Drama School

Shakespeare can always be daunting for those who haven't had to grapple with him on a regular basis. I had a fantastic Shakespeare teacher at drama school, who demystified the whole language thing beautifully. Basically, the theory goes, if Shakespeare was alive today, he'd be writing the latest Hollywood blockbuster and would probably have earned his stripes writing for television first (I guess it helped that I trained in England, they are less reverent about Shakespeare in drama school there - at least, my school was!). Just remember he was writing commercial works for the current market - it just happens that the common language at the time was Old English. If you get really stuck, try translating the text into contemporary English to get the meaning - that is always a good place to start. Once you understand what he's saying, reverting back to the Old English language shouldn't be such a chore or mystery. There are several excellent books on Shakespeare's language and what his words mean that you should be able to get (or at least order) from any good book shop. Alternatively, try to find some at your local library. Remember that he was writing about all the huge "high concept" themes - love, war, hate, jealousy, revenge, rivalry, etc, etc. Once you get past the language, the text is quite amazing to play. And good luck with your auditions! Sally McLean Incognita Enterprises & Acting Up Drama Classes http://www.salmac.com/masterclasses/