Excellent sales of Crystal's widely-acclaimed earlier book, Shakespeare on Toast..Ideal short introduction or revision guide for A level and undergraduate students..Ben Crystal has a high profile amongst A Level students and teachers as he takes part in the Shakespeare Live programme of study days every year
Shakespearean author and actor Ben Crystal gives a unique introduction to A Midsummer Night's Dream with guidance on what to think about before, during and after you see or study the play.
Shakespearean author and actor Ben Crystal gives a unique introduction to Hamlet with guidance on what to think about before, during and after you see or study the play
Macbeth is one of the most popular and bloody of Shakespeare's tragedies. This accessible introduction offers a springboard into the play, taking a hands-on, performance-based approach, exploring the challenges and the rewards it presents to actors, audiences and students. Springboard Shakespeare: Macbeth has a three-part structure: whether you're watching or reading, Ben Crystal takes you through exactly what you need to know Before, During and After the play. He combines a genuine passion and understanding of Shakespeare with his experience as an actor, giving the reader a clear route to thinking about, understanding and enjoying Macbeth.
Shakespearean author and actor Ben Crystal gives a unique introduction to King Lear with guidance on what to think about before, during and after you see or study the play.
Actor, producer and director Ben Crystal revisits his acclaimed book on Shakespeare for the 400th anniversary of his death, updating and adding three new chapters. Shakespeare on Toast knocks the stuffing from the staid old myth of the Bard, revealing the man and his plays for what they really are: modern, thrilling, uplifting drama. The bright words and colourful characters of the greatest hack writer are brought brilliantly to life, sweeping cobwebs from the Bard – his language, his life, his world, his sounds, his craft. Crystal reveals man and work as relevant, accessible and alive – and, astonishingly, finds Shakespeare's own voice amid the poetry. Whether you're studying Shakespeare for the first time or you've never set foot near one of his plays but have always wanted to, this book smashes down the walls that have been built up around this untouchable literary figure. Told in five fascinating Acts, this is quick, easy and good for you. Just like beans on toast.
This book analyzes, through easy-to-follow play synopses, the strengths and weaknesses of the female protagonists as they impact not only the plot of Shakespeare's plays but the male protagonist. Selected, condensed one-act versions of the plays are provided in order to enrich the discussion of the play, to stimulate in reading the play in its entirety, and to provide a springboard for group discussion of the play and the impact of the women. Contents: William Shakespeare: His Art, Life and Times; The Women of Shakespeare's Plays: An Overview; The Comedy of Errors; Hamlet, Prince of Denmark; The Merry Wives of Windsor; Julius Caesar; A Midsummer Night's Dream; Macbeth; Much Ado About Nothing; Othello the Moor of Venice; The Taming of the Shrew; Antony and Cleopatra; Twelfth Night or What You Will; Romeo and Juliet; The Two Gentlemen of Verona; Bibliography.
This unique book desribes the ways in which educational practitioners at Shakespeare's Globe theatre bring Shakespeare to life for students of all ages.The Globe approach is always active and inclusive - each student finds their own way into Shakespeare - focussing on speaking, moving and performing rather than reading. Drawing on her rich and varied experience as a teacher, Fiona Banks offers a range of examples and practical ideas teachers can take and adapt for their own lessons. The result is a stimulating and inspiring book for teachers of drama and English keen to enliven and enrich their students' experience of Shakespeare.