The History Of European Theatre

Episode 196:

The origins of the play written for the court and the Children of the Chaple playing company

Why this type of play is a fit for the child playing troupes

The print history of the play

A brief synopsis of the play

Myth, Satire and Masque - the complexities with getting an understanding of the play

The minor role of plot compared to words and music in the play

The performance style of the boy playing companies compared to the adult companies

The verbal sketching of characters as part of the satiric intent

The play as part of the battle of the poets

Unpicking the satiric portraits in the play

The introduction of the Poetaster

The masque and it’s role in the play

Jonson’s coded support for the Earl of Essex in the play

Early responses to the play and the longer historical view

Link to European Review of History Podcast:

Episode 195 

Last time I completed my review of ‘Hamlet’, although it is probably wrong to say that one’s thoughts on Hamlet are ever complete.  I am not alone in finding that every time I see the play, and it is I think, as it is for many, the Shakespeare play I have seen most often, I find something new in it to think on.  To complete this quartet of episodes on the play we have the second part of my conversation with Colin David Reese about the play and in this segment, which is much shorter than the previous conversation, we focussed on the character of Polonius, although as you will near Colin also brought in other thoughts generated by the play and his knowledge of other Shakespeare plays.  I certainly was not expecting to hear about ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ in the context of this conversation, but I’m glad we went there and it just illustrates how any Shakespeare conversation can lead you to all sorts of places. 

Before we get to Colin’s thoughts, I thought I would share with you some of the views of the play and Polonius from critics and commentators from the past.  This is, of course, a tiny selection given the vast amount that has been written about Hamlet, but they are pieces that I have come across and found particularly interesting.  If this piques your interest in Shakespeare criticism through time I have produced a series on that very subject for members on Patreon where I traced criticism and praise for Shakespeare from the praise poems in the First Folio to the 19th century romantics.  To find out more about that just pop over to the website or to patreon.com.

John Dryden

Samuel Jonson

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

William Hazlitt

A C Bradley

Colin Dave Reese on Polonius

Episode 194: 

Last time I left things hanging for Hamlet as, having seen the ghost of his father and resolved on revenge, he had seen his planning go awry as he mistakenly killed the old councillor Polonius while he hid behind a wall hanging.  We have seen his daughter Ophelia begin her descent into madness, school friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern become embroiled in Hamlet’s feigned madness and Claudius prompted into a desire to pray, having seen the players perform a piece that replicated his actions in the matter of his brother’s murder.  

That quick summary in no way does the play any sort of justice so please do listen to the previous two episodes on ‘Hamlet’, my look at the first half of the play and my conversation with Colin David Reese about the language in the play, if you have not done so already.  I’ll be here waiting for you when you get back.

Continuing a summary of the play picking up from the murder of Polonius, with Hamlet leaving and dragging the body behind him.

The Character of Gertrude

The female characters and the players who portrayed them

The rise of boy playing troupes reflected in ‘Hamlet’

The political position of Claudius in the Danish nation

The character of Osric and his role in the play

The themes of death and decay 

The character and actions of Hamlet

Hamlet as a tragic hero

The graveyard scene

A brief overview of the performance history of the play

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Episode 193

For today’s guest episode it is a very welcome return to the podcast for Colin David Reese, who I last spoke to in early 2023, when we discussed his play ‘Shakespeare Unbound: A Gift to the Future’ and Shakespeare in general.  If you missed those episodes you will find them as part of season five, first released in February and April 2023.

On this occasion I asked Colin to discuss Shakespeare’s use of language, with particular reference to Hamlet, and how that language is used to create character.  Colin goes in some depth into two of Hamlet’s most famous speeches from the play, so, although it is not essential you might find it useful to have a copy of the speeches to hand to follow along.  You will need ‘To be or not to be’, from Act three scene one and ‘O what a rogue and peasant slave am I’ from act two scene two.  We also spoke about the differences between the quarto and folio versions of the play with examples of the language from them, and as this have become a long, but very richly detailed episode, I have split it into two and will share the part dealing with characterisation and particularly Polonius after my second episode discussing the play.

Colin David Reese has not only a lifetime of acting experience behind him, but a lifetime of Shakespeare study too.  That started in his family life where his actor father had a Shakespeare quote for every occasion and continued with his first professional engagement when aged twelve, he played Shakespeare’s illegitimate son.  Along with his many acting roles he has run his own acting company and undertaken in depth study of Shakespeare and the Commedia Dell’arte

Episode 192:

And so, we come to perhaps the biggest challenge in all of Shakespeare's work, ‘The Tragedy of Hamlet Prince of Denmark’.  Over the next two episodes and a special guest episode I hope I can get close to doing this monumental play justice.

The dating of the play and the complication of the ‘ur-Hamlet’

The early print history of the play and the three versions

The possible sources for the play

The opening of the play

The character and significance of Fortinbras

The character of Polonius

The ghost of Hamlet’s father and the responsibility of revenge

The position and character of Ophelia

Ophelia and the meaning of flowers

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern – appearances and honesty

The players and their play as an insight to acting genres and techniques of the time

The success of ‘The Murger of Gonzago’

The centrality and irony of Claudius at prayer

Hamlet, Gertrude and the ghost

Part two of this review of ‘Hamlet’ will follow as episode 194 (season 6 episode 81) 

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