# The Play's the Thing - How Many of the Bard's Plays Have You Seen Live? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 3, 2018, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517 "2018-05-03T16:10:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/41 "2018-05-05T14:50:33Z")
Gads. This is going to take some cogitation. Off the top of my head: **Merry Wives of Windsor** (Stratford Upon Avon, RSC) \*\*A Comedy of Errors Romeo and Juliet Henry IV, Part 1\*\* \*\*Julius Caesar Twelfth Night Merchant of Venice Macbeth King Lear Othello As You Like It Taming of the Shrew\*\* (All of these as either Summer Stock or local production) [Troubie](https://www.facebook.com/troubadourtheatercompany/) Versions: [Fleetwood Macbeth](http://www.troubie.com/public/press/onstage/edgelosangeles.pdf) OthELO [A Midsummer Saturday Night’s Fever Dream](http://troubie.com/public/past/midsummer-reviews/midsummer-latimes.pdf) Hamlet, The Artist Formerly Known As the Prince of Denmark Most of the rest have been on TV. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/42 "2018-05-05T15:21:17Z")
I’d have to say, um, none. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/43 "2018-05-05T16:27:34Z")
I’m surprised that **Julius Caesa** r doesn’t show up more often. I’ve seen it performed twice, something that is not true for any other of the plays. Of the remaining plays, I’ve seen eight of them. Now, don’t ask about G&S. For some strange reason, I’ve seen **Princess Ida** (one of their lesser-known operettas) performed sixteen times. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/44 "2018-05-05T16:55:23Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > Just the one: Antony and Cleopatra. > > But I did see it in The Globe in London…so that’s pretty cool. Hey I saw that one as well. The day I saw it just as Cleopatra was “seeing” her dead lover Anthony a pigeon flew up and she made it part of the speech 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/45 "2018-05-05T17:21:49Z")
Two. A Midsummer’s Night Dream as played by sixth graders (when I was in either fifth or sixth grade) and some college doing a play. I think it was Romeo and Juliet, but I don’t remember for sure. I do remember they really pushed the risque humor with their body language, and that was the first time I realized that there were dirty jokes. Or, more accurately, I first thought they were being clever to do that so that we kids would pay attention, but later found out they weren’t actually adding anything. I’ve never seen a live version by professionals. And both of the ones I did see were abridged. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/46 "2018-05-05T18:39:51Z")
Romeo and Juliet \_West Side Story MacBeth \_Ran Hamlet Midsummer’s Night Dream \_Kiss Me Kate ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/47 "2018-05-05T21:57:23Z")
> [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](#): > > Hey I saw that one as well. The day I saw it just as Cleopatra was “seeing” her dead lover Anthony a pigeon flew up and she made it part of the speech 🙂 A friend of mine who’s done a LOT of amateur theater joked that whenever someone in a Shakespeare play can’t remember a line, he or she should just say, “We shall speak of this anon,” and walk off. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2018, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/48 "2018-05-05T23:36:24Z")
One of the comedies I saw at Montana Shakespeare in the Parks was interrupted by an amorous pair of ducks waddling across the stage, which got incorporated into a speech about how foolish lovers were. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2018, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/49 "2018-05-06T02:56:38Z")
My exposure to live Shakespeare is limited to short performances I’ve seen at Renaissance Fairs. Enjoyable, but certainly lacking the experience of a full production. Travel tip for fans: If you find yourself in the Santa Cruz/Monterey area, plan to stop at Moss Landing to visit The Shakespeare Society of America’s [New Shakespeare Sanctuary](http://www.shakespearesocietyofamerica.org/). They have a big collection of everything Bard-related and a very enthusiastic staff. Well worth a visit. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2018, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/50 "2018-05-06T03:31:50Z")
The Tempest — summer stock, good job Twelfth Night — different summer stock, excellent Midsummer nights Dream — couple of okay HS productions As You Like It — a first rate college production by a third rate college, and a third rate college production by a first rate college, go figure Macbeth — another third rate production by a different first rate college I saw some Shakespeare play in Germany and in German, but I don’t recall which one. It was a long time ago! I’ll also throw in Reduced Shakespeare Company — excellent semipro production. And based on WS works: Kiss Me Kate, tremendous production on Broadway (3 days before the towers went down) West Side story — decent college production Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead — two good productions ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2018, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/51 "2018-05-09T20:29:09Z")
I’ve seen, that I can remember: **Romeo and Juliet MacBeth The Taming of the Shrew Titus Andronicus Twelfth Night** I know there was at least one more, **Much Ado About Nothing** maybe, or possibly **Merchant of Venice**. I used to get season tickets to the local University Theater, and they’d always have one Shakespeare play each year. **Twelfth Night** was a funky one; the entire cast was female. For a play about dressing up as the other gender, women falling in love with women dressed as men, girls dressed as boys pining after men…it was interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/52 "2018-05-10T04:08:29Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > …I’ll also throw in Reduced Shakespeare Company — excellent semipro production… Yes, and very funny! I’d forgotten them. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2018, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/53 "2018-05-10T12:49:15Z")
Twelfth Night ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2018, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/54 "2018-05-11T23:38:11Z")
If we’re including plays that are based on / adaptations of Shakespeare then here are 2 fun ones that I’ve seen _Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet)_, which starred Cherry Jones early in her career > **[Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodnight_Desdemona_(Good_Morning_Juliet))** > > Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) is a 1988 comedic play by Ann-Marie MacDonald in which Constance Ledbelly, a young English literature professor from Queen's University, goes on a subconscious journey of self-discovery. > Constance theorizes that Shakespeare's tragedies, Othello and Romeo and Juliet, were originally comedies, and believes the ideas for the plays originate from the indecipherable Gustav Manuscript. She believes this because, if a wise fool archetype were reinstated into ... _I Hate Hamlet_, starring Evan Handler, also relatively early in his career. I saw it before Handler left the production, not wanting to put up with Nicol Williamson’s abusive behavior > **[I Hate Hamlet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Hate_Hamlet)** > > I Hate Hamlet is a comedy-drama written in 1991 by Paul Rudnick. > Set in John Barrymore's old apartment in New York City – at the time, the author's real-life home – the play follows successful television actor Andrew Rally as he struggles with taking on the dream role of Hamlet, dealing with a girlfriend who is keeping a firm grip on her chastity, and playing host to the ghost of John Barrymore, who, clothed as Hamlet, has come back to earth for the sole purpose of convincing Rally to play the... About _Macbeth_, the name of Shakespeare’s play and character is spelled without a capital B, which can be confusing since there are so many Scots names like MacDougal as well as people around with the name who do spell it MacBeth. > ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2018, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/55 "2018-08-06T00:32:19Z")
Richard 1.5 It’s intermission. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2018, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/56 "2018-08-06T01:46:07Z")
Since this thread was last active, I’ve added _Troilius and Cressida_ to my list. I couldn’t find fault with the performance, but the play itself seemed unfinished: The bits with Ulysses, Achilles, Ajax, and Hector seemed worthy of the Bard, but the titular romance felt tacked on and uninspired. And even with the dance numbers they added, the whole thing was only about 85 minutes long. Coincidentally, I just got in the door from another performance by the same troupe, but that was _12th Night_, which I’ve seen a few times before (though again, this was a very good performance of it). ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2018, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/57 "2018-08-06T03:02:59Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Richard 1.5 > It’s intermission. I’m home. The performance was excellent. I realized I didn’t know this play at all. I knew the hunchback, and the “my horse, my horse…” bit, but for some reason I thought of Richard as a pitiable character. Maybe he’s played that was sometimes, but in the production I saw he was a right proper bastard. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2018, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/58 "2018-08-06T03:46:59Z")
One of my favourite summer activities is taking a picnic and going to watch Shakespeare in the Park. Velociraptor isn’t a huge fan, but he comes along because I make him lol. So let me think what I have seen live… Taming of the Shrew (this is the first one I saw, I was probably 10?) Midsummer’s Night Dream As You Like It Romeo and Juliet Much Ado About Nothing (I’m not 100% sure I’ve seen this one live, it’s one of my favourites so I’ve watched the movie many times but I’m sure I must have.) Macbeth Hamlet This year is Two Gentlemen of Verona, I’m going in the next week or so because the run ends pretty quickly here! I’ve also sat and watched some interesting selections. Last summer while on hiatus because their usual place was taken over by a festival they did a montage of Victors, Villains and Vixens at a different locale. I also watched a different group do a similar winding of all the romances as a guy trying to sell books (I think… it was awhile ago and I only caught some of it because Velociraptor was small and very active) > [@Filbert](#): > > Only Romeo and Juliet, Shitfaced version. Twice. > > Not sure how much that counts. Apparently our Shakespeare troupe (they only do Shakespeare or Shakespeare themed plays) is having a Hamlet theme this year and one of them is Hammered Hamlet where half the cast starts out the play by doing shots. I’m curious how that would be… ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2018, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517/59 "2018-08-06T04:05:17Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I’m home. > > The performance was excellent. I realized I didn’t know this play at all. I knew the hunchback, and the “my horse, my horse…” bit, but for some reason I thought of Richard as a pitiable character. Maybe he’s played that was sometimes, but in the production I saw he was a right proper bastard. I should add, I suppose, that they didn’t have Richard all hunched over and misshapen, just a bit of a limp. The “rudely stamp’d”, “deformed, unfinish’d”, and cannot “strut before a wanton ambling nymph” Richard looked like [this](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0846687/mediaviewer/rm1746702080) > [@Flutterby](#): > > This year is Two Gentlemen of Verona, I’m going in the next week or so because the run ends pretty quickly here! They did that one in Boston a few years ago, re-imagined to be in '60s, Rat-Pack-era Las Vegas. It mostly worked. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-plays-the-thing-how-many-of-the-bards-plays-have-you-seen-live/813517.md?page=2)