Sir Stanley Wells is one of the world's greatest authorities on William Shakespeare. Here he brings a lifetime of learning and reflection to bear on some of the most tantalising questions about the poet and dramatist that there are. How did he think, feel, and work? What were his relationships like? What did he believe about death? What made him laugh? This freshly thought and immensely engaging study wrestles with fundamental debates concerning Shakespeare's personality and life. The mysteries of how Shakespeare lived, whom and how he loved, how he worked, how he produced some of the greatest and most abidingly popular works in the history of world literature and drama, have fascinated readers for centuries. This concise, crystalline book conjures illuminating insights to reveal Shakespeare as he was. Wells brings the writer and dramatist alive, in all his fascinating humanity, for readers of today.

This new edition of Shakespeare's greatest tragedy is based, exceptionally, on the quarto, the version closest to his original manuscript. The Introduction illuminates the play's origins and the practicalities of its composition, and reaches beyond to its reception and influence down the centuries. Detailed notes pay especial attention to the language and staging, and the volume includes King Lear 's first derivative, a contemporary ballad, and guides to appreciation of the play and its multiple offshoots.

How can we look afresh at Shakespeare as a writer of sonnets? What new light might they shed on his career, personality, and sexuality? Shakespeare wrote sonnets for at least thirty years, not only for himself, for professional reasons, and for those he loved, but also in his plays, as prologues, as epilogues, and as part of their poetic texture. This ground-breaking book assembles all of Shakespeare's sonnets in their probable order of composition. An inspiring introduction debunks long-established biographical myths about Shakespeare's sonnets and proposes new insights about how and why he wrote them. Explanatory notes and modern English paraphrases of every poem and dramatic extract illuminate the meaning of these sometimes challenging but always deeply rewarding witnesses to Shakespeare's inner life and professional expertise. Beautifully printed and elegantly presented, this volume will be treasured by students, scholars, and every Shakespeare enthusiast.

This volume presents a winning selection of the very best essays from the long and distinguished career of Stanley Wells, one of the most well-known and respected Shakespeare scholars in the world. Wells's accomplishments include editing the entire canon of Shakespeare plays for the ground-breaking Oxford Shakespeare, and over his lifetime he has made significant contributions to debates over literary criticism of the works, genre study, textual theory, Shakespeare's afterlife in the theatre, and contemporary performance. The volume is introduced by Peter Holland, and its thirty chapters are divided into themed sections: 'Shakespearian Influences', 'Essays on Particular Works', 'Shakespeare in the Theatre', and 'Shakespeare's Text'. An afterword by Margreta de Grazia concludes the volume.

First published in 1988, Perymedes and the Blacksmith and Pandosto by Robert Greene: A Critical Edition considers two prose works by Robert Greene - Perymedes the Blacksmith and Pandosto - alongisde a critical commentary, including, in relation to Perymedes the Blacksmith, an examination of Perymedes as a framework tale and an exploration of the poems, and, in relation to Pandosto, a consideration of the analogues and sources and the popularity of Pandosto.

Originally published in 1986. Among the most frequently performed and high admired of Shakespeare's plays, Twelfth Night is examined here in this collection of writings from well-known essayists and scholars. The chapters present to the modern reader discussions of the play to enhance understanding and study of both the text and performances. Opening essays address individual characters; then some accounts of its potential and theatrical reviews are included; finally followed by critical studies looking at various parts and themes. The editor's introduction explains the usefulness of each chapter and gives an overview of the selection.

The Boar's Head Theatre, first published in 1972, provides an account of one of the Elizabethan inn-yard theatres. It is a reconstruction of considerable importance in our understanding of the performance conditions affecting Elizabethan drama, the mode of presentation and the nature of the audience. C. J. Sisson (1885-1966) was known especially for his research into Elizabethan court cases and the light they can throw on the literature and drama of the period. His discoveries included material on the Elizabethan inn-yard theatres which provides unquestionable evidence of great importance in relation to the evolution of the theatre in England. This book, which has been edited for publication by Stanley Wells, was to have been his major work on the subject. Historians of the theatre of this period will find this book indispensable, and those with a more general interest in the greatest age of English drama will be engrossed by the detailed and intimate glimpses of the theatre world which this story affords.

Originally published in 1986. Among the most frequently performed and high admired of Shakespeare's plays, Twelfth Night is examined here in this collection of writings from well-known essayists and scholars. The chapters present to the modern reader discussions of the play to enhance understanding and study of both the text and performances. Opening essays address individual characters; then some accounts of its potential and theatrical reviews are included; finally followed by critical studies looking at various parts and themes. The editor's introduction explains the usefulness of each chapter and gives an overview of the selection.

The Boar's Head Theatre, first published in 1972, provides an account of one of the Elizabethan inn-yard theatres. It is a reconstruction of considerable importance in our understanding of the performance conditions affecting Elizabethan drama, the mode of presentation and the nature of the audience. C. J. Sisson (1885-1966) was known especially for his research into Elizabethan court cases and the light they can throw on the literature and drama of the period. His discoveries included material on the Elizabethan inn-yard theatres which provides unquestionable evidence of great importance in relation to the evolution of the theatre in England. This book, which has been edited for publication by Stanley Wells, was to have been his major work on the subject. Historians of the theatre of this period will find this book indispensable, and those with a more general interest in the greatest age of English drama will be engrossed by the detailed and intimate glimpses of the theatre world which this story affords.

Thomas Dekker's The Shoemaker's Holiday is one of the most popular of Elizabethan plays, entertaining, racy and vivid in its characterisation. Revealing a vital portrait of Elizabethan London and the interaction of social classes within the city, its social commentary is on the whole optimistic, though darker tones are discernible. The play has the whole optimistic, though darker tones are discernible. The play has had a lively history of performance on both the professional and amateur stage; the roles of Simon and Madgy Eyre in particular have proved worthy vehicles for the talents of such performers as Sir Donald Wolfit and Dame Edith Evans, and a notable production was directed by Orson Wells. The editors offer a study of the text; a historical and critical introduction, which includes a study of the play's relationship with contemporary life and drama and of its place in Dekker's work; a stage history' a detailed commentary and a reprint of source materials. -- .

First published in 1970. This book examines the areas of plays that are dependent upon the art of the theatre and the fluidity of interpretation to which this gives rise. It discusses the printing of plays and the limited attempts that have have been made to convey theatrical experience, taking as a particular example a masque by Ben Jonson. Finally, some of the problems created by the instability of theatrical art

Twelfth Night is one of the most popular of Shakespeare's plays in the modern theatre, and this edition places particular emphasis on its theatrical qualities throughout. The introduction analyses the many views of love in the play, and the juxtaposition of happiness and melancholy used to dramatize them. The presentation of the text has been re-thought in theatrical terms, and the exceptionally full an detailed commentary pays close attention to the often difficult language. The play's contrastig moods are emphasized by the use of music, which plays an important role in Twelfth Night; James Walker has re-edited the existing music from the original sources, and where none exist has composed settings compatible in style with the surviving originals, so that this edition offers material for all the music required in a performance, the only modern edition to do so. The edition will be invaluable to actors, directors, and students at all levels.

First published in 1970. This book examines the areas of plays that are dependent upon the art of the theatre and the fluidity of interpretation to which this gives rise. It discusses the printing of plays and the limited attempts that have have been made to convey theatrical experience, taking as a particular example a masque by Ben Jonson. Finally, some of the problems created by the instability of theatrical art

'It reads as freshly today as it did fifty years ago, when it surprised everyone with its originality and daring, an intriguing blend of personal insight and solid detective-work. If ever a word-book deserved to be called a classic, it is this.' - David Crystal

First published in 1988, Perymedes and the Blacksmith and Pandosto by Robert Greene: A Critical Edition considers two prose works by Robert Greene - Perymedes the Blacksmith and Pandosto - alongisde a critical commentary, including, in relation to Perymedes the Blacksmith, an examination of Perymedes as a framework tale and an exploration of the poems, and, in relation to Pandosto, a consideration of the analogues and sources and the popularity of Pandosto.

This book, first published in 1964, is devoted to Thomas Nashe. Shakespeare's plays have many apparent echoes of his matter and style; he was one of the most adventurous and successful of those who tried to explore the possibilities of the language and to embellish it was an eloquence both learned and popular. Moreover, he is a conscientious and delighted portrayer of the London of his time; he combines the interests of a Mayhew with the exuberance of a Dylan Thomas. This book will be of interest to students of literature.

Great Shakespeare Actors offers a series of essays on great Shakespeare actors from his time to ours, starting by asking whether Shakespeare himself was the first-the answer is No-and continuing with essays on the men and women who have given great stage performances in his plays from Elizabethan times to our own. They include both English and American performers such as David Garrick, Sarah Siddons, Charlotte Cushman, Ira Aldridge, Edwin Booth, Henry Irving, Ellen Terry, Edith Evans, Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Peggy Ashcroft, Janet Suzman, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, and Kenneth Branagh. Individual chapters tell the story of their subjects' careers, but together these overlapping tales combine to offer a succinct, actor-centred history of Shakespearian theatrical performance. Stanley Wells examines what it takes to be a great Shakespeare actor and then offers a concise sketch of each actor's career in Shakespeare, an assessment of their specific talents and claims to greatness, and an account, drawing on contemporary reviews, biographies, anecdotes, and, for some of the more recent actors, the author's personal memories of their most notable performances in Shakespeare roles.

This original and enlightening book casts fresh light on Shakespeare by examining the lives of his relatives, friends, fellow-actors, collaborators and patrons both in their own right and in relation to his life. Well-known figures such as Richard Burbage, Ben Jonson and Thomas Middleton are freshly considered; little-known but relevant lives are brought to the fore, and revisionist views are expressed on such matters as Shakespeare's wealth, his family and personal relationships, and his social status. Written by a distinguished team, including some of the foremost biographers, writers and Shakespeare scholars of today, this enthralling volume forms an original contribution to Shakespearian biography and Elizabethan and Jacobean social history. It will interest anyone looking to learn something new about the dramatist and the times in which he lived. A supplementary website offers imagined first-person audio accounts from the featured subjects.

Written by a team of leading international scholars, this Companion is designed to illuminate Shakespeare's works through discussion of the key topics of Shakespeare studies. Twenty-one essays provide lively and authoritative approaches to recent scholarship and criticism for readers keen to expand their knowledge and appreciation of Shakespeare. The book contains stimulating chapters on traditional topics such as Shakespeare's biography and the transmission of his texts. Individual readings of the plays are given in the context of genre as well as through the cultural and historical perspectives of race, sexuality and gender, and politics and religion. Essays on performance survey the latest digital media as well as stage and film. Throughout the volume, contributors discuss Shakespeare in a global as well as a national context, a dramatist with a long and constantly mutating history of reception and performance.

Stanley Wells is one of the best-known and most versatile of Shakespeare scholars. This book, written with characteristic verve and accessibility, considers how far sexual meaning in Shakespeare's writing is a matter of interpretation by actors, directors and critics. Tracing interpretations of Shakespearean bawdy and innuendo from eighteenth-century editors to recent scholars and critics, Wells pays special attention to recent sexually orientated studies of A Midsummer Night's Dream, once regarded as the most innocent of its author's plays. He considers the Sonnets, some of which are addressed to a man, and asks whether they imply same-sex desire in the author, or are quasi-dramatic projections of the writer's imagination. Finally, he looks at how male-to-male relationships in the plays have been interpreted as sexual in both criticism and performance. Stanley Wells's lively, provocative, and open-minded book will appeal to a broad readership of students, theatregoers and Shakespeare lovers.

Stanley Wells is one of the best-known and most versatile of Shakespeare scholars. His new book, written with characteristic verve and accessibility, considers how far sexual meaning in Shakespeare's writing is a matter of interpretation by actors, directors and critics. Tracing interpretations of Shakespearean bawdy and innuendo from eighteenth-century editors to recent scholars and critics, Wells pays special attention to recent sexually orientated studies of A Midsummer Night's Dream, once regarded as the most innocent of its author's plays. He considers the Sonnets, some of which are addressed to a man, and asks whether they imply same-sex desire in the author, or are quasi-dramatic projections of the writer's imagination. Finally, he looks at how male-to-male relationships in the plays have been interpreted as sexual in both criticism and performance. Stanley Wells's lively, provocative, and open-minded new book will appeal to a broad readership of students, theatregoers and Shakespeare lovers.

Shakespeare Survey is a yearbook of Shakespeare studies and production. Since 1948 Survey has published the best international scholarship in English and many of its essays have become classics of Shakespeare criticism. Each volume is devoted to a theme, or play, or group of plays; each also contains a section of reviews of the previous year's textual and critical studies and of major British performances. The books are illustrated with a variety of Shakespearean images and production photographs. The current editor of Survey is Peter Holland. The first eighteen volumes were edited by Allardyce Nicoll, numbers 19-33 by Kenneth Muir and numbers 34-52 by Stanley Wells. The virtues of accessible scholarship and a keen interest in performance, from Shakespeare's time to our own, have characterised the journal from the start. Now backnumbers are gradually being reissued in paperback.