Michael Flachmann’s unique and intimate acquaintance with the way plays are created and performed has given him unprecedented insider access to a wide range of fascinating information. In this collection, he brings Shakespeare’s plays to life as he discusses their meanings and shares the challenges of performing them for a modern audience.

Contents List of FiguresIntroductionThe Birth of a FestivalPart 1/Dramaturgy     Dream Making in Cedar City     The Merchant of Ashland     Rehearsing the Audience     Designing the Script     Cymbeline in the Wooden O     The Kindest Cut of AllPart 2/The Comedies     The Errors of Comedy     “Touches of Sweet Harmony”     The Forest of Arden     “Swear by Your Double Self”     Festive Comedy     The Sins of the Father     The Two Comic Plots of Verona     My Daughter, My Ducats     “This is Illyria, Lady”     Love’s Labor’s Won     The Taming of the Script     Much Ado about SomethingPart 3/The Histories     Parrot, Parody, and Paronomasia     Historical Narratives     Richard III and the Theatricality of Evil     Poetic HistoryPart 4/The Tragedies     The Medieval Heritage of Iago     Family Matters     Lear’s Mythic Journey     Biological Finance     The Scottish Play     The Art of Dying Well     All “My Travels’ History”     The Rhythm of the KissPart 5/The Romances     All Corners of the World     This Rough Magic     “It Is Required You Do Awake Your Faith”Part 6/Shakespeare’s Contemporaries and Other Playwrights     Food for Thought     Awl’s Well That Ends Well     The Heart of the Matter     Invalids, Real and Imaginary     A Modern Jacobean ComedyPart 7/Acting Shakespeare: Roundtable Discussions with Actors and Directors     Measure for Measure at the 2003 Utah Shakespeare Festival     Henry IV, Part 1 at the 2004 Utah Shakespeare Festival     Romeo and Juliet at the 2005 Utah Shakespeare Festival     Hamlet at the 2006 Utah Shakespeare Festival     King Lear at the 2007 Utah Shakespeare Festival     Othello at the 2008 Utah Shakespeare Festival     Henry V at the 2009 Utah Shakespeare FestivalAcknowledgmentsNotes