Classic Plays

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is one of William Shakespeare’s most well-known comedies and is arguably one of his most beloved plays. The play tells the tale of the misadventures of the people gathering to participate in their marriage of the duke of Athens and Hippolyta, former queen of the Amazons.

Decoding Romeo and Juliet comprehensively analyzes the play's key elements, including its literary techniques, historical background, plot summary, themes, characters, and conflicts. It discusses the intricate narrative structure, explores Shakespeare's use of language and poetic devices, and examines the socio-cultural context of the Elizabethan era.

Mystery, power and malevolence are present in these plays, all of which subvert the happy endings that one would expect in a comedy and the tragic effect one would expect in a tragedy, to pose deeper moral questions that echo modern society. Performed by an incredible array of the 20th century’s greatest actors, Marlowe alumni including Roy Dotrice, Prunella Scales, Ian McKellen, Michael Hordern and Derek Jacobi can be heard in these recordings.

The Taming of the Shrew is a classic comedy by William Shakespeare featuring characters Petruchio and Katherina. The work is deeply laden with sexism and gender issues as Petruchio "tames" Katherina in an increasingly abusive relationship. A classic throughout the ages, you simply must hear this story.

Macbeth and his wife show how bad the evil that can possess human souls is. But evil is not all powerful. On the one hand, Macbeth is the gloomiest of the great Shakespeare's tragedies; on the other hand, it's more encouraging than Hamlet, Othello or King Lear. In no other tragedy as in Macbeth the evil is confronted by so many people, and nowhere else they are so active. Shakespeare is the author of the world famous sonnets and plays: Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth and Othello, as well as comedies Twelfth Night, A Midsummer's Night Dream, Love's Labour's Lost, etc.

Young love, bawdiness and exuberance are played out in these comedies that continue to make us laugh and cheer. Performed by an incredible array of the 20th century’s greatest actors, Marlowe alumni including Ian McKellen, Diana Rigg, Derek Jacobi and Prunella Scales can be heard in these recordings.

If only I could remain young while the picture grows old. For that I’d give anything.... When Dorian Gray, a handsome young man about town, makes this wish, he can hardly guess that it will mark the beginning of a life of hedonism and debauchery. Soon enough his webs of deception and deceit catch innocent victims, some of them his closest friends, and the only evidence of his misdeeds is a long-forgotten portrait in his attic.

King Lear is ready to turn his realm over to his three daughters. His plan is simple: Give the biggest piece to the daughter who loves him most. But honeyed words and hubris blind Lear to the true motives of those around him, plunging king and kingdom into a hell of treachery, madness, and unspeakable acts - with consequences that reveal the worst and best in human nature.

Bassiano, a noble Venetian, hopes to woo the beautiful heiress Portia. However, he requires financial assistance from his friend Antonio. Antonio agrees, but he, in turn, must borrow from the Jewish moneylender Shylock. As recourse for past ills, Shylock stipulates that the forfeit on the loan must be a pound of Antonio’s flesh. In the most renowned onstage law scene of all time, Portia proves herself one of Shakespeare’s most cunning heroines, disguising herself as a lawyer and vanquishing Shylock’s claims....

King Cymbeline of Britain banishes his daughter Imogen's husband, who then makes a bet on Imogen's fidelity. Imogen is accused of being unfaithful, runs away and becomes a page for the Roman army as it invades Britain. In the end, Imogen clears her name, discovers her long-lost brothers and reunites with her husband while Cymbeline makes peace with Rome.

Major BBC adaptations of Ford Madox Ford’s two most famous works, with stellar casts including Tom Goodman-Hill, Ruth Gemmell, Kyle Soller and Mark Bonnar A forgotten great of British fiction, Ford Madox Ford wrote over 80 books, founded two trailblazing literary journals and was a friend and...

Written as the letters of the five members of Squire Bramble's household sent as they journey around Britain, The Expedition of Humphry Clinker is a grouchy, very funny examination of how one story varies depending on who's doing the telling. The tale is centered around the arrival of Mr. Clinker into the otherwise uneventful household, who never speaks and does not even enter the novel until a third of the way through.

Othello follows the story of the Moor through love, jealousy and deceit. Iago is furious about being overlooked for promotion and plots to take revenge against his general; Othello, the Moor of Venice. Iago manipulates Othello into believing his wife, Desdemona, is unfaithful, stirring Othello's jealousy. Othello allows jealousy to consume him, murders Desdemona and then kills himself.

The predominant theme in this Shakespearean tragedy, believed to have been written in about 1603, is jealousy and the destruction it causes when allowed to run rampant. It features one of Shakespeare's most compelling villains, Iago, who skillfully manipulates his commander, Othello, into believing that he has been betrayed by his wife, Desdemona, and his closest friend, Cassio.

Cleopatra is one of the most famous women in history - and thanks to Shakespeare, one of the most intriguing personalities in literature. Award-winning writer and beloved professor Harold Bloom delivers exhilarating clarity and invites us to look at this character as a flawed human who might be living in our world. He also explores his own personal relationship to the character: Just as we encounter one Anna Karenina or Jay Gatsby when we are in high school and college and another when we are adults, Bloom explains his shifting understanding of Cleopatra over the course of his own lifetime.

Here is the multi award-winning SmartPass study guide, with and without commentary options. This is a full-cast, unabridged performance with comprehensive commentary and analysis to allow any student to fully understand and appreciate the play. Meet literature's greatest villain in this tragedy, fuelled by jealous rage. Journey into the twisted mind of Iago, who freely admits, "I am not what I am", and truly get under the skin of this wondrous play.

Famed author E. Nesbit ( The Railway Children) brings 20 of Shakespeare's plays to life in language that children can understand. They are entertaining narratives that describe the Bard's main characters and often intricate plots. Each story provides a concise overview for anyone about to experience a Shakespeare play for the first time.

The Marlowe Society perform Shakespeare's tragedy based on the life of the Roman Leader Gaius Martius Coriolanus.

Longlisted for the International Booker Prize 2025In Heart Lamp, Banu Mushtaq exquisitely captures the everyday lives of women and girls in Muslim communities in southern India. Published originally in Kannada, these portraits of family and community tensions testify to Mushtaq’s years as a...

The Pulitzer Prize winning modern classic of two Cuban musician brothers during the mambo-filled nights of 50's New York from literary trailblazer, Oscar Hijuelos. It's 1949 and two young Cuban musicians make their way from Havana to the grand stage of New York City. It is the era of mambo...