Imagine Richard Nixon as a medieval king; Diana, Princess of Wales, as a Queen. Imagine how Shakespeare, were he writing in today’s uncensored world, would approach love and sex. The three plays listed below use heightened speech to dramatize the events, and explore the sentiments, of historical figures such as Richard Nixon and Charles and Diana, or, in a lighter vein, the folly of young love and the wisdom of the heart. They use a colorful palette of characters–gentle Rab, austere Lord Warwick, the sisters Catarina and Bianca eager for knowledge and swooning over love, amid dozens more. The time is Shakespearean, the settings as bleak as the dungeon at Castle Maine in France, as splendid as Windsor and romantic as Lombardy. These “Three Plays in English” by Thomas Murphy are a way to see our world through a different glass, one that has been honed and polished for centuries, but is still sharp and invitingly familiar. (Click on the links below for more on each play, including an opening scene.)
Photo credits: The Thames in Elizabethan Times (British Library)
Find all three plays on Amazon.com at: https://www.amazon.com/Three-Plays-English-Noblewomen-Croessus-ebook/dp/B088T31CHP/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1597675112&sr=8-18