William Shakespeare

Presents the text of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," a comedy in which two sets of lovers, lost in the woods, get caught up in a dispute between the fairy king and queen, along with a group of local thespians.

Believed to have been written in 1591, William Shakespeare's "Richard III" is one of the bards first plays, the first installment in a tetralogy of plays which includes "Henry IV, Part I," "Henry IV, Part II," and "Henry V." One of the longest of Shakespeare's plays and consequently rarely performed unabridged, "Richard III" is the story of the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of King Richard III of England. The play begins with...

First published in 1602 by William Shakespeare, The Merry Wives of Windsor features the popular figure Sir John Falstaff, who first appeared in Henry IV, Part 1 and Part 2. Some speculate that Merry Wives was written at the behest of Queen Elizabeth I, who wanted to see Falstaff in love; and that Shakespeare was forced to rush its creation as a result, and so it remains one of Shakespeare's lesser-regarded plays. The play revolves around two intertwined...

In this extraordinary play, one of Shakespeare's finest tragedies, a once-great general finds himself torn between his duty to the Roman Empire and his passionate attachment to Cleopatra, the alluring "Queen of the Nile." In depicting the collision of two contrasting cultures - Antony's world of political conniving and the hedonistic pleasures of Cleopatra's court - the playwright portrays a timeless paradox of human nature, the quest for seemingly...

First published in 1609, "The Sonnets" of William Shakespeare are a collection of 154 loosely connected 14 line poems. Considered by many to be among some of the greatest love poetry ever written much debate surrounds the context of the poetry. It has been suggested that the work may be semi-autobiographical but no real evidence firmly supports this notion. The themes of the poems contained within this volume are varied and include such subjects as...

Originally published in Shakespeare's "First Folio" in 1623, "All's Well That Ends Well" is a fascinating play that defies classification, an unusual work that blends the comic with the tragic. The play tells the story of Helena, a penniless worker at the Palace of Rousillion, and her cunning adventures to wed Bertram, the prosperous son of the count. Bertram goes to Paris to attend the King of France and Helena follows and uses her cunning and charm...

Originally published in the First Folio of 1623, "Measure for Measure" is William Shakespeare's play which was likely written sometime in 1603 or 1604. The play begins with Vincentio, the Duke of Vienna, who leaves the government in charge of the authoritarian justice, Angelo, when he departs the city on a diplomatic mission. Lord Angelo believes that there is too much debauchery in the city and seeks to more strictly enforce laws against certain...

Henry VIII is one of the few of Shakespeare's plays thought to have been written with a collaborator. It was initially published in the First Folio under Shakespeare's name only, but in 1850 James Spedding, an English author and expert on the works of Francis Bacon, suggested that the play was a collaboration with John Fletcher, a playwright who later replaced Shakespeare in the King's Men acting company. Modern scholars mostly tend to agree, though...

Suspicious King Leontes of Sicily accuses his pregnant wife Hermione of having an affair with his best friend, Polixenes, the King of Bohemia. Enraged at the alleged betrayal, he orders Polixenes poisoned, Hermione imprisoned, and her newborn daughter banished, leaving him a broken man. Sixteen years later, Perdita, the adopted daughter of a shepherd, falls in love with young Prince Florizel, much to the dismay of the boy's father, Polixenes. He disapproves...

The great Roman general, Titus Andronicus, returns home after fighting Rome's enemies for the last 10 years. He brings along his captives, Tamora, Queen of the Goths, her three sons and Aaron the Moor. Having lost 21 of his 25 sons in the conflict, Titus decides to sacrifice one of Tamora's sons, following Roman customs. He then offers Tamora as a slave to the new Roman emperor, Saturninus. Meanwhile, Saturninus promises Titus to make his daughter...