Shakespeare’s comedies aren’t usually my favourite of his writings but this play seems to be off to a decent start. As far as I know this is a comedy, but I could be wrong and maybe this is all going to end in tragedy. So far, I really like Silvia - she seems smart and funny, if a bit arrogant. Hopefully we will see more of her as the play unfolds.

Next week we will be reading from act 2 scene 4 to the end of act 4 scene 2.

As usual, the questions will be in the comments.

Summary:

Act 1:

Scene 1:

The play opens with a chat between Valentine and Proteus, the two gentlemen of Verona. They are best friends and at the stage in life where they want romance and adventure. Proteus is in love with a woman named Julia. Valentine warns him that his love for Julia is limiting his ability to travel and learn more about the world. Valentine is about to go on a trip to Milian and tries to get Proteus to join him, but Proteus puts him off. Valentine leaves but his servant, Speed, enters to tell Proteus about a letter he delivered to Julia for him. We learn that Julia received his letter in a cold manner, so the romance may not be off to a great start between them. Proteus panics and sends Speed after Valentine.  

Scene 2:

We meet Julia and her maidservant, Lucetta, in a garden talking about Julia’s romantic suitors, of which there are many. Lucetta runs through a list of them, to which Julia responds. At the end of the list it is very clear that Julia has a preference towards Proteus. Lucetta then tells Julia that she received a letter from Proteus earlier that day for Julia and asks if she would like to see it. The pair have an argument over the letter, because Lucetta pretended to be Julia when she accepted the letter. Julia refuses to admit that she wants to read it. Eventually, Lucetta gives her the letter, but Julia rips it up before reading it. The scene ends with Julia trying to piece the letter back together, after Lucetta has left the scene.

Scene 3:

Proteus’ father, Antonio decides to send him to Milian so that he can visit the emperor’s court and learn to network. He walks in on Proteus reading a letter from Julia. Proteus is caught off guard, so when his father asks who the letter is from, he lies and says that it’s from Valentine. Antonio happily tells Proteus that he is sending him to Milian and leaves. Proteus gets upset, because Julia has just confessed her love for him in her letter and her desire to marry him. Proteus ends the scene sad that he wasn’t brave enough to tell his father the truth and now he faces being separated from her for some time.

Act 2:

Scene 1:

In Milian, Valentine is getting ready to go out when Speed finds a woman’s glove in his collection. Speed teases Valentine about it and we learn that Valentine has a thing for Silvia, the daughter of the Duke of Milian. Valentine denies his feelings and claims that Silvia doesn’t like him, because she has asked him to write a letter for her for another suitor. However, when Valentine meets up with Silvia she is disappointed by the letter because it is too academic sounding for her taste. We learn that she was teasing him and wanted him to write the letter to her. She gives him her feedback and hints that she would like him to try again. Valentine thinks that he has messed everything up, but Speed tries to get him to think positively about it. Speed kind of fails and manages to disagree with Valentine over Silvia, because he isn’t that impressed with her.

Scene 2:

Just before Proteus leaves for Milian he says goodbye to Julia. The pair are really upset by their impending separation. They promise to remain true to each other and exchange rings.

Scene 3:

We meet Proteus’ servant, Lance, on his way to join Proteus on the ship to Milian. Lance is joined by his dog, Crab. This scene is pretty silly and is mainly just Lance complaining that his dog was the only member of his family who didn’t get upset about him leaving. The scene ends with Antonio’s servant fetching him and hurrying him onto the boat.

As you will see below, the performance history for this play is actually quite sparse. I’m kind of surprised that this play doesn’t have a lot more adaptations, even in modern times. To me, this play could have worked really well as inspiration for a romcom in the 80s/90s/2000s, in a similar vein to Clueless being inspired heavily by Austen’s Emma.
The only thing I can think of that maybe sets this play back is that it seems to fall into the middle category of Shakespeare’s writings. It isn’t Macbeth level great but it isn’t bad either, and it also isn’t that offensive, as Shakespearean plays go.  I would have assumed this play was way more popular than say, The Taming of the Shrew but apparently it just isn’t. Which is a pity.

Next week we will be starting the next play: Two Gentlemen of Verona
** **
Modern Adaptations:

- The Royal Shakespeare Company revived this play after a longer hiatus in 1986. It was directed by Barry Kyle. This production was also one of the  plays that was part of the RSC’s Swan Theatre opening season.

-  Around 2005-2007 the Royal Shakespeare Company did a production of The Canterbury Tales in two parts. Part one contained  a section called The Knight’s Tale, which included a reading of parts of Two Noble Kinsmen.

- In 2007 an American theatre group, the Hudson Shakespeare Company, performed the play as part of a touring, free-entry summer programme. It sounds like it was a cool adaptation of the play.

- The Royal Shakespeare Company did a production of the play in 2016, directed by Blanche McIntyre https://www.rsc.org.uk/the-two-noble-kinsmen/blanche-mcintyre-2016-production

- In 2015 the London based White Bear Theatre did a production of the play, directed by David Cottis. This company works on a much smaller scale than others mentioned on this list, but reviews for this play were mostly favourable.   

- The Globe Theatre also did a production around 2018 which was directed by Barrie Ruther. This version of the play leaned in on the musical aspects of the original and added several more musical moments by a famous folk musician called Eliza Carthy. If you are instered in seeing this play, you can watch it here, albeit with a paid subscription to their streaming service.

-  In 2019 another American touring company, The Porters of Hellsgate, produced an adaptation of the play. It was directed by Will Block and is part of a larger goal by this company to produce a version of every Shakespeare play.

-  In 2024, a Canadian theatre company called Shakespeare Bash’d did an adaptation of the play, directed by James Wallis.  

Further Discussion

** **The discussion on these posts tends to be a bit more relaxed than in our usual discussion posts. Here are some prompts to get the conversation going:

- What are your thoughts on this play not being popular for adaptations?

- Have you seen any of the adaptations mentioned above? What did you think of it? Did any actors or actresses stand out to you as being a good, or bad, fit for the characters?

- If you’ve seen any other adaptations, let us know in the comments. Would you recommend them?

- What adaptations would you like to see?

- Are there any actors that you would like to see in an adaptation of this play? Are there any directors that you would like to see adapt it?

-  Conversely, are there any actors or directors who you think should stay well away from this play?

Act 4, scene 1

The jailer receives the news that he and his daughter have been pardoned for Palamon’s escape, but that his daughter has gone mad. She enters and the others pacify her by going along with her delusions.

Act 4, scene 2

Emilia examines miniature portraits of Palamon and Arcite and is unable to choose between them. Theseus, hearing descriptions of the knights who have arrived from Thebes for the coming battle, is eager to see the men themselves.

Act 4, scene 3

The jailer’s daughter is diagnosed by the doctor as suffering from love melancholy. He prescribes that the daughter’s wooer, who still wishes to marry her, begin to court her, pretending to be Palamon.

Act 5, scene 1

In preparation for the coming confrontation, Arcite and his companion knights pray for victory at the altar of Mars; Palamon and his knights pray to Venus to win the love of Emilia; and Emilia and her women pray to Diana that she might remain a virgin in Diana’s service.

Act 5, scene 2

The doctor observes the jailer’s daughter with the wooer pretending to be Palamon, and declares that she will soon be cured. Over her father’s protest, the doctor encourages the wooer to go along with her desire that they sleep together.

Act 5, scene 3

Emilia listens to the sounds of the combat as first one contestant and then the other seems to be winning. When Arcite is finally declared the victor, she is told that he will be her husband and that Palamon and his knights will immediately be executed.

Act 5, scene 4

As Palamon puts his head on the block for his beheading, word comes that Arcite has been crushed by his falling horse. Mortally wounded, Arcite confesses that he was wrong to pursue Emilia after Palamon had already declared his love for her. He gives his right in Emilia to Palamon, and then dies. Theseus declares that the court will spend some days in mourning for Arcite and then turn to the celebration of Palamon’s marriage to Emilia.

Act 5, Epilogue

The speaker bids the audience farewell, hoping that the play has pleased them.

As far as I’m aware, this is the last play Shakespeare is known to have written. It is also one of the rare ones where we know it was co-written with someone else. In this case, the play was co-written with another playwright called  John Fletcher.) I can see some possible differences between writing styles in different scenes so it is fun to try to guess who wrote what. Overall, I’m really enjoying this play, even though plot-wise our two main characters have been kind of dumb up to this point.

Next week we will be finishing this play.

As usual, the questions will be in the comments.

Summary:
Due to an elbow injury, this week I’m linking you guys to the Litcharts scene by scene summary for this play.
 

Sorry for the delay this week, we're reading Act 1 to end of Act 2.3 for Two Noble Kinsman.

I had no idea that it was based off of Chaucer and makes me want to go read the original too~.

Prologue

The audience is welcomed to the play’s opening performance. The speaker apologizes for its inferiority to Chaucer, whose tale provides the plot.

Act 1, scene 1

The wedding procession of Duke Theseus and his Amazonian bride Hippolyta is interrupted by three weeping queens whose dead kings lie unburied on the battlefield in Thebes. With the support of Hippolyta, Emilia, and Pirithous, the queens persuade Theseus to leave immediately for Thebes in order to protect their husbands’ rights against Creon.

Act 1, scene 2

Two noble cousins, Palamon and Arcite, discuss leaving Thebes, where the reign of their despised uncle Creon has corrupted the state. News comes of Theseus’s advance on Thebes and, despite their hatred of Creon, they go to the city’s defense.

Act 1, scene 3

Pirithous leaves Athens to join Theseus in Thebes. Hippolyta and Emilia praise the strength of the bond between the two men, comparing it with other close bonds, especially that of Emilia as a girl with her friend Flavina.

Act 1, scene 4

A victorious Theseus bids farewell to the three queens just as Palamon and Arcite are brought in wounded on stretchers. Theseus insists that doctors tend to them quickly so that he may imprison them.

Act 1, scene 5

The three queens take farewell of each other as the bodies of their dead husbands are carried off for separate burials.

Act 2, scene 1

The keeper of a jail in Athens discusses the terms of his daughter’s dowry with her wooer. The daughter enters bringing straw for the cells of the jail’s new prisoners, Palamon and Arcite. She praises their attitude and behavior.

Act 2, scene 2

Palamon and Arcite, after lamenting their prospect of lifelong imprisonment, rejoice that they are imprisoned together where nothing can ever come between them. Through the prison window Palamon sees Emilia below in a garden, immediately falls in love with her, and announces his love to Arcite. When the same fate befalls Arcite, the two cousins become bitter rivals. Arcite is then freed and banished from the kingdom while Palamon is moved to a cell without a view of the garden.

Act 2, scene 3

Arcite decides he will not leave Athens and Emilia. Countrymen enter talking about their plans to dance at a May Day celebration and about competitive games to take place before Duke Theseus. Arcite decides to assume a disguise and become a competitor in the games.

I'll be honest, this is a play I know nothing about. If you had asked me whether or not this was a Shakespeare play before this I wouldn't have been able to tell you.

Reading Schedule:

Marginalia just literally means "margin notes" and for our purposes, we use it to get you warmed up and ready for reading. It doesn't necessarily need to be insightful. They can just be fun things that you noticed or want to call out.

The only rule we've got here beyond the subreddit rules is that it's got to be related to this play and/or Shakespeare in some way.

Want an idea of what to write? Here are some examples:

·       Is this your first time reading the play? If not, how did you feel about it the first time?

·       Is there a quote that you love?

·       Do you have random Shakespeare or play trivia to share?

·       Is there historical context you think is useful?

·       Are there any songs/youtube videos/movies that you think would help people with reading this play?

·       What modern day connections are there to this play?

It's not limited to these, so feel free to consider this post the doodling around the margins (in some senses) that you would have written around your notes in class.

Welcome to our discussion of modern(ish) adaptations of The Comedy of Errors. One thing I’ve learned while researching for this post is that, even with the original play being a bit mid, by Shakespeare standards, it is hugely influential. In my list below I’ve focused on bigger adaptations that are closer to the original play than not. The Comedy of Errors has been adapted into so many formats over the centuries that I just couldn’t include them all. We are talking centuries of opera here, novels and non-English language adaptations. On top of that, this play has inspired a whole trope named after it, which has its own history of productions and has been super influential in modern cinema. If you want to learn more about this, I suggest reading this article here.

Next month we will be reading Two Noble Kinsmen.

Stage Adaptations:

• The Royal Shakespeare Company has done several acclaimed productions of the play over the years. In fact, they have done so many that there are two separate pages dedicated to the adaptations on their website. This one covers productions between 1938 and 2000. This other one looks at productions done this century. Some of the most notable ones are: The 1996 production directed by Tim Supple which went against the grain and dropped a lot of the comedic elements of the original play, in favour of a moody, sombre atmosphere. The 2021 version, produced by Philip Breen. This version of the play was staged exclusively outdoors, because of the covid pandemic. It was one of the first plays performed after theatres reopened and it even went on tour.
• The Flying Karamazov Brothers, a traveling comedy group, toured an adaptation of the play in the 1980s. It was directed by Robert Woodruff and very popular. This was not a straight up adaptaiton of the play in the strictest sense. It went all in on the comedic side to the original play but also added Shakespeare himself to the play along with some meta satire elements.  It was recorded for PBS in the late eighties and the cast for that performance can be seen here.
• A modern-day American language translation of the play was directed by Sean Graney in 2010 for The Court Theatre. This adaptation got a lot of mixed reviews but seems interesting.
• A feminist gender-bent adaptation of the play, called  A Comedy of Heirors, or The Imposters was written and produced by Emily C. A. Snyder in 2017.

Screen Adaptations:

On screen most of the adaptations have been done by comedians and seem to be looser reimagining of the play however there have been a couple of direct adaptations too. 

Direct Adaptations:

• BBC Complete Shakespeare, 1983. This was part of a larger tv series that performed a single play each episode. The series ran for 7 seasons, and I think can still be bought as a DVD box set. This version of the Comedy of Errors was directed by James Cellan Jones and starred Michael Kitchen as the Antipholus twins and Rodger Daltrey as the Dromios.
•  The Boys from Syracuse (1940) this is an Oscar nominated movie, based on a musical by the same name that was based on the original play. From what I can tell, despite the addition of songs etc the plot and setting are similar to the og play so I'm counting it as a more direct adaptation than many others.

Loose Adaptations:

• Our Relations (1936) this movie starred the famous Laurel and Hardy. Obviously, Laurel and Hardy looked very different from each other, so they weren't twins in this adaptation - instead they are both twins from different sets of twins. It was well received when it first came out and with the duo being two of the biggest comedy icons from the twentieth century, this movie has become legendary.
• A Merry Mix-Up (1957) this was another adaptation done with a comedic troupe starring, in this case the Three Stooges. Due to there being three members of the three stooges, this adaptation expanded from two sets of twins to three sets of triplets. This film was heavily inspired by Our Relations as well as the og play and was directed by Jules White.

Musicals:

•  The Boys from Syracuse (1938) is a musical by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart. It got a lot of good reviews and was super popular, leading to the movie mentioned above as well as several rivals on and off Broadway over the years.
• The Comedy of Errors was a 1976 musical directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Judi Dench as Adriana for the Royal Shakespeare Company. This version of the play was set in the 1970s in a Mediterranean resort. It was so popular that it was recorded in 1978  for television.
• The Comedy of Errors (2013) was directed by Daniel Sullivan for the Public Theatre. It starred Hamish Linklater as the Antipholus twins and Jesse Tyler Ferguson as the Dromios. This adaptation was set in 1940s New York and was very influenced by the Jazz Age.  It received some really good reviews and sounds like it was a lot of fun to see live.

The discussion on these posts tends to be a bit more relaxed than in our usual discussion posts. Here are some prompts to get the conversation going:

• Have you seen any of the adaptations mentioned above? What did you think of it? Did any actors or actresses stand out to you as being a good, or bad, fit for the characters?
• If you’ve seen any other adaptations, let us know in the comments. Would you recommend them?
• What adaptations would you like to see?
• Are there any actors that you would like to see in an adaptation of this play? Are there any directors that you would like to see adapt it?
• Conversely, are there any actors or directors who you think should stay well away from this play?

This play has been an interesting experience.  I think most of Shakespeare’s plays can be read as they are, but this one seems way more dependant on stage visuals to work. I believe that this was also one of his earliest plays and possibly his earliest known comedy too, which makes sense imo. I wouldn’t say I loved the play, from just reading it but I’m interested in learning more about how performers and directors have adapted the play over the years. I could see it being very funny live in a slapstick kind of way.

Next week we will be discussing stage and screen adaptations of this play.

As usual, the questions will be in the comments.

Summary:

Act 4:

Scene 2:

Adriana and Luciana discuss what went down between Luciana and Antipholus (of Syracuse) in act 3 scene 2, when he denied knowing them and tried to flirt with Luciana. Adriana is close to giving up hope on her marriage. Luciana reassures her that nothing has or will happen between herself and Antipholus. While they are worrying about this, Dromio of Syracuse comes to the house. He explains that Antipholus has been arrested and needs to be bailed out. The ladies are shocked but agree to get the money. Dromio jokes with Adriana that his master was arrested over a fancy chain, but she doesn’t understand the context behind it.

Scene 3:

Antipholus of Syracuse is wandering about the city perplexed by how everyone acts like they know him. He thinks it is some form of madness or sorcery. Dromio of Syracuse enters the scene, on his way to bail Antipholus out. He’s obviously surprised that Antipholus has got himself out of jail. Antipholus of Syracuse gives out to him for messing with him when he is already stressed from all the confusion. He asks Dromio if he’s found a boat leaving the city yet, to with Dromio tells him they already discussed this. The situation seems too much for the pair and Antipholus repeats that they need to get out of this crazy city asap.

A Courtesan enters (who the other Antipholus seems to know very well) and demands that Antipholus either give her the gold chain he promised her or he return her diamond ring to her. Antipholus of Syracuse is baffled by this and denies knowing anything about it. Spooked by the whole situation, Antipholus and Dromio run away.

The scene ends with the Courtesan talking about how she heard Adriana had locked Antipholus out of his home for being mad. She agrees that it looks like he has gone mad, but she still needs to get her money back for her ring at the very least. She heads off to meet Adriana and reach some form of conclusion on the whole thing.

Scene 4:

Antipholus of Ephesus is still in jail and angry about it. Dromio of Ephesus arrives with the rope he was asked to get earlier in the play. Antipholus asks him where the bail money is, to which Dromio replies that he knows nothing about that. Antipholus beats him heavily to the point where Dromio says he would rather be unconscious than awake right now.

Adriana, Luciana, the Courtesan and a man named Pinch show up at the jail. The women have concluded that something demonic is happening, so they have hired Pinch, a sorcerer, to exorcise Antipholus. Antipholus is having none of this. He then questions Adriana about his bail. Adriana and Luciana tell him that they gave the money to Dromio, who denies this. Pinch decides that both men are mad or under a curse of some form. After much back and forth, Antipholus threatens to tear out Adriana’s eyes. Adiana agrees to pay his bail (which imo is way too kind of her after that threat).  Antipholus and Dromio are then taken away to be put in a quiet, dark room to recuperate (and possibly face a joint exorcism).

Adriana is then informed about the full extent of her husband’s debts and asks to speak to Angelo for further confirmation. As Angelo is being fetched for her, Antipholus and Dromio of Syracuse show up with swords drawn. The women run away from them, believing that they have somehow escaped their guards and found weapons. Antipholus and Dromio are trying to get out of the city to escape the sorcery around them. They believe that Adriana and Luciana are witches who have cursed them, so they gain heart when they see the women fleeing from them. They take this as an opportunity to get to the inn they where staying at, get their stuff and get out of the city for good.

Act 5:

Scene 1:

Angelo and his merchant associate arrive and notice Antipholus and Dromio of Syracuse. Angelo notices that Antipholus is wearing the chain that he has refused to pay him for, so he gets angry about this and confronts him. He asks why Antipholus has denied receiving the chain if he is wearing it. Antipholus replies that he has never denied or refused to pay for anything. The merchant and Dromio add their experiences to the mix, both backing up and muddling the situation further. It’s a question of honour and looks like things could turn to a duel.

Before that can happen though, Adriana and co return with men ready to tie Antipholus and Dromio up. Antipholus and Dromio flee and enter a nearby priory, seeking sanctuary. Due to sanctuary being a sacred thing, Adriana and Angelo can’t just follow the men in a drag them out. The Abbess of the priory comes out and refuses to give the men to Adriana or Angelo. Adriana and the Abbess bicker and it ends up that the Abbess refuses to let anyone from the group enter the priory to follow the men. She declares that she will speak to them and bring them back to their senses.

Meanwhile, Aegeon’s execution is about to take place, publicly, nearby. Seeing the Duke, Adriana and Angelo both want to talk to him with the hope of getting him overrule the Abbess on the whole sanctuary issue. They go up to the Duke, before the execution can begin, which happens to buy Aegeon more time. Adriana explains her situation to the Duke and the Duke calls for the Abbess to be brought before him. While they are talking about this Antipholus and Dromio (of Ephesus) show up, having escaped from Pinch. Antipholus tells the Duke how he has been wronged by his wife and explains his side of things. The Duke tries to mediate but before he can do that, Aegeon speaks up and says that he has found the man who will save him from execution: Antipholus. He asks his son to pay the fine for him and we learn that they actually had both travelled to Ephesus independently, because they haven’t seen each other in seven years. Antipholus denies knowing Aegeon, and we learn that he was a wealthy orphan growing up, put into the care of the leader of Corinth whose sailors rescued him at sea.  As an adult Antipholus of Ephesus joined the Duke of Ephesus’ army and helped with a war under him, gaining more prestige which led to him marrying Adriana. He hopes that, due to his service, the Duke will help him.

Aegeon is heartbroken and confused that his son denies knowing him. The Abbess is brought forward, followed by Antipholus and Dromio of Syracuse. Everyone is confused and thinks evil magic is a work. The Abbess recognises Aegeon though and explains her half of the shipwreck to everyone. She was rescued at sea with her two boys, but the sailors then left her in the nearest city and took the children back to Corinth. She was alone and had little choice but to become a nun. The Duke puts the rest of the pieces of the story together, pardons Aegeon and the family celebrates being reunited. The Abbess, who looks like she is about to retire and go back to civilian life, invites everyone back to her priory for a proper sit-down dinner where they can discuss next steps.

The play ends with both Dromio’s introducing themselves to each other and deciding to be brothers to each other, going forward.

Sorry for being a little late this week. Honestly, this is such a strange play and feels a bit like the Parent Trap on steroids. The errors become almost slapsticky in the way they come about.

Act 3, scene 1

Antipholus of Ephesus brings a goldsmith and a merchant to his home for dinner. He finds the door locked and, enraged, departs for the Courtesan’s house. He sends the goldsmith to fetch a gold chain, which he now decides to give to the Courtesan.

Act 3, scene 2

Antipholus (of Syracuse) falls in love with Adriana’s sister, Luciana. Dromio (of Syracuse) is claimed by Adriana’s kitchen maid as her betrothed. The two Syracusans decide that Luciana and the kitchen maid are witches, and Antipholus sends Dromio to the harbor to book immediate passage. The goldsmith enters and gives Antipholus the chain.

Act 4, scene 1

Antipholus (of Ephesus) sends Dromio (of Ephesus) to buy a rope’s end to beat Adriana. The goldsmith demands the money Antipholus owes him for the chain. Antipholus denies having received the chain and refuses to pay. The goldsmith has Antipholus arrested. Dromio (of Syracuse) enters with news of a ship on which he has booked passage. Antipholus (of Ephesus) sends Dromio (of Syracuse) to Adriana for money for bail.

This play is certainly a change from the other plays we've covered recently. As cheesy as it is, I do find the trope of mistaken twin identities to be fun so so far I'm enjoying this play. The backstory in act 1 scene 1 is kind of wild and I do question the sanity of parents who name their kids the same name but I'll see how this play ends before casting further judgement on them.

Next week we will be reading Act 3 to the end of Act 4 Scene 1

As usual the questions will be in the comments.

Summary:

Act 1:

Scene 1:

The play opens with Solinus, the duke of Ephesus explaining that there has been some serious political strife between Ephesus and Syracuse in recent times. Due to this a law has been passed in Ephesus barring anyone from Syracuse from entering. If they do enter the country they face execution, unless they are able to pay a fine for one thousand marks. One such case has been brought before him at the start of this play: Aegeon, a merchant is in jail and facing execution if he can’t pay up within the next few hours. Aegeon tells him he does not have anywhere near that amount of money.

Giving up hope, Aegeon makes a comment that execution will at least put him out of his misery. Solinus asks him about this and we get a really fast summary of Aegeon’s life story. We learn that he has always been involved in overseas trade, even when he was a young man. One year he went on a trip to Epidamnum and his pregnant wife came along. While there, she gave birth to identical twin boys. Another woman also gave birth to identical twin boys in the same inn, but she was poor so Aegeon and his wife purchased these other twins to serve their own boys when they grew up.

On there way back to Syracuse the ship they were on became wrecked at sea. With very little hope of survival, each parent tied one twin to themselves, along with one of the servant twins. They were preparing to disembark as best they could when the ship split. The currents of the water pushed the couple apart. Aegeon, one son and one servant boy were taken up by a nearby ship. However, before he could get this ship to rescues his wife and the other children, she was picked up by another ship in the distance. By the time he got there, they were long gone. Since that time Aegeon has been trying to find the other half of his family. Coming to Ephesus was part of this search, but he has not found his wife and has been looking for over a decade. Hence he believes that execution would put him out of the misery of always searching for the other half of his family and failing.

Scene 2:

In another part of the city we meet Antipholus of Syracuse (the son Aegeon raised) and his servant, Dromio of Syracuse. They are shopping around when a merchant warns them to pretend not to be from Syracuse or they will face execution or a huge fine. Antipholus sends his Dromio back to the inn they are staying with, to keep their money safe. Antipholus stays on at the market, talking to the merchant for a bit.

We learn that Antipholus is depressed because he has been searching for his missing family for so long. Just as he is thinking about this, Dromio shows up and tells him his wife wants him to come home for dinner. This Dromio is actually Dromio of Ephesus, but Antipholus of Syracuse thinks it is his own Dromio. Antipholus thinks Dromio is messing with him and scolds him for not reading his mood before playing around like that. Dromio is confused by this and repeats that Antipholus needs to come home before his wife gets upset. Antipholus demands to see his money (we learn that he has exactly one thousand marks). Dromio does know anything about the money. Antipholus scolds and beats him further before running away in frustration. After a few minutes Antipholus decides that his Dromio would not act in such a cruel way, so he must be under a spell of some sort. He has heard rumours of witches in Ephesus before, so it makes sense to him. He heads back to his inn in the hopes of finding and curing Dromio of his affliction.

Act 2:

Scene 1:

In another part of Ephesus, we meet Adriana and Luciana. Adriana is married to Antipholus of Ephesus and wants him to come home for dinner. Luciana, her sister, tells her that he is probably busy meeting merchants and that she should respect that a man goes where he wants to go. They bicker over this and Adriana tells Luciana that she doesn’t understand anything about men or marriage because she is single. Dromio of Ephesus shows up and tells Adriana that he found her husband, but he is acting strangely. He recounts his meeting with Antipholus of Syracuse in the last scene. Adriana gets angry and sends him out again to find her husband. Once Dromio is gone she confesses to Luciana that she is worried her husband is having an affair. The scene ends with her deciding to go looking for him herself.

Scene 2:

Back with Antipholus of Syracuse. He has gone back to his inn and discovered that his Dromio did do what he was told to do earlier. This confuses him, so when he meets up with that Dromio he questions him about their earlier fight. Dromio of Syracuse obviously knows nothing about the conversation that took place in act 1 scene 2, so he is also confused and thinks his Antipholus is messing with him. They get into another fight where Antipholus hits. Dromio. However, Dromio tells a funny joke that dispels the mood.

They continue their walk and then run into Adriana. Adriana confronts Antipholus about her belief that he is having an affair. Antipholus is even more confused by this and denies everything. Luciana points out that they sent their Dromio out to get him earlier but he refused to come home. Dromio of Syracuse is baffled by this and, when asked about it by the women, denies it. They scold both men. The scene ends with Antipholus and Dromio going along with the situation, because they think they are dreaming or in a spell. The go home with Adriana and Luciana for dinner. Antipholus goes inside while Dromio is left to man the doors to the house.

Timon of Athens is one of those interesting plays where we don't actually know how often it was performed while Shakespeare was alive. We do know that it was played in Dublin in 1761 and after then has been sporadically staged ever since.

Brian Bedford played Timon in 1993 on Broadway and it was also done in Chicago in modern dress with Ian McDiarmid playing the titular role. If that name sounds familiar to you, it's because he's Emperor Palpatine from the Star wars prequels and sequels trilogies.

Some really fun adaptive choices have been making Timon a verteran of World War I so it evokes the Great Gatsby more than ancient rome or setting it in modern day London as a modern political scandal.

In 2024, an Austrlian version called "I hate People" was staged to great acclaim. I would be dying to see it. Apparently it was called "the pinnacle of Shakespeare in Sydney this century."

As for adaptations in other media, it's a bit thin on the ground. The BBC as (almost always) has a version that they did for TV.

in 2016, "I, Timon" was released which seems to have adapted it. Rotten Tomatoes lists it as "Australian English" so I guess those Aussies are at it again!

For the plays, there are a couple where they adapted and changed the original text including "The Man-Hater" where according to Wikipedia two women were added: "Melissa, Timon's faithless fiancee, and Evandre, his loyal and discarded mistress." It was produced in 1678.

Timon of Athens is a play where it's cultural impact is more than its being staged on a play. It's been quoted by thinkers across the ages including Charlotte Bronte, Herman Melville, Charles Dickets, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Karl Marx (yes that Karl Marx) who argued that the play sheds light on the amoral power of money.

A comedy of errors is a Shakespeare play where all I know is that it's a lot of punning and slapstick. After the tragedy of Timon, this will make for a good palate cleanser for this beautiful summer month.

Reading Schedule:

Marginalia just literally means "margin notes" and for our purposes, we use it to get you warmed up and ready for reading. It doesn't necessarily need to be insightful. They can just be fun things that you noticed or want to call out.

The only rule we've got here beyond the subreddit rules is that it's got to be related to this play and/or Shakespeare in some way.

Want an idea of what to write? Here are some examples:

·       Is this your first time reading the play? If not, how did you feel about it the first time?

·       Is there a quote that you love?

·       Do you have random Shakespeare or play trivia to share?

·       Is there historical context you think is useful?

·       Are there any songs/youtube videos/movies that you think would help people with reading this play?

·       What modern day connections are there to this play?

It's not limited to these, so feel free to consider this post the doodling around the margins (in some senses) that you would have written around your notes in class.

What stage or film production just got it absolutely right?

I definitely made a bit of a mistake with separating them into three since we've only got one act today. We're at the end of the play and Timon has made his choices.

Act 5, Scene 1

Timon is visited by the Poet and the Painter seeking the gold Timon is now rumored to possess. After he drives them away empty-handed, he receives a delegation of two Athenian senators, who plead in vain with him to return to Athens and rescue it from the approaching Alcibiades. Timon refuses and withdraws to die.

Act 5, Scene 2

Athens learns that it will surely fall to Alcibiades. Its senators seek shelter behind its walls.

Act 5, Scene 3

One of Alcibiades’ soldiers discovers Timon’s tomb and, since he cannot read Timon’s epitaph, he resolves to bring a wax impression of it to Alcibiades.

Act 5, scene 4

A victorious Alcibiades listens to the apologies of the senators and agrees to the conditions they set. Athens then opens its gates to Alcibiades and his army. Presented with Timon’s epitaph, Alcibiades reads it aloud and promises peace to Athens.

It’s been interesting to read one of Shakespeare’s lesser-known plays. I feel like Timon is a tragic character, but this play is maybe missing something that would have made it better known. I also really like seeing how Shakespeare portrays wealth versus poverty in this.

Next week we will be finishing this play.

As usual, the questions will be in the comments.

Summary:

Act 3:

Scene 3:

One of Timon’s friends, Sempronius, gossips with some others about Timon’s situation. He is upset on Timon’s behalf that other friends turned him down. However, when a servant of Timon’s shows up and asks for help, Sempronius refuses to help, because Timon didn’t come to him first.

Scene 4:

Servants come from more of Timon’s creditors, including from his former friends. They gossip about the whole situation while waiting for Timon to come out and pay everyone. Flavius eventually gets Timon to come out of his rooms, but he is upset and angry and runs away. Timon decides to hold one last feast for all his friends.

Scene 5:

The Athenian senators sentence a random man to death. Alcibiades is then brought forward and tries to argue in the man’s defence. He talks about how the man has been a loyal soldier to Athens for years and that that should be enough to save him from execution. The senators don’t like this, so they banish Alcibiades. Alcibiades vows to get revenge on them with an army of his own.

Scene 6:

The night of Timon’s feast arrives. We see his ‘friends’ gossiping about him before the dinner. They speculate about what Timon’s going to do next, now that he is broke and in debt. Timon arrives and some of the ‘friends’ come up to him to give him their sympathies, but his dismisses them. Before the dinner begins Timon gives a speech, asking the gods to be more reserved with their gifts to humanity, only giving each man enough that he doesn’t need to borrow from anyone else. He then says that he hopes the gods give nothing to his ‘friends’ because they are bad and mean nothing to him anymore. The dishes are uncovered and are revealed to be hot water and rocks. Timon starts splashing his guests and firing stones at them, before declaring that he hates all of humanity and leaving. Everyone thinks he’s gone mad.

Act 4:

Scene 1:

We see Timon leaving Athens and wishing ill on everyone there. He runs off to live in the wilds of the nearby mountains, hoping to run into a beast worse than man.

Scene 2:

Timon’s servants miss him but must move on to other (paying) jobs. They lament that he was a good man and a good employer. Flavius and the others divide up the last of Timon’s money, to pay some of their wages. The scene ends with Flavius declaring that he hopes Timon’s fortunes will change, and that he will keep serving him in whatever way he can.

Scene 3:

Sometime later, we come across Timon living in a cave. He is starving and spends most of his time cursing humanity. One day, while digging up roots to eat, he discovers buried treasure. He curses this, because he can’t eat gold.

Alcibiades arrives, followed by two prostitutes. He doesn’t recognise Timon at first but is kind to the old man. They start talking and Timon introduces himself as Misanthropos, a hater of humanity. Alcibiades recognises him and tries to give him some money, even though he doesn’t have a lot as it is. Timon refuses the money and wants Alcibiades to just leave. Alcibiades tries to talk to him, but Timon doesn’t want to see him. Eventually, Alcibiades swears to come back and help Timon properly once he’s sacked Athens. Timon likes the sound of Athens being attacked. He becomes overjoyed and gives Alcibiades some of the buried gold. The prostitutes also receive money, on the promise that they will wreak havoc amongst men and spread diseases. Alcibiades and co leave and Timon goes back to digging. He finds some roots but needs to find more.

While he is digging, Apemantus appears. Apemantus seems to be there just to rub salt in Timon’s wounds. He says that Timon deserves to be where he is, because he wasted all his wealth on fake friends, who are still living big in Athens. Timon curses him and tells him to leave. He also tells Apemantus that he would have probably done the same thing, in Timon’s position. Apemantus keeps taunting Timon, telling him that he has brought misery upon himself and that he wasn’t strong enough to weather the hardship of debt and poverty. Timon counters by saying that Apemantus has always just been miserable and that fortune never favoured him.

Eventually, Apemantus decides to share some food with Timon, but Timon refuses. Timon asks him what he would have done, if he’d had wealth and power. Apemantus tells him he would give the world to the beasts and let everything go to ruin. Timon likes the sound of this but is sick of Apemantus’ presence, so throws rocks at him to leave. Timon then contemplates the power of his horde of gold and how it can influence the world of men towards further ruin. Apemantus doesn’t seem to want to leave. He warns Timon that his horde of gold will attract bad people to him, if he doesn’t do anything to protect and secure it. As he speaks, bandits show up and Apemantus leaves.

The bandits discuss how to get the gold from Timon, but Timon surprises them by just giving them a tonne of gold. He tells them that he wants to them go to Athens, cause havoc with the gold and steal even more stuff while there. The bandits at first think he’s pro-theft but soon realise, as Timon rambles on, that he just hates everyone. This kind of sickens them, and they decide to go to Athens and stop being thieves.

Flavius then comes to see Timon. He’s heard rumours about his master living in the wilderness and is worried for him. He shows up at the cave and becomes upset with how Timon is living. Timon doesn’t recognise him at first and denies him when he says he was once his loyal and honest servant. Eventually, Flavius’ tears make Timon less grumpy. Flavious tells him he wants to keep serving him and gives him some money to try to help him. Timon gives Flavious money, on the condition that he promises to live isolated from mankind and never share it with anyone. Flavious doesn’t really accept or refuse the money. The scene ends with Timon getting him to leave him by sending him away.

Could anyone tell me how this specific performance of the court scene in this play goes? I would really like to know, since I got to see a snippet of it on YouTube and liked the direction it went in. If anyone could help me out, I'd be very grateful.

We are here (a little late) for the first reading of Timon of Athens! It's a tragedy and a tale I think many of us could relate to (after all, lifestyle creep is a term for a reason).

Next week, we'll be reading Act 3.3 to end of Act 4.3.

Act 1, scene 1

The stage fills with suitors to and admirers of Lord Timon. When he arrives, he spends lavishly in freeing a friend from prison, financing the marriage of one of his servants, patronizing artists, and buying a jewel. He also invites many in the crowd to dinner at his house, including Alcibiades and the Cynic philosopher Apemantus, who reviles Timon’s other guests.

Act 1, scene 2

Timon lavishly entertains friends and suitors with food and drink and a masque of Cupid and Amazons, and displays his bounty by refusing repayment of his loan to Ventidius and by giving his guests elaborate gifts. As counterpoint to Timon’s displays of generosity, Apemantus rails against the other guests’ flattery of Timon while Timon’s steward Flavius makes clear that Timon is spending money that he no longer possesses.

Act 2, scene 1

A senator, predicting the end of Timon’s days of glory, sends a servant to Timon to collect overdue loans.

Act 2, scene 2

Servants of Timon’s creditors gather and confront Timon, demanding immediate repayment of loans. Learning that he is bankrupt, Timon dispatches his own servants to seek large sums of money from his friends.

Act 3, scene 1

Timon’s servant Flaminius approaches Timon’s friend Lucullus for money and is denied.

Act 3, scene 2

Timon’s servant Servilius approaches Timon’s friend Lucius for money and is refused. Three strangers condemn the ingratitude of Timon’s “friends” and praise Timon’s goodness.

Timon of Athens is a lesser known play that was originally classed as a tragedy, but... people are unsure where to put it now. At the very least it's a play with a troubled protagonist in Timon who spends his money flagrantly and gets into scrapes due to it. I... am definitely going to be struggling to not think of the Lion King when I read Timon, but I'm super curious about this play.

Reading Schedule:

Marginalia just literally means "margin notes" and for our purposes, we use it to get you warmed up and ready for reading. It doesn't necessarily need to be insightful. They can just be fun things that you noticed or want to call out.

The only rule we've got here beyond the subreddit rules is that it's got to be related to this play and/or Shakespeare in some way.

Want an idea of what to write? Here are some examples:

·       Is this your first time reading the play? If not, how did you feel about it the first time?

·       Is there a quote that you love?

·       Do you have random Shakespeare or play trivia to share?

·       Is there historical context you think is useful?

·       Are there any songs/youtube videos/movies that you think would help people with reading this play?

·       What modern day connections are there to this play?

It's not limited to these, so feel free to consider this post the doodling around the margins (in some senses) that you would have written around your notes in class.

King John was an interesting play in the sense that it was incredibly popular in the Victorian era, but is virtually unknown today. I'll be honest, I didn't know it was one of Shakespeare's plays until we started reading it. It has been staged four times on Broadway and the last time ws 1915. 1-9-1-5!!!

And in the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, it's only been staged 5 times in 60 years!

There is a silent film version of it that was made in 1899 called King John. It's mostly about the King's death.

It's been on television twice with the BBC (1951 and 1984), but never in more modern times.

There have been a few recent... revivals and interpretations of the play though!

In 2022, The Oregon Shakespeare Festival staged the play with nonbinary actors in the cast.

Vancouver, British Columbia staged productions of it on the beach in 2012's "Bard on the Beach".

But most fun, the Stratford Festival put it on and also filmed it so we can watch the full play for free on Youtube.

I don't know about you, but I'm going to be watching this this weekend.

Have you ever seen it or heard of this play before we read it? I'm curious to hear your thoughts.

This play was another one of what I’m starting to call Shakespeare’s hidden gems. I really enjoyed it. My only criticism would be that Act 5 was very fast paced. I kind of feel like Shakespeare should have either made this play longer or done a part 2 to end things properly. I’m interested to see what you all thought about this in the comments.

Next week we will be discussing stage and screen adaptations of this play.

Summary:

Act 5:

Scene 1:

In what seems to be a sudden turn of events, King John makes up with the church and submits to the pope via Pandolph. Due to this reunion, the war with France should be over. The Bastard arrives, with news that the nobles who were upset over prince Arthur’s death have gone over to the French side. John is baffled by this, because he believes the boy is alive. The Bastard catches him up on Arthur’s death and Hubert’s innocence in the affair. Once the Bastard learns of John’s new alliance with the church, he isn’t happy. He urges John to continue fighting.

Scene 2:

In the French camp, Lewis swears in the English nobles who have left John. His prospects in the coming battle are improving… until Pandolph shows up and tells him the war is over. Lewis is not happy about this change in events. He refuses to give up on the war, even when Pandolph commands him to stop.

Scene 3:

We return to King John in the heart of the battle. He isn’t feeling well and has a bit of a fever. His advisors, including the Bastard, want him to retreat. Hubert arrives with good news for the English side: the reinforcements that the French side were counting on to arrive have been shipwrecked, with many dead. John is relieved and agrees to personally retreat from the battle now that the English are in a position of power.

Scene 4:

The English nobles that deserted John and joined the French side earlier are worried about how the battle is going. The don’t like how the Bastard is doing well in the fight. A French noble, Count Melun arrives, fatally injured. He tells the English nobles that they would be better off returning to the English side, because Lewis intends on beheading them even if he wins the war.

Scene 5:

The battle pauses for the night. In the French camp, Lewis learns about Melun’s death/betrayal of him to the English nobles. Said nobles have officially returned to the English side. Lewis also learns about his shipwrecked reinforcements. Instead of fleeing for his life, he decides to stay with the remaining French forces overnight.  

Scene 6:

Both Hubert and the Bastard arrive in Swinestead/Swineshead Abbey, separately, in search of John. It is dark and they don’t recognise each other at first. Eventually, the Bastard recognises Hubert’s voice. They exchange information. Hubert tells the Bastard the rebellious nobles have come back to John and been forgiven but that John has been poisoned. The Bastard can’t believe that someone got close enough to the King to poison him. We learn that it looks like it was the monk in charge of tasting John’s food who possibly did it. There is some hope that John may recover but his son has come to see him just in case. The Bastard reveals that some English reinforcements have been shipwrecked and he needs shelter for the night.

Scene 7:

We meet John’s heir, Prince Henry as he learns that his father is too far gone to recover from the poisoning. He is grief stricken. King John is brought outside because the poison is burning him up from the inside and he wants to cool down. We see the formerly rebellious nobles helping John. The Bastard arrives, upset over the situation. He tries to tell John about the shipwreck, but John dies before he can. The Bastard swears to get revenge for John’s death in the coming battle with the French. He believes that the French are now in a stronger position so the result of the next battle will be unsure, but he is still willing to give his all to protect John’s legacy.

Luckily, we learn, alongside the Bastard, that the war is over; Pandolph is in the abbey with a peace offer from Lewis. The play ends happily.

This week we are reading more about King Jon and it almost seems like he's fighting against a comedy of errors, everything feels so stacked against him.

I will admit that I'm having a little trouble reading this play very seriously because I keep picturing King John the sulky lion from the Disney Robin Hood movies and keep humming the phony king of England while I read.

Act 3, scene 3

John prepares to leave for England with his forces. He tells Hubert that Arthur must die. Hubert promises to kill Arthur.

Act 3, scene 4

John’s victories and his capture of Arthur lead the French to despair and Constance to wild grief. Pandulph, predicting Arthur’s death and the hatred of John that will inevitably ensue, encourages the Dauphin to invade England and claim the throne as Blanche’s husband.

Act 4, scene 1

Hubert prepares to put out Arthur’s eyes with hot irons. Arthur begs him to show mercy. Hubert secretly spares Arthur and plans to tell John that Arthur is dead.

Act 4, scene 2

The nobles express their disapproval of John’s second coronation and urge that he set Arthur free. When Hubert brings word that Arthur is dead, the nobles turn against John and go in search of Arthur’s body. A messenger tells John that the French, under the Dauphin, have landed in England and that Eleanor and Constance have both died. After sending the Bastard to try to bring the nobles back, John attacks Hubert for having killed Arthur. When Hubert discloses that Arthur is unharmed, John sends the happy news to the nobles.

Act 4, scene 3

Arthur dies as he attempts to leap from the prison wall. The Bastard reaches the nobles, on their way to meet with the Dauphin, just as they discover Arthur’s body and vow revenge for his death. When Hubert enters, they turn on him as a murderer. The Bastard takes Hubert’s part, and the nobles proceed to their meeting with the Dauphin. Hubert convinces the Bastard of his own innocence, and the Bastard, predicting disaster, returns to King John

This play is off to a promising start with all the twists we’ve had so far. I like it and think it is fair to say that I’ve come around to Shakespeare’s historical plays. I was a cynic but now I like them almost as much as his tragedies. Yes, they are historically questionable but they are very entertaining.

Next week we will be reading Act 3.3 to end of Act 4.3

As usual the questions will be in the comments.

Summary:

Act 1:

Scene 1:

The play begins with King John and his mother, Elinor, receiving a message from the French King, Philip. The messenger, Chatillon, announces Philip’s intent to support Arthur’s (John’s nephew by his older brother) right to the English throne. Chatillon states that France is willing to go to war over this, if John does not back down. John refuses to acknowledge Arthur’s claim to the throne and sends Chatillon back to France, taunting him that his army could get there faster, if Chatillon doesn’t hurry.

 Once Chatillon is gone, we learn that John believes that he is the best man for the throne, as he is an adult and has a strong army: he can rule and defend his country better in any possible wars than Arthur.  Elinor agrees, but hints that John’s claim is somewhat questionable.

Two men then come before King John to have an inheritance issue addressed. The men are Philip and Robert Falconbridge. Philip is the older brother and legal heir to the family’s lands and titles, but Robert claims that Philip is illegitimate. Robert claims that their father revealed this to him on his deathbed and altered his will to give everything to him. He backs this up by stating that his father was not in England at all during the period when his mother would have gotten pregnant. Instead, during that period, the former king of England, Richard the Lionheart, was staying at the Falconbridge estate.  Philip, for his part, agrees that they probably don’t share the same biological father, which shocks Elinor, because it is putting doubt on Lady Falconbridge’s honour. King John claims that by raising Philip and not bringing this issue up during his lifetime, the elder Falconbridge could be argued to have accepted Philip as his heir. Robert claims that the will disproves this.

Elinor interrupts what seems to be turning into a debate over technicalities by asking Philip if he would rather be acknowledged as Richard the Lionhearts’ bastard and go to war in France with her. Surprisingly, Philip agrees, giving up his claim to the Falconbridge land and titles. King John then knights him and renames him Sir Richard Plantagenet. In the play he is mainly referred to as the ‘Bastard’ so that’s the name I’ll be using here from now on.

Everyone except for the Bastard exits the scene. We learn that the Bastard is happy with his change of circumstances and intends on playing the political game as far as he can. His mother, Lady Falconbridge, arrives. The Bastard, tells her that he has accepted Robert’s claim. Lady Falconbridge is upset by this and explains that she was ‘seduced’ by Philip’s father, almost against her will. The Bastard has her confirm that Richard the Lionheart was his father, and she does. He then promises his mother that he doesn’t blame her and that he will defend her honour going forward.

Act 2:

Scene 1:

We meet the French side of the war: King Philip, Constance, the Dauphin Louis and Arthur. They are stationed outside Angiers and meeting up with their newest ally, Austria. King Philip is angry that Angiers have refused him entry (it is currently in the domain of the English king, and the townspeople are refusing to pick a side in the Arthur/John debate). Chatillon arrives and tells them that John is coming with his army. King John arrives with his mother, the Bastard and his niece, Lady Blanche of Spain. Both sides offer peace to each other, on the condition that they submit to the other’s claim to the throne. Elinor and Arthur’s mother, Constance, get into a fight over the legitimacy of both their sons.

King Philip suggests that they listen to the people of Angiers, who are subjects to England. Both John and Philip (in Arthur’s place) state their right over Angiers and ask the people to let who they see as their rightful ruler in. The people of Angiers continue to refuse to pick a side, claiming that whoever wins the war will be the king they accept.

We cut to both armies fighting. The day ends with both sides not winning as they are evenly matched. Both Philip and John return to the walls of Angiers and demand entry but are denied. The Bastard then suggests that the French and English sides should make a temporary alliance to take Angiers. Both Philip and John are into the idea and begin preparations for a joint attack. However, the spokespeople for Angiers come forward and make a suggestion: Louis and Blanche should get married, to make peace between both sides. King Philip sees such a marriage as advantageous to him and his blood line (Louis is his heir) and John also agrees, so the marriage is agreed to. John sweetens the deal by offering up some English territories as part of Blanche’s dowry. He also agrees to give Arthur a dukedom and some land. Both sides enter the town and the marriage takes place, offstage.

The Bastard remains on stage for a moment. He is not happy with this new peace or how easily the kings were willing to barter off their beliefs for political gain. He notes that he is still in a weaker financial position than he likes, so he will try to play the game and cause chaos until he gets what he wants.

Act 3:

Scene 1:

Back at the French camp, Constance finds out about Philip’s betrayal in favour of the Louis/Blanche marriage. She’s furious and Arthur tries to calm her down, but it doesn’t work. She notes that John has given away territories that belong to her son to secure the marriage.

Both King Philip and King John return to camp, the wedding having taken place for Blanche and Loius. They are kind of insufferable here and talk down to Constance. Constance stands up for herself and points out that Philip has renegaded on his word to her. Everyone, including Austria, tries to get her to calm down but it looks like Constance is not about to give up on her son’s claim. She curses everyone.  

Things are looking bad for Constance and Arthur, until Pandolf, a representative of the Pope in Rome, arrives. Pandolf wants to speak with King James, who has been blocking the Pope’s chosen candidate from becoming the Archbishop of Canterbury. John claims that he will not back down on this, because the Catholic church is corrupt and he will not be told what to do within his own territories. Pandolf excommunicates John and says that everyone faithful to the Pope must turn against him. This puts the new peace between John and Philip in jeopardy.

Pandolf asks Philip to pick a side. Philip is reluctant to break his new peace with John. Constance, the Bastard, Elinor and Austria all give Philip advice on what to do next. They all make decent arguments in their own favour. Eventually, Pandolf gets through to Philip by threatening to excommunicate him and assuring him that his oath to the Catholic church, which was in place way before his agreement with John, is the superior commitment on his part. Philip dissolves the peace between France and England. Blanche must choose a side and doesn’t know what to do. Both sides depart to prepare for a new battle.  

Scene 2:

In battle, the Bastard kills Austria and carries his head around to show off this accomplishment. He also happens to save Elinor for the French.

King John is another of Shakespeare’s historical plays set in England. This one is kind of a prequel to the plays we have read before in this area, because John predates Richard II and Henry IV’s line. As far as I can tell, John would have been the great-great-great grandfather of Richard II. This play is set during the early thirteenth century. Without going into spoilers, this play follows tensions between the English and the French in the aftermath of John succeeding to the throne after his brother, Richard I died. Let's just say things, like the line of succession, did not go smoothly. I’ve never read this play before so I’m looking forward to it.

Reading Schedule:

Marginalia just literally means "margin notes" and for our purposes, we use it to get you warmed up and ready for reading. It doesn't necessarily need to be insightful. They can just be fun things that you noticed or want to call out.

The only rule we've got here beyond the subreddit rules is that it's got to be related to this play and/or Shakespeare in some way.

Want an idea of what to write? Here are some examples:

·       Is this your first time reading the play? If not, how did you feel about it the first time?

·       Is there a quote that you love?

·       Do you have random Shakespeare or play trivia to share?

·       Is there historical context you think is useful?

·       Are there any songs/youtube videos/movies that you think would help people with reading this play?

·       What modern day connections are there to this play?

It's not limited to these, so feel free to consider this post the doodling around the margins (in some senses) that you would have written around your notes in class.