OLLI0155 - Reading Shakespeare with Film

Course Description

This six-week course will explore the plays of William Shakespeare by use of the text and scenes from films depicting the plays. Students will see how reading Shakespeare with film aids in understanding the text and in enhancing the artistic experience. Plays to be discussed will include The Merchant of Venice (“When Mercy Seasons Justice”); Macbeth (“The Moral Agency of Humankind”); King Lear (“The Nothingness of Forgiveness”); Hamlet (“Soliloquy Standing Still”); and Richard II, The First Part of Henry IV, The Second Part of Henry IV and Henry V (“The Weight of the Crown – Part 1”). Actors performing and speaking Shakespeare on film include Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, Ian McKellan, Judi Dench, Patrick Stewart, Paul Scofield, Ben Whishaw, Tom Hiddleston, Simon Russell Beale, Derek Jacobi, and Kenneth Branagh. This course will be recorded.