award winning Michael Grandage (Red).
This performance of William Shakespeare's King Lear directed for the stage by Antoni Cimolino at the Festival Theatre on October 21, 2014 features Colm Feore, Maev Beaty, Evan Buliung, Sara Farb, and Jonathan Goad.
Love's Labour's Lost (1984 BBC Production)
A satire directed against intellectual pride and pedantry. The King of Navarre and three of his lords vow to spend three years in study and not to see any women. But when the Princess of France arrives with her three ladies, the men break their vow and fall in love with them.
Love's Labour's Lost (2015 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
The King and his friends take an oath to dedicate themselves to a life of study and avoid the company of women for three years. No sooner have they made their idealistic pledge than the Princess of France and her ladies-in-waiting arrive, presenting the men with a severe test of their high-minded resolve.
Love’s Labour's Lost (2018 Stratford Shakespearean Festival of Canada Production)
A king and three friends swear off women to devote themselves to their studies just as a princess and three ladies arrive on a diplomatic mission. Shakespeare delivers a touching and funny coming-of-age story with a twist ending, beautifully told in this “vibrant” and “sublime” Stratford Festival production.
Presents an adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Told by a trio of witches that he is fated to become King of Scotland, the warrior Macbeth, aided by his wife, murders his king and assumes the throne.
Macbeth (2011 Royal Opera House Production)
Black, red, cream and gold are the colours that define Phyllida Lloyd's Royal Opera House staging of Verdi's robust, yet penetrating setting of Shakespeare's Scottish play. Manipulated by a whole coven of cunning, scarlet-turbanned witches, the characters often evoke figures in a splendid Gothic fresco. With Simon Keenlyside making his British debut, as an athletic, brooding Macbeth and Liudmyla Monastyrska as his Lady, both imperious and subtle, this performance, masterfully conducted by Antonio Pappano, goes far beyond mere sound and fury.
Measure for Measure (1979 BBC Production)
Presents a dramatization of William Shakespeare's play entitled Measure for measure.
Measure for Measure (1994 BBC Production)
Sexually transmitted disease is reaching epidemic proportions. Prostitution, licentiousness and petty crime are on the increase and a new government reintroduces capital punishment for sexual offences. Modern themes in an age-old play as William Shakespeare explores the darker side of society.
The Merchant of Venice (1980 BBC Production)
Jessica may be kept from marrying her true love because her father, Shylock, a Jewish merchant, does not approve of the marriage.
The Merchant of Venice (2000 National Theatre Production)
The BBC presentation of the acclaimed Royal National Theatre production, directed by Trevor Nunn, adapted for television. A multi-award winner set in the 1930s with a Berlin film noir look, the production nonetheless preserves every one of Shakespeare's words. Henry Goodman won the Olivier and Critic's Circle Theatre Best Actor awards for his performance as Shylock. Nunn and his masterful team brilliantly transition the stage performance to an outstanding film that looks as though it was written for the camera. His starting point was a desire to deal with the issue of anti-Semitism: ".. I wanted to show why Shylock acts as he does. To de-villainise and dedemonise him is very important," says Nunn, calling Merchant of Venice "a masterpiece about human behavior in extremis."
The Merchant of Venice (2015 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
A rich merchant, Antonio is depressed for no good reason, until his good friend Bassanio comes to tell him how he's in love with Portia. Portia's father has died and left a very strange will: only the man that picks the correct casket out of three (silver, gold, and lead) can marry her. Bassanio, unfortunately, is strapped for cash with which to go wooing, and Antonio wants to help, so Antonio borrows the money from Shylock, the money-lender. But Shylock has been nursing a grudge against Antonio's insults, and makes unusual terms to the loan. And when Antonio's business fails, those terms threaten his life, and it's up to Bassanio and Portia to save him.
The Merry Wives of Windsor (1982 BBC Production)
Falstaff attempts to recoup his fortunes by seducing two respectable wives of affluent Windsor husbands.
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1982)
Filmed production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream directed by Beverly Bullock.
A Midsummer Night's Dream (2014 Polonsky Shakespeare Center Production)
From the mind of award-winning director Julie Taymor (The Lion King on Broadway, Frida, Titus) comes a Shakespeare adaptation like none other, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM. Rich with Taymor's trademark creativity, this immersive and darkly poetic cinematic experience brings the play's iconic fairies, spells and hallucinatory lovers to life. Filmed at her sold-out stage production with cinematography by Rodrigo Prieto (Argo, Frida) and music by Academy Award-winning composer Elliot Goldenthal, the feats of visual imagination are ingenious and plentiful, but beating at the center of the film is an emotionally moving take on the deeper human aspects of Shakespeare's beloved tale.
Joseph Papp's 1972 CBS-TV production of the New York Shakespeare Festival's Broadway staging of Shakespeare's rollicking comedy is brassy, bouncy, and altogether entertaining. Featuring Sam Waterston and the Tony-nominated performances of Kathleen Widdoes and Barnard Hughes, Papp's turn-of-the-century version has Teddy Roosevelt roughriders and bicycle-riding women suffragettes, while remaining faithful to the classic tale: Beatrice and Benedick are still sparring partners fighting their merry war of words; the evil Don Jon continues conspiring to break up the wedding of Hero and Claudio; and it's once again up to Dogberry to save the day. Critically acclaimed and enormously popular with audiences, this production of Much Ado About Nothing - which was transferred to Broadway after originating at the open-air Delacorte Theatre in Central Park - was perceived as the first successful Shakespeare to play without a major star in Broadway history. The CBS broadcast was seen by 20 million people.
Much Ado About Nothing (1984 BBC Production)
Comedy of two couples who are happily united with the help of the bumbling Constable Dogberry. Claudio and Hero are engaged, but the jealous Don John tries to thwart the wedding by denouncing Hero as unchaste. Meanwhile, Beatrice and Benedick, who scorn each other, become betrothed as a result of the schemes of their friends.
Much Ado About Nothing (2011 Wyndham Theatre Production)
In Much Ado About Nothing, Beatrice and Benedick are adamant in their mutual dislike, while Claudio and Hero are deep in love, and the two stories take an unexpected course. This production was captured by Digital Theatre live at London's Wyndham's Theatre. Starring David Tennant at Benedick and Catherine Tate as Beatrice.
Much Ado About Nothing (2015 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
A group of soldiers return from the war. The world-weary Benedick and his friend Claudio find themselves reacquainted with Beatrice and Hero. As memories of conflict give way to a life of parties and masked balls, Claudio and Hero fall madly, deeply in love, while Benedick and Beatrice reignite their own altogether more combative courtship.
The classic of German silent cinema is a fine (though very loose) adaptation of William Shakespeare's Othello. It stars two legendary German actors: Emil Jannings as Othello and Werner Krauss as the evil Iago.
Dramatization of Shakespeare's tragedy about the Moorish commander Othello, his beautiful wife Desdemona, and the embittered soldier Iago. Driven to a jealous rage by falsehoods perpetrated by Iago, Othello murders his wife. When Iago's treachery is revealed and Desdemona's innocence proven, Othello kills himself. Starring Anthony Hopkins.
Othello (2007 Globe Production)
Performed for the first time at the Globe Theatre, Othello is one of Shakespeare’s most exciting, atmospheric, and heartbreaking plays. This is a tale of uncontrollable jealousy, deception, and murder driven by one of theatre’s greatest villains.
Othello (2013 National Theatre Production)
This production was recorded through National Theatre Live on 26th September, 2013 Othello, newly married to Desdemona -- who is half his age -- is appointed leader of a major military operation. Iago, passed over for promotion by Othello in favour of the young Cassio, persuades Othello that Cassio and Desdemona are having an affair. This acclaimed production of William Shakespeare's play about the destructive power of jealousy was nominated for Best Revival at the 2013 Olivier Awards. Adrian Lester and Rory Kinnear jointly won the Evening Standard Best Actor Award for their performances in the iconic roles of Othello and Iago.
Othello (2015 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
Othello is the greatest general of his age. A fearsome warrior, loving husband and revered defender of Venice against its enemies. But he is also an outsider whose victories have created enemies of his own, men driven by prejudice and jealousy to destroy him. As they plot in the shadows, Othello realises too late that the greatest danger lies not in the hatred of others, but his own fragile and destructive pride.
Othello (Films for the Humanities and Sciences)
A controversial and powerful interpretation of Shakespeare's tragedy; performed before a multi-racial audience in South Africa. Iago's jealousy of Othello's success prompts him to exploit Othello's credulous nature by convincing Othello that his beloved wife, Desdemona, is unfaithful.
Pericles, Prince of Tyre (1984 BBC Production)
When Pericles discovers the terrible answer to King Antiochus' riddle, he flees for his life. In self exile from Tyre he encounters famine, shipwreck, love and fatherhood ... but in his desire to return home, he once again jeopardises his life and those he loves.
Richard II (1997 National Theatre Production)
Deborah Warner’s staging of Richard II with Fiona Shaw as the king stirred up a significant critical controversy when it was presented in 1995 at the National Theatre, and then later in Salzburg and Paris. Among those who recognised its originality and strengths was the critic Paul Taylor who praised the ‘gripping, lucidly felt production’ and Fiona Shaw’s ‘dazzlingly disconcerting... deliberately uncomfortable, compelling performance.’ For the screen version, Deborah Warner and production designer Hildegard Bechtler re-imagined Richard II as an innovative drama that was shot over a fortnight using film techniques. Playing alongside Fiona Shaw is a distinguished cast including Donald Sinden (Duke of York), Richard Bremmer (Henry Bolingbroke), Julian Rhind-Tutt (Duke of Aumerle), Kevin McKidd (Harry Percy) and Paola Dionisotti (Duchess of York). A sumptuous and startling television film, this Richard II offers a unique interpretation of Shakespeare’s tale of a monarch’s downfall.
Richard II (2013 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
A story of power and plotting, Richard II is the first of Shakespeare's four plays about the House of Lancaster. Richard is King. A monarch ordained by God to lead his people. But he is also a man of very human weakness. A man whose vanity threatens to divide the great houses of England and drag his people into a dynastic civil war that will last 100 years. RSC Artistic Director Gregory Doran directs David Tennant in the title role.
Part of the series The Wars of the Roses.
Richard III (1983 BBC Production)
An examination of the character of Richard III, who usurps the crown from its rightful owner, King Edward IV. Portrays an intricate period in English history, a period of political marriages and military coups.
Romeo and Juliet (1978 BBC Production)
Presents an adaptation of Shakespeare's tragic love story. Follows the lives of two young lovers who are destroyed by the bitter feud between their powerful families, the Montagues and the Capulets. Featuring John Gieguld and Alan Rickman.
Romeo and Juliet (Ben Power Production)
This contemporary production for younger audiences sees a company of eight tell the most famous love story of all time, set against a vivid urban backdrop bursting with excitement, colour, dance and song.
Romeo and Juliet (2009 Globe Theatre Production)
Adetomiwa Edun and Ellie Kendrick are the star-crossed lovers in Dominic Dromgoole's fresh and vibrant take on Shakespeare's famous tragedy. The dangerous and forbidden love between Romeo and Juliet is the catalyst that finally sends the warring families...
William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (1996 Baz Luhrmann Film)
Baz Luhrmann, one of today's most innovative filmmakers, takes a completely fresh and intriguing look at a beloved story with "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet." Luhrmann and his team have created a dazzling, powerful, iconoclastic world full of fantastic elements to underscore and reveal the tale of the two famous, star-crossed lovers. The film gives Shakespeare's Elizabethan English a contemporary American voice, set in the mythical city of Verona Beach, a passionate, visceral, sexy, violent other-world, neither future nor past.
The Taming of the Shrew (1929 Pickford and Fairbanks Production)
This talkie is the only film costarring Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. In addition, this print of the 1966 rerelease - the only version Pickford allowed after her 1933 retirement - features new music and sound effects added by Marty Kemp of the Mary Pickford Company during his painstaking restoration of the film. With seven minutes of extraneous footage removed in pieces to tighten the editing and new rerecording techniques to improve the sound quality of voices, the brilliance of the 1929 original is here brilliantly revived.
The Taming of the Shrew (1976 American Conservatory Theater Production)
San Francisco's prize-winning American Conservatory Theater's rowdy commedia dell'arte production draws on music and slapstick for William Shakespeare's popular comedy about the two unmarried daughters of a wealthy Italian merchant.
The Taming of the Shrew (1980 BBC Production)
The marriage of two strong-minded people provides the spark for a comic confrontation between the sexes: The "shrew," Katherine, is so ill-tempered she seems unlikely to find a husband. Her father refuses to let her younger sister marry until Katherine is off his hands. Petruchio appears, marries Katherine, and "tames" her so well that he wins a bet with two other men on a test of their wives' obedience.
The Taming of the Shrew (2019 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
One of Shakespeare's most problematic plays is flipped on its head in this gender-swapping adaptation from the Royal Shakespeare Company, where a matriarchal society dominates 1590's Britain.
The Tempest follows the story of Prospero (Christopher Plummer), the banished Duke of Milan. Marooned on a distant island with his daughter, Miranda (Trish Lindström), Prospero has spent twelve years perfecting his magic arts. Now, with the help of the spirit Ariel (Julyana Soelistyo), he raises a storm at sea, bringing within his grasp the enemies who robbed him of dukedom.
The Tempest (1980 BBC Production)
Prospero, an exiled duke magically causes a storm and shipwreck to bring the king and court of Naples to the island where he lives with his daughter, Miranda, the half -human Caliban, and the friendly spirit Ariel. With Ariel's help, Prospero thwarts plots against his life, finds Miranda a husband, and regains his rightful dukedom.
The Tempest (2016 Donmar Warehouse Production)
Phyllida Lloyd's final instalment of the Donmar Shakespeare Trilogy concludes with an all-female version of The Tempest starring Harriet Walter as Prospero. This captivating reimagining explores themes of freedom and justice.
The Tempest (2016 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
Thought to be one of his final plays, Shakespeare's tale of family, magic and revenge is brought to life in this visually striking production of The Tempest from the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Timon of Athens (1981 BBC production)
Timon is a most generous man, helping out citizens in need and hosting lavish feasts for his friends. But when they discover his munificence has left him deep in debt, the flatterers and hangers-on soon spurn him. Disillusioned and angry he leaves Athens for the wilderness, where a chance discovery reverses his fortunes.
This comic tragedy begins with the great Roman general, Titus Andronicus (Anthony Hopkins), returning home victorious after a long and brutal war with the Goths. His first act is to ritually sacrifice the eldest son of the Goth Queen, Tamora (Jessica Lange), his prisoner. But when the corrupt Saturninus (Alan Cumming) is made emperor and surprisingly makes Tamora his queen, a new battle ensues as Tamora, and then Titus, enact a tale of double revenge.
Titus Andronicus (2017 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
Thought to be his first tragedy, Shakespeare's tale of family, betrayal and revenge is brought to bloody life in this modern-dress production from the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Timon of Athens (2018 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
Shakespeare's tale of wealth and greed is reimagined in this Royal Shakespeare Company production starring the Olivier award-winning Kathryn Hunter as Timon, whose fortune runs dry after living a life of luxury.
Troilus and Cressida (1981 BBC Production)
Presents William Shakespeare's play about two lovers who mock love.
Troilus and Cressida (2018 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
Shakespeare's tale of the tragic love between Troilus and Cressida and the corruption of the Trojan War is reimagined in this post-apocalyptic production by the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Twelfth Night (1980 BBC Production)
Set in an aristocratic country house, shows the infatuation of Orsino, the devoted loyalty of Viola, the selfless friendship of Antonio and the self love of the ambitious Malvolio.
Kenneth Branagh takes on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night with the Renaissance Theatre Company. The exemplary cast includes Richard Briers as Malvolio, Frances Barber as Viola, Caroline Langrishe as Olivia, Christopher Ravenscroft as Orsino, and James Saxon as Sir Toby Belch. The original music for this production is by Paul McCartney and Pat Doyle.
Twelfth Night (2017 National Theatre Production)
Simon Godwin directs this joyous new production with Tasmin Greig as a transformed Malvolia, in a new twist on Shakespeare's classic comedy of mistaken identity.
Twelfth Night (2017 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
One of his most beloved comedies, Shakespeare's tale of love, loss and disguise is brought to life in this Victorian reimagining from the Royal Shakespeare Company.
The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1983 BBC Production)
The Two Gentlemen of Verona (2014 Royal Shakespeare Company Production)
One of his earliest plays, Shakespeare's tale of love, friendship and rivalry is brought to life in this modern-dress production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona from the Royal Shakespeare Company.
The Winter's Tale (1980 BBC Production)
In this Shakespearean drama, wrongs committed by one generation are made right by the next.
The Winter's Tale (2005 Royal Shakespeare Production)
Half a tragedy centered on the mad jealousy of King Leontes and half a romance of young love triumphant and old love restored, The Winter's Tale is arguably one of Shakespeare's most captivating dramas. This highly acclaimed production by The Royal Shakespeare Company was performed at the Barbican Theatre in London. Interviews with key members of both the cast and the RSC production team offer insights into the play and its staging.
MODERN ADAPTATIONS
The career of Shakespeare's Sir John Falstaff as roistering companion to young Prince Hal, circa 1400-1413.
Fierce competition among sponge fishermen forces a Greek-American family to fish in the dangerous 12-mile reef area off the western coast of Florida. Starring Robert Wagner and Terry Moore, the film was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography. Based on Romeo and Juliet.
Filmed performance of Kiss Me Kate. Two squabbling, 20th-century ex-marrieds are cast as squabbling Renaissance romantics in a musical version of the taming of the shrew. On stage they fight it out and backstage they continue to clash.
One of Shakespeare's most beloved creations, this frolicking tale of lovesick young aristocrats, energetic but inept rustics, and mischievous woodland spirits is a staple of stage and screen. In the past, filmed adaptions have emphasized the play's traditional, Elizabethan qualities. This production however is a fresh and stylish reinvention that takes an entirely different approach. The story takes place in present day Hollywood - a place where glamorous stars, commanding moguls, starving artists and vaulting pretenders all vie to get ahead. In the tradition of Baz Luhrmann's rapturous re-imagining of Romeo + Juliet, this modern vision breathes new life into a classic tale. Combined with a cast of established and emerging stars, as well as a pulsing original soundtrack, the film will appeal to ardent fans of the Bard as well as audiences discovering Shakespeare for the first time.
An adaptation of the story of Othello with actors/narrators telling the story, commenting on the characters and main issues, and acting out key scenes.
Renowned restaurateur Duncan Docherty has built a gastronomic empire, but his sous-chef and maitre d' are cooking up treachery. In this modern retelling of Shakespeare's tragedy, screenwriter Peter Moffat sets the action in a 3-star London restaurant with a kitchen full of flashing blades and bloody business. James McAvoy plays Joe Macbeth, revered by his staff and relied on by Duncan-even to groom his son, Malcolm, to take over the operation. Keeley Hawes plays Macbeth's wife, Ella, the charming, scheming hostess. Vincent Regan is Duncan and Richard Armitage is Peter Macduff, the avenging headwaiter. Produced by BBC Northern Ireland and Horsebridge Productions.
ShakespeaRe-Told: The Taming of the Shrew
Meet Katherine Minola, Member of Parliament and aspiring Prime Minister. When her advisers suggest that she marry, she reacts with the same fury she brings to everything-and everyone. But one man is going to change her outlook: enter Petruchio. Screenwriter Sally Wainwright updates Shakespeare's romantic farce, with Shirley Henderson as the irascible Katherine; Jaime Murray as her supermodel sister, Bianca; and Rufus Sewell as Petruchio, the spendthrift with a heart of gold. Produced by BBC Northern Ireland and Horsebridge Productions.
ShakespeaRe-Told: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Theo and Polly host a party in Dream Park to celebrate their daughter Hermia's engagement to James, but when Xander, Hermia's true love, shows up to dispute the betrothal, it takes magical intervention to set things right. Peter Bowker adapts Shakespeare's unusual romantic comedy where the problems of mortal love are mirrored in interlocking plots between Fairyland and the modern world. Bill Patterson plays Theo, Imelda Staunton is Polly, and the sly Puck is portrayed by Dean Lennox Kelly. Produced by BBC Northern Ireland and Horsebridge Productions.
ShakespeaRe-Told: Much Ado about Nothing
Amorous sparks fly alongside barbed repartee in this hip adaptation of Shakespeare's classic romantic comedy. A modern television news studio provides the setting, transforming Beatrice and Benedick-played by Sarah Parish and Damian Lewis-into bickering co-anchors. Meanwhile, Don, a jealous studio tech, tries to sabotage the budding love affair between Claude the sports guy and Hero the weather girl. Screenplay writer David Nicholls cleverly weaves Sonnet 116 ("Let me not to the marriage of true minds / Admit impediments.") into the dialogue. Produced by BBC Northern Ireland and Horsebridge Productions.
Hell is empty and all the devils are here. Trevor Nunn, acclaimed director of 30 of Shakespeare's 37 plays, takes you through the otherworldly and supernatural in The Tempest. Shakespeare's last play, The Tempest, is considered his farewell: to stage and, maybe, to life. Nunn explores the biographical nature of the text, which is at times comic and other times tragic, and its connection to the playwright's own troubled history. He also explores the stagecraft: the fact that The Tempest is a play of special effects, apparitions and magic. Interviews include: Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Rowan Williams, Academy Award-winner Helen Mirren and acclaimed film and theater director Julie Taymor, who recently directed a film adaptation that features Mirren in which the lead role was recast as a female named Prospera.
A transposition of Shakespeare's 'Macbeth' to medieval Japan. After a great military victory, Lords Washizu and Miki are lost in the dense Cobweb Forest, where they meet a mysterious old woman who predicts great things for Washizu and even greater things for Miki's descendants. Once out of the forest, Washizu and Miki are immediately promoted by the Emperor. Washizu, encouraged by his ambitious wife, plots to make even more of the prophecy come true, even if it means killing the Emperor...