Showing results for "the king" in Drama & Plays

In the hands of Sophocles, the master dramatist, the anguished tale of a man fated to kill his father and marry his mother retains its power to shock and move beyond any Freudian reference.

The tragedy of King Lear receives an outstanding performance in an all-star cast led by Britain’s senior classical actor, Paul Scofield. He is joined by Alec McCowen as Gloucester, Kenneth Branagh as The Fool, Harriet Walter as Gonerill, Sara Kestelman as Regan and Emilia Fox as Cordelia. This is the ninth recording of Shakespeare plays undertaken by Naxos AudioBooks in conjunction with Cambridge University Press, and is directed by John Tydeman. It was released to mark the 80th birthday of Paul Scofield in January 2002.

Oedipus the King is the story of a man whose life is destroyed by his own good intentions. When a terrible secret from his past is brought to the light of day, the consequences are chilling - and ineluctable.

This shattering drama of isolation and loss is one of the greatest tragedies in world literature. King Lear of Britain has three daughters: the hard-hearted Goneril and Regan, and the good and gentle Cordelia. He determines to divide his kingdom between them, giving the largest share to she who can say she loves him the best. Lear's tragic lack of judgment and self-knowledge is paralleled by the blindness of the loyal Gloucester who is persuaded to reject his virtuous son, Edgar, in favor of the villainous Edmund.

Here is the multi award-winning SmartPass study guide with and without commentary options. This is a full-cast, unabridged performance, with comprehensive commentary and analysis, enabling students to fully understand and appreciate the play. Judge for yourself whether Lear is "a man more sinned against than sinning" in this moral tale that pits wisdom and age against ambition and youth. Experience and examine the power of Shakespeare's most cruel and violent tragedy.

Written in 1593, King Richard III is one of Shakespeare's earliest plays. This play differs from its predecessors, being amore structured piece, examining the development and motivations of a single character, Richard Duke of Gloucester, who will stop at nothing to gain control of the throne occupied by his brother Edward IV.

Experience King Lear as a powerful full-cast drama with entertaining and enlightening commentary that explains what's what and who's who as the plot unfolds. To help you get the most out of Shakespeare, the narrator offers historical insights and background information, so you can enjoy the jokes, appreciate the references, and get a real sense of Shakespeare's world.

In Sophocles' tragedy, Oedipus discovers that he has been caught in his terrible destiny, unknowingly murdering his father and marrying his mother.

Aristotle's assertion that in Greek tragedy there is no loftier work than Oedipus the King cannot be lightly contradicted. This drama is endued fearfully with nature, as she works against the conscientiousness of measure found in man. Heretofore no translation of this play has been a poem of Sophoclean worthiness and work. The rhythmic stature of this translation runs with the Greek in heat and light.

A tragedy, a comedy, and a history all rolled into one, the story of the tyrannical Richard III ranks among Shakespeare's most popular plays. Opening with the famous "Now is the winter of our discontent" soliloquy, this masterful work follows its antihero as he plots to steal the throne of England, causing murder and mayhem all along the way. A full cast, including Robert Stephens and Dame Peggy Ashcroft, brings this devilishly entertaining work to life.

Some of the most stirring scenes Shakespeare ever wrote resonate powerfully in this dramatic radio production. Tortured madness, pure evil and the fatal struggle for power grip the listener until the final, shockingly tragic conclusion. Starring Corin Redgrave as King Lear, with Justine Waddell as Cordelia, Robert Glenister as Edgar, Geraldine James as Goneril and Kika Markham as Regan.

The Life and Death of King John, a history play by William Shakespeare, dramatizes the reign of King John of England (ruled 1199 - 1216), son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine and father of Henry III of England. It is believed to have been written in the mid-1590s but was not published until it appeared in the First Folio in 1623. Performed by The Marlowe Society.

King John of England is pitted against the united powers of France, Brittany, Austria, and the Papacy. Will England be destroyed by his fatal indecision? As alliances are made, broken, and remade, the paranoid and erratic John reveals his weakness and reliance on those around him - including his powerful mother, Queen Elinor, and Faulconbridge, the cynical and witty bastard son of the dead King Richard I.

King Lear has lived a long and difficult life as a king and decides that he wants to retire of his duties. To absolve himself of power, Lear decides to split his kingdom among his three daughters based on their affections toward him. While two of his daughters flatter their father and declare their fealty and respect, his third daughter refuses to flatter his ego and declares that she only loves him because he is her father. This disrespect causes Lear to leave her nothing.

This is a full-cast, unabridged performance with comprehensive commentary and analysis, enabling any student to fully understand and appreciate the play. Judge for yourself whether Lear is "a man more sinned against than sinning" in this moral tale that pits wisdom and age against ambition and youth. Experience and examine the power of Shakespeare's most cruel and violent tragedy.

The Life and Death of King John was probably written in the 1590s but not published until the First Folio in 1623. Of Shakespeare's 11 history plays, King John is the one which deals with the story of a monarch most removed from Shakespeare's time. The historical remoteness of this ruler, and also the fact that he had no genealogical links with the Tudor dynasty, enabled Shakespeare to present him in a warts and allà fashion.

The thin line between good and evil, courage and cowardice, heroes and monsters is old as humanity itself. While there are many modern retellings of biblical classics like David and Goliath or the death of Saul and Jonathan, few have explored the timeless truths and universal struggles of the David and Saul story. KINGS: A David and Saul Epic is most appropriate for ages 12+. The five-episode dramatic series is written by Caleb G. Brown, a script doctor and writing instructor who honed his craft with Act One and Lin Pictures (now Rideback). His most recent screenplay credit is Blue Ridge (2020...

Shakespeare's King Lear ranks with Sophocles' Oedipus as a tragic hero destroyed by his own good intentions. From the moment when Lear unfolds his darker purpose, we are drawn into an ineluctable chain of events that leads through betrayal, deceit, destructive family conflict, reconciliation, despair, and death. Considered by many to be the most grueling of Shakespeare's tragedies.

The year is 1208, a time when most heiresses do their duty. But not Elsbeth of Camley, for she would rather join a holy order than be bartered off and expected to breed well and often. Elsbeth flees to Lambeth Abbey with her dower coin and unwittingly sets off a chain of events that threatens the balance of power in England. Because of his bold rescue of the lady and her dower, Sir Roger of Angelsey earns a barony and substantial amounts of land. But he must lose no time in making his betrothed his wife in order to keep his title. It's not an easy task.

The aging King Lear decides to divide his kingdom among his three daughters - with tragic results. This is a full-cast recording of what is considered to be one of Shakespeare's greatest plays, based on the legend of 'Leir of Britain', a mythological pre-Roman Celtic king.