Incorporating definitive text and cutting-edge notes from "William Shakespeare: Complete Works"--the first authoritative, modernized edition of Shakespeare's First Folio in more than 300 years--this remarkable series of individual plays from the world-famous Royal Shakespeare Company is edited by two brilliant, younger generation Shakespeare scholars. Combining Jonathan Bate's insightful critical analysis with Eric Rasmussen's renowned textual expertise, these stunning paperbacks set a new standard in Shakespearean literature for the 21st century. Each edition includes a new section that explores the play's theatrical history and features interviews with today's leading directors and theatrical professionals.
Generally believed to be the last play written solely by Shakespeare, The Tempest centers on a banished noble who uses sorcery to confront his foes. In this play, Shakespeare offers some of his most insightful meditations on themes ranging from vengeance and forgiveness to nature and nurture. Under the editorial supervision of Jonathan Bate and Eric Rasmussen, two of today's most accomplished Shakespearean scholars, this Modern Library series incorporates definitive texts and authoritative notes from William Shakespeare: Complete Works. Each play includes an Introduction, as well as an overview of Shakespeare's theatrical career; commentary on past and current productions based on interviews with leading directors, actors, and designers; scene-by-scene analysis; key facts about the work; a chronology of Shakespeare's life and times; and black-and-white illustrations. Ideal for students, theater professionals, and general readers, these modern and accessible editions set a new standard in Shakespearean literature for the twenty-first century. Praise for William Shakespeare: Complete Works "A remarkable edition, one that makes Shakespeare's extraordinary accomplishment more vivid than ever."
-James Shapiro, professor, Columbia University, bestselling author of A Year in the Life of Shakespeare: 1599 "Two eminent Shakespeareans . . . have applied modern editing techniques and recent scholarship to correct and update the First Folio. . . . Superb."
-The New York Times "A feast of literary and historical information."
-The Wall Street Journal "I look forward to using it over many years, enjoying Bate's perceptive comments, trusting Rasmussen's textual scholarship."
-Peter