Tip #2 Watch a Production

Let me make this perfectly clear. Watching a film or live production of a Shakespeare play is not cheating. In fact, it’s actually more appropriate than just reading it. Remember, these are plays. Shakespeare didn’t write them to be read; he wrote them to be performed on stage. Reading them is actually less authentic.

And a good production will help you follow the story. Just listening to an actor who understands what he’s saying speak the lines will make all the difference. And facial expressions, physical gestures, even props and sets will all help the story make more sense to you.

When I took my first Shakespeare class in college, the first assignment was to read one of Shakespeare’s less-well-known plays. I think it was Coriolanus. I got about three pages in and started to literally panic. I had no idea what was going on. Shakespeare was too hard for me! I’m not smart enough to take a college class on Shakespeare!

Then a friend suggested I go to the library where they had recordings of stage productions of all Shakespeare’s plays. I took the book with me. I watched the production and followed along in the book. It was amazing—I was able to get the story much better that way.

So, do that. Shakespeare’s plays are filmed and performed everywhere over and over. Get a good one.

For Hamlet, I recommend this version starring and directed by Kenneth Branaugh. If I recall they stick in a brief but gratuitous nude/love scene in it, but otherwise it’s excellent.

You can also watch this one starring Mel Gibson and Glen Close. It’s good, but it’s heavily edited. They take out various lines and scenes. The Branaugh version sticks to the original script.