Several resources may prove useful to you as you read through the complete works. Here’s a handy list:
- Kanopy.com is free from many library systems in the U.S. It has all of the BBC Shakespeare productions from the early 1980s. JustWatch also helps you find information about where to find films you want to stream.
- The University of Texas offers recommendations for how to split up parts if you’re reading a play with multiple people.
- For the Shakespeare 2020 Project, here is an ICS file for electronic calendars and a shareable/exportable Google calendar.
- Folger Digital Texts features the complete works online.
- Globe Player, offered by Shakespeare’s Globe in London, offers several production videos for rent or purchase.
Books
- Asimov’s Guide to Shakespeare: A Guide to Understanding and Enjoying the Works of Shakespeare, by Isaac Asimov
- This Is Shakespeare, by Emma Smith
Histories
- Shakespeare’s Kings: The Great Plays and the History of England in the Middle Ages: 1337–1485, by John Julius Norwich
- Shakespeare’s Holinshed: Holinshed’s Chronicles, Selected, Edited, and Annotated, by Richard Hosley
- Shakespeare’s History Plays, by E.M.W. Tillyard
Happy reading!
I couldn’t find the BBC Shakespeare productions on Kanopy. Can anyone give me info on how to find them?
Did you find a library best you and add your library card? If you did, sorry… YouTube often has full audio versions.
Library *near* you.
Much excite!
Many thanks for the Arkangel and Kanopy resources; one of my favorite former students and I were just talking about our favorite performances, and I’ve had severely inadequate exposure to the RSC. As you say in another post (and another place), making time to access/afford/attend performances can be challenging.
The Arkangel recordings are just a superb adjunct to reading the plays. Loved listening to Twelfth Night after reading the play.
Thanks for the resources, but I have a concern about copyright on the uploaded Arkangel Shakespeare audio recordings.
That’s a webpage that was recommended to me by a group member, so I honestly don’t know anything about the copyright details.
Unfortunately the The Arkangel Shakespeare is no longer available, which is a pity.
Was listening to the plays on Arkangel but it seems to have been taken down. Can you please recommend another site/app that does the plays so well. Thanks
I’m not totally sure, though I have heard the Arkangel recordings are available through Audible.
Methinks he doth protest too much. Henry VI ii was a grand read; lots of vibrant dialog rife with political subtext. Difficult to play no doubt, as constructing consistent character arcs based upon so much double-talk would require much coordination. One can only imagine that endless backstage improvisations that would help cement things.
Of course Henry VI often gets badly mauled by the dramaturgy trying to extract the greatest hits, but much joy was had at this end of the process.