Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Much Ado About Nothing

Much Ado About Nothing is a good play, with many good turns of phrase by Shakespeare. So many, in fact, that I forgot some of my favorites!

Is it not strange that sheeps' guts should hale souls out of men's bodies?
Benedick, Act II, Scene III (Referring to the way that musical instruments can cause transcendent emotions)
For there was never yet philosopher, that could endure the tooth-ache patiently.
Leonato, Act V, Scene I

We don't know what the next episode will be about, cast your vote in the comments, or in the donation link!

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12 comments:

  1. Bret W.November 2, 2011 at 1:14 PM

    Yeah, I was totally expecting Hamlet II; but I love Much Ado About Nothing - saw it last summer at the Utah Shakespearean Festival, and they did a great job. This is actually one of my favorite comedies, despite it's weaknesses. Great main plot, great humor, and a very dark subplot. That said, I have *never* seen a good portrayal of Dogberry; it the actor doesn't get the puns and malapropisms, the character becomes incomprehensible.

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  2. Bret W.November 2, 2011 at 1:20 PM

    Oh, and I also just watched the 1964 Hamlet on DVD with Christopher Plummer - filmed at Elsinore (Denmark), and interesting watching (although I thought Plummer was a way too cheerful in the role of 'the melancholy Dane'). Also has Michael Caine as Horatio and a very young Donald Sutherland as Fortinbras. The Ophelia was one of the best I'd seen... worth checking out.

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  3. Bret W.November 2, 2011 at 2:07 PM

    Oh, and it might interest folks to see a short clip of the show you guys saw:

    http://youtu.be/dlMVk_qpvK8

    And a clip of the theater's announcing the show:

    http://youtu.be/k-0X_NXLjNw

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  4. AnonymousNovember 3, 2011 at 5:10 AM

    I vote for Julius Caesar or Antony and Cleopatra, the non-English history ones

    yes, that's right, I'm annonymous, just like the movie

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  5. CarsonistNovember 3, 2011 at 9:57 PM

    Thanks for all the comments, Bret!

    If anyone would like to see how the votes for the next episode are shaping up, check out our new Upcoming Episode Page, accessible on the top of the website.

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  6. Bret W.November 4, 2011 at 10:01 AM

    It might be fun to see your takes on "Anonymous" - (the movie, not the voter...) ;)

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  7. Matthew JonesNovember 5, 2011 at 5:35 PM

    Hi,

    I first found your podcasts about 3 months ago, and I have since listened to, and thoroughly enjoyed, every one of them. Thanks for doing this, and keeping them free.

    I'd like to second Anthony and Cleopatra for the next episode.

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  8. AnonymousNovember 14, 2011 at 8:49 PM

    I'm just excited on the upcoming episode, whatever it is :) Keep up the good work. I hope you complete all the Shakespeare plays and also talk about adaptations, like films and such.

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  9. AnonymousNovember 24, 2011 at 3:08 AM

    you guys rock!

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  10. AnonymousDecember 10, 2011 at 9:52 PM

    1) A vote for Much Ado about Nothing.

    2) And a vote (for some time further down the road) for devoting an episode to one of the themes from Ron Rosenbaum's "The Shakespeare Wars". (An example: Peter Brook and the search for the "secret play".)

    And thanks to you both for a well done series.

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  11. CarsonistDecember 13, 2011 at 9:15 AM

    Err... the current episode, the one you just commented on, is Much Ado About Nothing. It's available now!

    I'll check out the Shakespeare Wars, it's always good to see new books about the subject.

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  12. AnonymousAugust 5, 2012 at 5:33 PM

    I saw Much Ado for the first time at Shakespeare Santa Cruz in 1987, and it has become my favorite Shakespeare play, as well as one of the few Shakes favorites that I've never performed in. The last production I saw was at the Old Globe in San Diego, summer of 2011. Benedick never fails to disappoint. Maybe it's his transition from misogynist to loverboy that makes me think there is some hope for me. I loved KB's movie, except for the 'Keanu problem'.

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