Antony And Cleopatra

[poliphilo]

Antony and Cleopatra is one of the sleekest, fastest plays in the canon- and none suffered more from the post Jacobean slide into mere theatrical spectacle. It's a political thriller. It absolutely doesn't need to be slowed down with sphinxes and sea-fights and processions. There's a lot of it- a lot of text- but none of it asking to be cut. Scenes are mostly short- with people habitually walking on mid-conversation and being brief and gnomic. We dodge about the world (alas for the unitities) like we' re in a James Bond movie. I read it last night and was gripped. Bedtime came and went. 

It's also one of the most beautiful. I can't think of any other which maintains such altitude for so long a stretch as Antony and Cleopatra does in its final scenes.  The others have their great moments, their poetic flights. Antony and Cleopatra has its great half hour.

Comments

[steepholm.livejournal.com]

I love that play too - but also "unitities", which ought to be the mammary equivalent of a monobrow.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Thanks for pointing out the typo. In honour of your comment
I propose to leave it unchanged :)

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

Totally unrelated. I posted this link for you on my own LJ, but I don't think you saw it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/24/books/rare-book-school-at-the-university-of-virginia.html

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Aw, thanks for the link. I have a copy of the most recent English translation of the Hypneratomachia- it's a very beautiful book.