#TBT: The World of Shakespeare

So, believe it or not, my first introduction to the world of Shakespeare was not through Romeo & Juliet. No, my first look into Shakespeare was through one of his comedies. My 12 year old self was so fascinated watching Kenneth Branagh’s Much Ado About Nothing (1993). I was so entertained with Beatrice and Benedick’s witty banter. The back and forth of their dialog intrigued me, had me in stitches, and I didn’t need translation, which surprised me for a few minutes and then had me wishing we all talked that way.

So yes, my first experience with Shakespeare was a film adaptation and not in a classroom reading through the play.

Unfortunately, I haven’t had the pleasure of watching a live Shakespeare play, yet. But I have been in love with Shakespeare since I watched Hero and Claudio’s story unfold, since Beatrice snapped at Benedict, since a 12-year old girl spent a lazy afternoon channel surfing and stumbled upon this beautiful story. I ended up borrowing the play in book format at our local library.

Romeo & Juliet was the next and that was during my high school freshmen English class. And I couldn’t stop. I love every story I’ve read, which isn’t all of Shakespeare but enough to keep me going. I watched the Leonardo di Caprio & Claire Danes adaptation. I’ve read Julius Ceaser, Hamlet, and MacBeth as school assignments, truly enjoyed every minute of it. I’ve read Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for fun and I’m currently reading The Twelfth Night. I don’t think I’ll ever get bored of these works. I plan to read all of them in time, but I hope one day I can actually watch this on stage. 

As Gale Forman stated in her book Just One Day, Shakespeare wrote these works to be presented on stage and I intend to accomplish that someday.