In some random bit of spammy email marketing I saw the term “hidden gem” (and subsequent discussion about how to use this term in your marketing :)).  Well, this week I learned that I like Coriolanus much more than I thought I would.  It’s easy to talk about Hamlet and Lear and Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet for years on end.  Something like Coriolanus doesn’t get nearly as much love.

So, let’s talk “hidden gems.”  Which of Shakespeare’s plays is not commonly known, that should get more love?  The Great Tragedies are off limits – everybody’s seen and discussed those a thousand times.   No Dream, no Much Ado About Nothing.  We all know about those gems.

What else ya got?

How’s that for a title?

Actually, Mr. Pacino is talking about Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline doing a read-through of Romeo and Juliet this past week.  It’s actually a pretty cool idea when you think about it – can a 62yr old actress play a 13yr old girl?  Absolutely.

Pacino was in the headlines again talking about Free Shakespeare  and how, “When I couldn’t afford
anything, I was sitting there seeing George C. Scott in ‘The Merchant of Venice,’” he told Speakeasy on the lawn outside the Delacorte. “It’s Joe Papp. He was a radical and he was a visionary, and I loved him so much. It was just great being around him. You could see 50 years later, it’s still going on.”

Go read that second article in particular (it has more Pacino), and try to do it *not* in Pacino’s famous growly voice. It’s so much more entertaining if you read it in character. Random shouts of HOO-AH! are not required.

I know I’m a bit behind on some stories.  Bear with me while I play catch-up?  You’re the best.

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of the Bard’s old stomping grounds — ruins of a famous 16th-century theater, buried below the streets of modern London. Known in its heyday as the Curtain Theatre, it’s often been eclipsed by its more famous younger sibling, the Globe.

I saw a whole bunch of links about this one but I’m going to go with the NPR story because you can get the story in whatever way work best for you – audio or transcript, with lots of pictures.

On the one hand I agree that it is cool to have this piece of history.  But I just have to admit, archaeology is not my thing.  They mention “one of the nicest things they found” was a bit of a pot being used as a mousetrap.

…

Umm…..oh.  Yay?  I guess if you can’t draw a straight line between a thing and Shakespeare (and his works), it’s just not my cup of tea.  Your mileage may vary.

I tweeted yesterday about the rumor going around that a fourth season of Slings & Arrows might be in the works.  Here’s a link to an interview with one of the writers where he says it is, quote “Well, it’s more than a dream, I’ll tell you that much. I’ll stop now, before I’m hoisted by my own petard.

For those that have never seen it, the short-lived Canadian TV series takes place backstage at a fictional Shakespeare theatre festival.  If you’ve not seen it, you must drop everything and go watch all 3 seasons.  This is not just another random drama that happened to throw some Shakespeare into the background.  This is a show *about* Shakespeareans *performing* Shakespeare.  The jokes are Shakespeare jokes.  You’ve got your overly dramatic Ophelia who throws herself into the river when she’s upset.  You’ve got to the bad director who SET THE TEMPEST IN NAZI GERMANY!  You’ve got an insane director who sees ghosts.  And most of that is just in the first season.

If you have seen it, what do you think of a fourth season?  I mean, they kind of swung for the fences in the first three seasons, tackling Hamlet, Macbeth and King Lear (with a bit of Romeo and Juliet thrown in for good measure).  How do you follow that up?