Welcome, Hamlet Isn't Dead-Ites!
David Andrew Laws here, co-founder, artistic director, and director of education of Hamlet Isn't Dead. If you've come this far, you either took the red pill, both pills at once, or have no idea at all what I'm referencing. In which case, go down to the Bloxbooster and rent you a copy of The Matrix. Immediately.Also rent Pretty in Pink. I know exactly what you're thinking, but it's just a brilliant film. When Ducky's dancin' around that record shop, it's just...oh!
Either way, you've decided to see how far the Shakespeare hole goeth. And here you are.
As you very well know then, we're about to venture on a journey through time and space, through the psyche of Mr. William Shakespeare and his brilliant works. Our attempt will be to tackle the shows one by one in the order it is most likely that they were written. The chronology we have chosen to utilize looks a little something like this:
Play Year(s) Theorized
The Two Gentlemen of Verona ~1589
The Taming of the Shrew ~1590
Henry VI part II ~1591
Henry VI part III ~1591
Henry VI part I ~1591-92
Titus Andronicus ~1592
Richard III ~1592-93
Comedy of Errors ~1594
Love's Labour's Lost ~1594-95
Richard II ~1595
Romeo & Juliet ~1595
A Midsummer Night's Dream ~1595
King John ~1596
The Merchant of Venice ~1596
Henry IV part I ~1596-97
Henry IV part II ~1596-97
The Merry Wives of Windsor ~1597-98
Much Ado About Nothing ~1598-99
Henry V ~1599
Julius Caeser ~1599
As You Like It ~1599-1600
Hamlet ~1600-1601
Twelfth Night ~1601
Troilus and Cressida ~1602
Measure for Measure ~1603-04
Othello ~1603-04
King Lear ~1604-05
Timon of Athens ~1605-06
Macbeth ~1606
Antony and Cleopatra ~1606
All's Well That End's Well ~1607
Pericles ~1607
Coriolanus ~1608
The Winter's Tale ~1609-10
Cymbeline ~1610-11
The Tempest ~1610-11
Henry VIII ~1613
The Two Noble Kinsmen ~1613
Now I'm certain that most of these are wrong. In fact, I'd bet diamonds to didgeridoos that more than half of them are incorrect, but it doesn't matter. What matters about Shakespeare has never been his accuracy. In foreign languages, geography, countless subjects, Shakespeare writes and is wrong. The most current example in my mind (as we're about to undertake The Two Gentlemen of Verona) is that the characters theoretically travel from Verona to Milan by boat. Neither of these cities, however, are port cities; each is land-locked. Some scholars argue that there could have been waterways from the two towns during the time, but then they make scrunchy faces and concede that Shakespeare would have had virtually no way of knowing that.
Regardless, this is the order in which we will be presenting the works of Shakespeare. We love Shakespeare. You should. If you don't...you know what, if you don't, go return that copy of The Matrix, rent Franco Zeffirelli's version of Romeo and Juliet instead. That sh*t is tight. That shot. Is what I meant. Of Romeo's butt. No, wait!
I do hope you'll continue to check back on this blog as we work diligently to unearth more and more of Shakespeare every day. I definitely cannot guarantee that I'll post daily, but I'll try to do so at least weekly. And, yes, I realize a lot of this is information you could just look up on the Wikipedia, or already know in your big, dumb, smart-ol' head. But I like to think that I present it in a suitably light fashion that maybe...maybe just brings a smile to your face....
"Like dis!"
Next post, we'll brush up on a bit of the early part of Shakespeare's biography. Don't study or you'll already know it all and I'll be pointless. See you all soon!
Ever Your Faithful Servant,
-David Andrew Laws
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