The Comedy of Errors (Shakespeare Project Lecture I) (Patreon)

‘I to the world am like a drop of water that in the ocean seeks another drop...’

The Comedy of Errors begins our exploration of the Shakespeare mythos and our tour through the great writer’s canon.

Topics of discussion include: Shakespeare's childhood and young adulthood, moving from Stratford to London, the medicinal value of farce, and how to find ourselves in great literature.

Timestamps:

• 0:00 the Shakespeare story begins
• 1:19 Shakespeare’s childhood
• 5:00 his first exposure to theatre
• 8:36 what did Shakespeare read?
• 9:44 “little Latin and less Greek”
• 11:15 Shakespeare the family man
• 12:44 from Stratford to London
• 13:55 a picture of young Shakespeare
• 15:50 Shakespeare’s early plays
• 17:45 on overlapping composition
• 18:40 the ‘upstart crow’
• 20:00 The Comedy of Errors
• 23:00 the value of farce
• 25:00 comedy, time, seasons
• 27:32 on bearing beatings
• 30:00 should we trust our sight?
• 32:00 questing for ourselves
• 34:55 finding your one insight
• 37:33 a drop in the ocean
• 40:00 questions for you

Recommended Resources:

• Audio Dramatisation: My personal favourite version of The Comedy of Errors is this dramatised audio production from Arkangel Shakespeare with the magnificent David Tennant.  
• What did Shakespeare sound like? As we're aiming to develop a deep acquaintance with the bard, you might find it fascinating to think about how the man actually spoke. Ben Crystal delivers the famous 'To be, or not to be' speech in Original Pronunciation. Listen and marvel here. 
• Shakespeare's Globe: For those of you producing the play in the theatre of your mind, you may find it useful to take notes on staging from this splendid production at the Globe Theatre.

Questions for You:

1) What line, passage, or idea from this play most resonated with you?

2) How did you feel about the writing, characters, and story? Would you be able to offer a personal grading for this work?

Happy reading, Bardolators!