I just got back from a dress rehearsal for Shakespeare’s “Winter’s Tale.” Is it just me, or are all his comedies about chaos, cross-dressing, and various threats to social order (strong women, for instance) that are all fixed with mass marriages at the end. I mean, the guy’s kind of reactionary, isn’t he? 
I did like Leontes as a king afflicted with “mad leaders disease.” I found that a bit too contemporary for comfort. The entire play is uncomfortable; really a tragedy up until the last ten minutes. I have a friend that claims it’s her favorite bit o the bard, (but she’s a noted contrarian). I really like the way Shakespeare pushes the envelope – the play is propelled by word play, it’s almost more a poem, tottering on the brink of comprehensibility.
*Commend them and condemn them to her service
Or to their own perdition. * (to Perdita)
Ultimately, it’s a play about hope and magic and the world seems to be running a bit short of both of those commodities these days.
She reminds me a bit of Isabella in Measure for Measure, come to think of it.)