Shakespeare Classics

At the center of each of the four great Shakespearean tragedies - Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, and Othello - is a powerful figure who is led to destruction by a fatal character flaw. In the case of Macbeth it is ambition. Initially a valiant warrior, and staunch servant of his regal overlord Duncan, Macbeth succumbs to the lure of absolute political domination, which leads to murder, revolt, and comprehensive defeat.

Award-winning drama from SmartPass. The play is unabridged, with guided description to set the scene and fill in visual moments.

Rómeó er í öngum sínum yfir stúlku sem vill ekkert með hann hafa, svo vinur hans tekur hann með sér í veislu í von um að aðrar fallegar stúlkur muni leiða hugann frá henni. Það tekst svo sannarlega. Þegar Rómeó læsir augunum við unga Júlíu er ást við fyrstu sýn. Til allrar óhamingju uppgötva Rómeó og Júlía brátt að þau tilheyra fjölskyldum sem eiga í ættardeilum og verða þau að halda rómantík sinni leyndri. Frægasta ástarsaga sem skrifuð hefur verið, Rómeó og Júlía, er vísun í bæði hreina sanna ást og harmleik.

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, encounters his father's ghost. When he learns that his uncle, now King and married to his mother, was responsible for the death of his royal father, he sets out to avenge the murder.

Bertram's indifference to Helena forces her to use subterfuge in order to comply with the seemingly impossible demands that he places on their engagement. Keep an ear out for the clown - he has the honor of delivering some of the play's best lines!

The young Danish Prince, Hamlet, is vexed by a trip home to Denmark from school in Germany, to attend his father, the king's funeral. Upon arriving at home, Hamlet has discovered that his mother has already become married to the former King's brother, Hamlet's uncle. What's more, the man has declared himself to be King of Denmark even though Hamlet was the true and rightful heir. Hamlet is enraged by this deception, and immediately suspects foul play in his father's murder.

By clever scheming, friends encourage Beatrice and Benedict's love affair, while Don Juan plots to ruin Hero and Claudio's chances of finding happiness together.

The predominant theme in this Shakespearean tragedy, believed to have been written in about 1603, is jealousy and the destruction it causes when allowed to run rampant. It features one of Shakespeare's most compelling villains, Iago, who skillfully manipulates his commander, Othello, into believing that he has been betrayed by his wife, Desdemona, and his closest friend, Cassio.

A celebration of one of the world's best loved actors, Sir John Gielgud. Here you can hear him perform his classic roles and read some of his favourite poetry.

The Poetry of Kissing. In many ways the title says it all. Kissing is Poetry. The kiss is perhaps the most loving and intimate moment there is. It is amongst our most soothing and treasured memories. This volume is not about the kiss of a mother’s to her child’s scraped knee, or the father to his baby’s head as he settles down to sleep. No, when the poets here talk of the kiss, they describe the longing and desire, the want and hunger to be part of something that so connects them to another.

Enjoy these classic love poems by authors you may know and poets you may be meeting for the first time. The journey begins in beauty, endures trials, and ends with a hint of past wonders. Make this a Valentine's Day treat or a special experience for any day.

Ever miss a prime opportunity for a snappy comeback or a perfect putdown? We all have, kicking ourselves later when we think of what we could have said. The well-aimed insult was never in better shape than when Shakespeare mastered the art of defining dramatic conflict with rapier wit rather than swordplay.

This anthology looks back over some of the great love affairs of literary history. It includes readings of poetry, letters and scenes from fiction written by British poets and authors from Shakespearian times to the twentieth century. Here are real-life romantic couples, such as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Keats and Fanny Brawne, Lord Byron and Lady Caroline Lamb, Oscar Wilde and Lord Alfred Douglas, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning.

The English language has grown into the world’s pre-dominant spoken language, containing over one million words. Its sources are rich and diverse, having absorbed words from other cultures and times without hesitation. With such talents as Shakespeare, Keats, Shelley, Kipling, Blake, and many other classic poets using this most flexible language to render their thoughts and visions, it is no wonder that the beauty and reach of English entrances us.

Das Beste vom Besten der Literatur von einem der größten österreichischen Schauspieler grandios vorgetragen...

Internationally acclaimed actor and Tony Award winner, Alan Cumming performs Shakespeare’s most important and beloved royal speeches, including "To be or not to be", "Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow", "Now is the winter of our discontent", "O that this too sullied flesh would melt" and more. All the speeches were personally chosen by Cumming. Michael Boyd adds, "Cumming brings to Shakespeare the lyricism of a genuine singer, the sharp edge of a wicked comic, and the embodied intelligence of a major actor."

『閣下、どうか嫉妬にはご用心を』
人を死に至らしめるものとは。勇敢な戦士オセローは、保守的な国際都市ヴェニスにおいて、その肌の色から異人として受け入れられていた。数々の武勇がその街での彼の居場所を作っていき、その誉れは褐色の肌の色を問わずヴェニスの民によって認められていたはずだった。
しかしその裏に嫉妬に喘ぐ数々のヴェニスの軍人がいたことも事実。いつの世も地位と名声を誰もが欲し、誰もが自らこそがそれに相応しいと思う。力で上り詰めたオセローにとって、剣や拳や毒が人を殺める武器であったのに対し、イアーゴーが用いた武器はただ、柔らかいハンカチと嫉妬の心であった。この物語が本当に全てイアーゴーによって練られた復讐の筋書き通りだったのだろうか。否、全ての登場人物の心の裏にある欲が織り成す猜疑のレースは、ただその引き金を策士の指が引いただけに過ぎないのではないだろうか。 ・Charles and Mary Lamb's TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE: MACBETH edited by Yu Okubo translated by Yuka Akune

読み聞かせでもなく、サウンドドラマでもない。オーディオブックならではの圧倒的な表現力と、必要最小限の演出。誰もが知っている"はず"のシェイクスピア作品をダイジェストにして続々お届けします。 覇権争う二名家が、ところは花のヴェローナにて、積もる恨みもまたも新たに、血で血を洗う内輪もめ。憎む両家の恋人同士、幸も薄くその身を滅ぼす。やがて悲しき恋の果て、その死をもって恨みを葬る。死の影まとう恋の道行き、両家の恨みのつのるさま、子らが果てねば解けはせぬ。今より話が小一時間、みなさま耳をしばし拝借、至らぬところはご容赦あれ。 ※本商品はラム姉弟『シェイクスピア物語』をもとに、シェイクスピアの原典にある詩を加え、再編集しています。 ・Charles and Mary Lamb's TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE: ROMEO AND JULIET

読み聞かせでもなく、サウンドドラマでもない。オーディオブックならではの圧倒的な表現力と、必要最小限の演出。誰もが知っている"はず"のシェイクスピア作品をダイジェストにして続々お届けします。いいのか、いやそれとも、悩ましい。いずれが気高き心のありようか。つらい定めと矢弾を堪え忍ぶか、荒波に立ち向かい、鳧《けり》を付けるか。死とは眠り、ただそれだけのもの。眠れば、そう、胸の痛みは消える。体につきまとう千の苦しみさえも。それこそ願ってもない幕引きだ。死は眠り、となれば夢も見よう。それでは困る、死の眠りについた時、いったいどんな夢を見るというのだ。この世のしがらみから抜け出たとて、それがわからねば、この足も動かぬ。※本商品はラム姉弟『シェイクスピア物語』をもとに、シェイクスピアの原典にある詩(および森鴎外訳「オフェリヤの歌」)を加え、再編集しています。・Charles and Mary Lamb's TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE: HAMLET, PRINCE OF DENMARK edited by Yu Okubo translated by Yuka Akune

This remarkable collection contains some of William Shakespeare's most famous speeches, soliloquies, and sonnets, as performed by Sir John Gielgud, the preeminent Shakespearean actor of the 20th century. Ages of Man is a perfect introduction to Shakespeare for the uninitiated and a thrilling treat for aficionados.