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“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers…”

“The St Crispin’s Day Speech” as heard in William Shakespeare’s Henry V is the standard by which military leaders have measured their own words of motivation. Yet, it’s also a truly beautiful and powerful piece on its own, to simply read or in the case of the play, to watch performed.

The speech prepares the men of England for their fight ahead: the Battle of Agincourt. Written in 1599, it debuted 184 years after the battle. A battle England won, despite the odds (outnumbered 10-1). But how? Shakespeare helps us understand by giving King Henry a speech like no other, one that could have very well willed England to victory against the formidable French.

So powerful is this speech, that actors are often judged by their delivery of it. Can they stir the emotions of the audience? William Shakespeare had provided the words. Now, could the actor do them justice? Read the rest of this entry »

“Angels and ministers of grace defend us.” — Hamlet, 1.4.39

First performed in 1606 for King James I, the tragic play Macbeth is more than 400 years old, yet its impact, like most all of William Shakespeare’s plays, resonates for the modern audience.

Still performed regularly by theater companies, the play packs a good deal of power, atmosphere, and theme into a rather short drama. It is in fact Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy and is believed to have been shaved to please the king (who wasn’t fond of epics).

Scholars have pored over its every line, dedicated years to the dissection of characters and motives, yet there’s always something new to learn of Macbeth. Indeed, from high school to West End to Broadway (see the 2008 adaptation from Chichester Festival Theatre), it remains one of the Bard’s most well-known and complex plays. It’s also cursed. Read the rest of this entry »