Through the lens of Trevor Nunn’s 1996 film and the 2012 Globe Production of Twelfth Night (which we discuss in episode 8), we ask: What is the difference between doing Shakespeare on film vs stage? What do we look for in a good production of each? And what can you only do on stage or screen?
Minutes
00:00–0:50 Intro
00:50–10:10 When you hear Shakespeare on film, what does that mean to you?
10:10–14:36 The role of the director in stage vs film
14:36–23:50 The role of the audience
23:50–26:55 The control you have on film…and the influence of a theatre background on filmmaking choices
26:55–34:10 Did you find the revelations of character more subtle or more aggressive in the film or the stage production?
34:10-34:45 Outro
Credits
Host: Alex Heeney (@bwestcineaste)
Guests: Dan Beaulieu (@DanBeauKnows), Caitlin Merriman (@CaitlinSnark), Craig Ruttan (@crut)
Sound recordist and editor: Cam White (@JediDusk)
Episodes referenced
Episode 2: Henry V on film: Branagh vs Sharrock
Episode 3: Justin Kurzel’s Macbeth
Episode 4: The films of Romeo and Juliet: Luhrmann vs Zeffirelli
Episode 5: Fiennes vs. Hiddleston Coriolanus
Episode TBA: Much Ado About Nothing – still to be aired
Resources
Check out Dan Beaulieu’s Shakespeare podcast, No Holds Bard. Listen to full episodes online here. You can also follow the podcast on Twitter @NoHoldsBardCast. Dan’s co-host Kevin Condardo will be appearing on a future episode of the 21st Folio, so watch for that!
Read Alex Heeney’s Spectre review at Seventh Row, which discusses the influence of Mendes’ King Lear production on the film.
Read Alex Heeney’s review of Kurzel’s Macbeth at Seventh Row, which discusses how it fails to engage with Shakespeare’s text.