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Bard Flies

by James A. Smith, William C. Quinn

Performing Arts History TV & Film

Season 1

The Two Noble Kinsmen: The Two Ignoble Podcasters

In Shakespeare's final -- yes, final -- play, he returns to where he started with the plight of noblemen in love with the same woman. Working again with John Fletcher, Shakespeare borrows from Chaucer for a tale set in ancient Greece featuring duels, delusions, exposure therapy, and prayers to the gods that get answered like the wishes on a monkey's paw -- but all in the service of a story that ends happily. (Except for the guy who gets thrown from his horse and dies in his hour of triumph.) Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: Arkangel / BBC, “The Two Noble Kinsmen” (2006)

Henry VIII: Rope-a-Pope

In the final of the history plays, Shakespeare and his collaborator John Fletcher take on Henry VIII, the story of his first two wives, the birth of the future queen Elizabeth, and the establishment of the Church of England. In this episode, Will and James discuss why people have found the politics of Henry’s court so compelling across the ages from Showtime’s The Tudors to Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall to Broadway’s Six, unpack the downfall speeches of Cardinal Wolsey and Katherine of Aragon, and consider whether you could pull it off today. Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: Herman’s Hermits, “Henry the Eighth, I Am,” The Ed Sullivan Show (1965); Arkangel / BBC, “History of Henry VIII” (1998); Bea Segura, “Henry VIII,” dir. Hannah Khalil, Shakespeare’s Globe (2022)

The Tempest: Stuff as Schemes are Made Of

Magic, monsters, sprites, witches, shipwrecks, betrayal, love stories on an enchanted isle, and emotional catharsis driven by a puppet master pulling all the stings: no, dear listeners, it’s not a Dungeons & Dragons campaign but Shakespeare’s The Tempest! Will and James discuss the play know as Shakespeare’s affectionate late-career farewell to the theatre, portrayals of Caliban throughout the years, its possible setting in the New World, and whether a play with an almost all-powerful protagonist can be truly dramatic. Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: “The Tempest,” dir. Julie Taymor (2010); John Gielgud, “Ages of Man,” Caedmon Records (1959)

Cymbeline: Imogen There's No Cloten

With plot twists that depend on poor facial recognition, one-sided bets over cuckoldry, one of the most idiotic kings in Shakespeare, and a truly villainous stepson whose beheading we are unfairly denied on stage, Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline” is an interesting and often forgotten play in the Shakespeare canon. Will and James discuss which of these twists is most incredible as well as the Bard’s portrait of Cloten, the aforementioned stepson whose incel tendencies lead to depravity, and what we should make of the play’s British patriotism and ambivalent relationship to the Roman Empire. Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: “Cymbeline,” dir. Michael Almereyda (2014); “Cymbeline,” dir. Cylan Brown, Shakespeare by the Sea, (2016); “Cymbeline,” dir. Laura Gordon, Band of Brothers Shakespeare Company (2019)

The Winter's Tale: Pursued by a Nightmare

In a land ruled by a paranoid and jealous king hell-bent on destroying his own family and buffeted by violent storms, miracles, and a very large and hungry bear, Shakespeare’s characters go from intense melodrama to comedy to redemption in the five wild acts of The Winter’s Tale. In this week’s episode, Will and James find themselves surprised by how much they liked this romance and debate what makes it so much more successful than some of the Bard’s later plays. Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: “The Winter’s Tale,” dir. Gregory Doran, Heritage Theatre (1999); “The Winter’s Tale,” dir. Kenneth Branagh, Garrick Theatre (2015)

Coriolanus: The Pride Before the Brawl

What happens when a virtuous general gets drafted to run for office after defeating Rome’s enemies in battle? Nothing good! In this classic tale of martial virtue, popular politics, banishment, and treason, Shakespeare explores the divide between soldiers and the public, martial honor and private wounds, and some of the most epic “mommy issues” this side of Hamlet. Will and James discuss the protagonist Coriolanus’s “great resignation” in this potent but lesser known tragedy. Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: “Coriolanus,” dir. Ralph Fiennes (2011); “Coriolanus,” dir. Allen Fletcher, Oregon Shakespeare Festival (1953); “Coriolanus,” dir. Howard Sackler, Shakespeare Recording Society (1962)

Pericles, Prince of Tyre: Mediterranean Blues Cruise

On a tour with the least linear ports of call since The Odyssey, Shakespeare’s Pericles tries to win the hand of a princess in an incestuous relationship with her father by solving a riddle, ends a famine, gets into a shipwreck, wins a different bride in a tournament, and loses his family to a storm and pirates involved prostitution, only to miraculously reunite with them in the end. Will and James discuss this strange epic, the possible identity of its co-author, and whether Marina’s destruction of prostitution in Mytilene is the best brothel scene in Shakespeare. Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: “Pericles,” dir. Howard Sackler, Shakespeare Recording Society (1964)

Antony and Cleopatra: The Be-Niled

In one of the most famously torrid love affairs of all time, defined by extramarital cheating, lavish outfits, histrionics, and the shadow of collapsing empires, this episode’s main characters define obsession and the insanity of passion. No, not Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton! Antony and Cleopatra! Picking up where “Julius Caesar” left off, Shakespeare cranks up the operatic dialogue and battle scenes as Rome tears itself asunder. Will and James discuss why Cleopatra is one of the most fascinating women in Shakespeare, the amazing language throughout the play, and whether their relationship represents puppy love or a clichéd midlife crisis. Credits Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous) Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous) Illustrative Excerpts: “Cleopatra,” dir. Joseph Mankiewicz (1963); “Antony & Cleopatra,” dir. Iqbal Khan, Royal Shakespeare Company (2017); “Antony & Cleopatra,” dir. Trevor Nunn, Royal Shakespeare Company, (1974); “Casablanca,” dir. Michael Curtiz (1942); “Antony and Cleopatra,” dir. Lawrence Carra (1984); “Antony and Cleopatra,” dirs. Gary Griffin/Barry Avrich, Stratford Festival (2015)

The Scottish Play: All Hail Macdeath!

Double, double toil and trouble! Fire burn and cauldron bubble! Haunted by witches, ghostly daggers, murder, Macbeth is an obvious classic. But why? Will and James discuss Shakespeare's finest marriage story, the power of ambition and guilt, and a short play packed with an improbable concentration of amazing soliloquies, phrases, and speeches. // Credits // Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous); Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous); Illustrative Excerpts: Judi Dench, "Thames Shakespeare Collection: Macbeth", dir. Philip Casson (1979); "Macbeth," dir. Roman Polanski (1971); Alan Cumming, "Macbeth," dirs. John Tiffany and Andrew Goldberg (2013); Patrick Stewart, "Macbeth," dir. Rupert Goold (2010)

Timon of Athens: No Money, Mo' Problems

In a classic riches-to-rags story, the wealthy and generous Timon goes from commissioning artwork and giving interest free loans to subsisting on roots and railing against humanity in Shakespeare's bleak comedy. The atmosphere is lightened somewhat by how he seeks revenge on his faithless creditors and his city as a whole through practical jokes, the machinations of a dishonored general, and a cadre of women working in the world's oldest profession. Will and James discuss just how sorry we should actually feel for Timon, how to deal with bosses that don't want to hear bad news, and what the Bard can teach us about the National Security Council. // Credits // Intro Music: Jon Sayles, "The Witches' Dance" (composed by anonymous); Outro Music: Jon Sayles, “Saltarello” (composed by anonymous); Illustrative Excerpts: Al Jolson, “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” NBC (1932); "Timon of Athens," dir. Robert B. Loper, Oregon Shakespeare Festival (1955); Nia Gwynne, "Timon of Athens," dir. Simon Godwin, Royal Shakespeare Company (2018)

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