Very little is known about William Shakespeare. He was born in Stratford-on-Avon sometime in April, 1564. In 1582, at the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, and had three children with her. Then he lived in London without his wife and wrote some of the world’s best dramatic works ever to be produced. What he thought, who he cared about, and how he worked are all unknown. All we have for evidence are his plays. These plays serve as great fodder for the imagination of writers.
For centuries, writers have imagined the real William Shakespeare in poetry and stories. A book I read recently, Fools and Mortals, by Bernard Cornwell, portrays William from the point of view of Richard, his younger brother as William writes A Midsummer Night’s Dream. According to Richard, William is haughty and unfriendly. The story is very well-written and provides a fascinating view of early 17th century London.
A much different picture of a younger, far more likeable William Shakespeare is presented in the play (first a screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard), Shakespeare in Love, which I recently saw performed during Winona’s Great River Shakespeare Festival. This tragic romantic comedy or (comedic romantic tragedy) gives the poignant backstory for the creation of one of Shakespeare’s most enduring tragedies, Romeo and Juliet. Both plays (the modern and the Elizabethan) present star-crossed lovers whose story could have been happy, if the forces of the world would only let them be. In Shakespeare in love, young Will falls in love with Viola de Lesseps, a wealthy woman bound by the cultural norms of her time to obey her father and marry a man she does not love (or even like.) Both she and Will want poetry in their lives. In each other’s company, they find both poetry and love.
In a hilarious set of circumstances rivaling Shakespeare own mixed identities, Viola disguises herself as Thomas Kent, an actor, and ends up playing Romeo in Will’s new comedy which he plans to call Romeo and Ethel the pirate’s Daughter. In Elizabethan times, women weren’t allowed to perform on the stage. One particularly funny scene is when Viola, a woman disguised as Master Kent, plays Romeo against a young boy, disguised as a woman, playing Juliet. The comedy deepens when Will, helping to direct the rehearsal, steps in to play Juliet, and sparks fly. But when Will and Viola’s real life comes crashing in and their love is thwarted, the comedy turns dark, and the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is created.
Shakespeare in Love is marvelous historical fiction. Though full of anachronisms, (ie-Wessex, the nobel suitor to Viola, talks of his tobacco plantation in Virgina. The tobacco culture in Virginia didn’t begin until 1607), the play presents a very believable late 16th century London. We see a credible picture of the life of an actor and playwright, including the constant threat of the theater being closed, the stealing of play manuscripts, and the restrictions on women attending or working in the theater. Indeed, one of my favorite aspects of this play is the portrayal of Queen Elizabeth played beautifully by Melissa Maxwell. At this point in history, Elizabeth is a cantankerous, powerful woman holding her own in a man’s world. With just the right mix of poignancy and hubris, she says to Viola, “I know something of a woman in a man’s profession. Yes, by God, I do know about that.” At that moment we recognize the struggle of women of all ages for self-determination. Our hearts go out to both the queen, who seems to have succeeded, and Viola, who ultimately cannot.
What makes Shakespeare in Love really stand out are the many connections to Shakespeare’s work and the way events are presented as inspiration for Shakespeare’s plays. Young Will’s friend, Christopher Marlowe, and Will’s feelings of guilt over Marlowe’s death are echoed in the character of Mercutio. Viola De Lesseps’ nurse becomes Juliet’s nurse. Many of Shakespeare’s best plot devices, such as disguised identities, men and women cross-dressing, jealous lovers, and sword fights find their way into the modern play. Shakespeare in Love is thoroughly peppered with lines from many of Shakespeare’s plays and even from one of his most famous sonnets, “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day…”
Good historical fiction connects our past with the concerns of today. Shakespeare in Love tells a story that makes us laugh and cry as we recognize the power of love. At this publication, there are still three performances, July 29, Aug. 3 nd Aug.4. Here’s the link:
If you can’t make the show, there is always the movie. Like Shakespeare’s own work, this is a show well worth seeing, again and again.
BRIC-A-BRAC 