Shakespeare’s Culture in Modern Performance

223 Pages·2003·1.322 MB·English

by  Maria Jones (auth.)

Shakespeare’s Culture in
Modern Performance
Maria Jones
Shakespeare’s Culture in Modern Performance
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Shakespeare’s Culture in
Modern Performance
Maria Jones
© Maria Jones 2003
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2003 978-0-333-97169-7
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this
publication may be made without written permission.
No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted
save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence
permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90
Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP.
Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication
may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
The author has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work
in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published 2003 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N. Y. 10010
Companies and representatives throughout the world
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave
Macmillan division of St. Martin’s Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd.
Macmillan® is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom
and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European
Union and other countries.
ISBN 978-1-349-42959-2 ISBN 978-0-230-59716-7 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230597167
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully
managed and sustained forest sources.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Jones, Maria, 1950–
Shakespeare’s culture in modern performance/ Maria Jones.
p. cm.
Filmography: p.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Shakespeare, William, 1564–1616–Stage history–1950–
2. Shakespeare,William, 1564–1616–Criticism and
interpretation–History–20th century. 3. Shakespeare,William,
1564–1616–Film and video adaptations. 4. Shakespeare,William,
1564–1616–Dramatic production. I. Title.
PR3100.J66 2003
792.9’5–dc21 2003050891
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04 03
This book is in memory of my mother who encouraged me to
write – Winifred Joan Griffiths
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Contents
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgements xi
Abbreviations xii
1. Introduction: Performing Shakespeare’s Culture 1
Part I: Word 17
2. Producing Consent in The Taming of the Shrew 19
Subverted consent 27
Forced consent 36
Coaxed consent 46
3. Defining the Alien in The Merchant of Venice 57
Comic and tragi-comic aliens 67
Aliens in Venice 77
English aliens 86
Part II: Prop 101
4. Ophelia’s Flowers 103
Green girls 115
Convening for song 127
5. Richard’s Crown 137
The regal throne 148
The hollow crown 159
Afterword 168
6. Conclusion: Prop and Word 174
Notes 178
1. Introduction: performing Shakespeare’s culture 178
2. Producing consent in The Taming of the Shrew 180
3. Defining the alien in The Merchant of Venice 184
4. Ophelia’s flowers 190
5. Richard’s crown 192
6. Conclusion: prop and word 195
vii
viii Contents
Bibliography 197
Filmography 206
Theatre Company Credits 207
Index 209
List of Illustrations
1. Dorothy Massingham as Katharina in W. Bridges-Adams’s 31
The Taming of the Shrewin a revival (1931). Courtesy of
The Shakespeare Centre Library, The Shakespeare
Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon.
2. Petruchio (Stuart McQuarrie) restrains Kate 45
(Monica Dolan) in Lindsay Posner’s The Taming of
the Shrew(1999). Photograph: Malcolm Davies. Courtesy
of The Shakespeare Centre Library, The Shakespeare
Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon.
3. ‘I never saw a better-fashioned gown.’ Kate 55
(Charlotte Rogers) and Petruchio (Paul Garnault) in
Wales Actors’ Company’s The Taming of the Shrew(2002).
Photograph: Maria Jones. By kind permission of
Wales Actors’ Company.
4. ‘By this scimitar.’ The Prince of Morocco 76
(Paul Hardwick) and Portia (Dorothy Tutin) in
Michael Langham’s The Merchant of Venice(1960).
Photograph: Joe Cocks Studio Collection. The
Shakespeare Centre Library (Courtesy of the
Stratford-upon-Avon Herald), The Shakespeare Birthplace
Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon.
5. Antony Sher as Shylock in Bill Alexander’s The Merchant 83
of Venice (1987). Photograph: Joe Cocks Studio Collection.
Courtesy of The Shakespeare Centre Library, The
Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, Stratford-upon-Avon.
6. Portia (Hermione Gulliford) and the Prince of 98
Morocco (Chris Jarman) in Loveday Ingram’s The Merchant
of Venice(2001). Photograph: Hugo Glendinning.
Reproduced with the permission of the Governors of
the Royal Shakespeare Company. Copyright RSC.
7. The woodcut ‘Aprill’ from Edmund Spenser’s 106
The Shepheardes Calendar, 1579. This item is reproduced
by permission of The Huntington Library, San Marino,
California.
8. ‘I would give you some violets.’ Ophelia 132
(Anastasia Vertinskaya) and Laertes (C. Oleksenko)
ix