The King of France gives Helena the hand of any man she wants in marriage, but the one she chooses, Bertram, flees to Tuscany, and she must use her wits to get him back; this text includes background on the play's sources and stage history, as well as a textual analysis.

Presents William Shakespeare's comedy "The Two Gentlemen of Verona," along with explanatory and textual notes, an introduction on Shakespeare, and critical commentaries.

Presents the original text of Shakespeare's play side by side with a modern version, with marginal notes and explanations and full descriptions of each character.

Classic Books Library presents this new beautiful edition of William Shakespeare's play, "Titus Andronicus" (1594). This edition features a specially commissioned new biography of William Shakespeare. Unlike Shakespeare's other plays based on Roman histories, the story of "Titus Andronicus" is a fictional work. The play dramatises the gruesome events that take place in the battle for a nation between the brutal Roman general Titus and his powerful...

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...

Presents the unabridged text of Shakespeare's classic tragedy in which Othello, a Moorish general, is led by a jealous and evil ensign to believe his wife, Desdemona, has been unfaithful. Includes explanatory footnotes.

Prospero, the deposed Duke of Milan, uses his skill at controlling natural forces to cause the shipwreck of his old opponents, forcing them to seek refuge on the island where he and his daughter Miranda have been living in exile, and setting the stage for Miranda to fall in love with Ferdinand, the prince of Naples. Includes explanatory notes, plot summaries, critical essay, and illustrations.

Presents the play and discusses its sources, the presentation, staging, and stage history.

Planning a school or amateur Shakespeare production? The best way to experience the plays is to perform them, but getting started can be a challenge: The complete plays are too long and complex, while scene selections or simplified language are too limited. "The 30-Minute Shakespeare" is a new series of abridgements that tell the "story" of each play from start to finish while keeping the beauty of Shakespeare's language intact. Specific stage directions...

A guide to reading and understanding William Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing" which includes the complete unabridged text, detailed explanations of difficult words and passages, a synopsis of the plot, summaries of individual scenes, and notes on the main characters.