Shakespeare:Great Comedies [Various] [OPUS ARTE: DVD] [2015] [NTSC]

undefined

Twelfth Night: One of Shakespeare's best-loved comedies, Twelfth Night was ‘blissfully reborn’ (The Daily Telegraph) for the 2012/13 season at London's Globe Theatre, under the direction of Tim Carroll. The hilarious tale of misdirection and deception is performed here by an all-male cast, as it would have been in Shakespeare's day, with Mark Rylance playing Olivia and Roger Lloyd Pack as the hess Sir Andrew Aguecheek. The production also marks Stephen Fry's triumphant return to the stage as the pompous Malvolio, ridiculous in his yellow stockings. Filmed in High Definition and true surround sound. The Taming of the Shrew: Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew tells the tale of the sharp-tongued Kate, who must marry before her younger sister, Bianca, is allowed to find a suitor. Undaunted by her waspish reputation, Petruchio attempts to woo the not-so-fair maiden, but is faced with a tirade of poisonous insults. Samantha Spiro stars as cantankerous Kate, capable of knocking a grown man down with her fist. With a stellar supporting cast, the production is a triumph, thanks to its ‘riotous mixture of verbal dexterity and slapstick’ (The Daily Telegraph). A Midsummer Night's Dream: ‘The course of true love never did run smooth,’ remarks Lysander near the start of A Midsummer Night's Dream, and the veracity of his statement soon becomes apparent in what is one of Shakespeare's best-loved comedies, where magic and mischief unite against the backdrop of a turbulent fairy kingdom as well as six rude mechanicals attempting to stage their own play. Starring Olivier Award winner Michelle Terry as Titania/Hippolyta (described by The Guardian as ‘magnificently imperious’) and an irresistibly funny Pearce Quigley as Bottom, this touching new production by the Globe's Artistic Director Dominic Dromgoole features ‘consistently inventive’ staging that ‘beautifully captures both the humour and the disconcerting strangeness of the play’ (The Daily Telegraph). Press Reviews ------------- "Although this is ensemble theatre at its finest, it's Rylance's contribution that puts the production among all-time Shakespeare greats. Frankly unmissable." (The Daily Telegraph - Twelfth Night) "... it is difficult to imagine that Twelfth Night could be performed more effectively than it currently is at the Globe theatre ..." (The Guardian - Twelfth Night) "This is a crowd-pleasing production ... and the laughs come thick and fast" (The Evening Standard - The Taming of the Shrew) "Matthew Tennyson's Puck is beguilingly fey, while Luke Thompson, as a Lysander beaming with childlike over-enthusiasm, makes a professional debut of some note in this warm, comic production. ... a warm, comic vision ideally pitched to this performance space. [Dominic Dromgoole's] production bursts with crowd-pleasing gestures ..." (The Evening Standard - A Midsummer Night's Dream ★★★★) Cast Stephen Fry (Malvolio - Twelfth Night) Johnny Flynn (Viola - Twelfth Night) John Light (Oberon - Midsummer Night's Dream) Matthew Tennyson (Puck - Midsummer Night's Dream) Simon Paisley Day (Petruchio - Taming of the Shrew) Sarah MacRae (Bianca - Taming of the Shrew) Mark Rylance (Olivia - Twelfth Night) Stage Director: Tim Carroll (TN); Dominic Dromgoole (MSND); Toby Frow (Taming) Catalogue Number: OA1173BD Running Time: 514 minutes Sound: Dolby Stereo / Dolby Surround Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Anamorphic Subtitles: EN, DE Label: Opus Arte