Three Projects To Get Excited About

When I read a headline that the Actors Hall of Fame was bringing back Shakespeare classics after 20 years I thought, "What, something like the Criterion collection? DVDs?"  Nope, I'm completely wrong. They're doing multiple ground-breaking things that look crazy exciting!

A MidSummer Night’s Dream will be produced as a state of the art family animated film, with the addition of new songs and dances from established and emerging artists. The film will be released globally in midsummer 2018.​

All my children's lives I've wanted "start of the art family animated film" versions of Shakespeare.  I just hope this one hasn't got gnomes in it.

The Taming of the Shrew will be produced as a 10 hour miniseries for broadcast/streaming, and will also introduce the next generation of characters in the lives of Petruchio and Katherina.

I've seen rumors that at least three major television networks are doing some version of a Shakespeare series, including a Romeo and Juliet sequel. The idea of a mini series is an interesting one, because you can tell a determined story arc without worrying about having to create ongoing material for several seasons.

Romeo and Juliet  the classic story of young love will make history by airing ‘LIVE’ on mobile and social media around the world starring today’s most popular young stars from film, television and music.

Since joining Twitter back in 2008 I've been inundated with every possible combination of live tweeting the plays in "text speak" from various accounts behaving in the persona of the individual characters, and I've never liked it. I'm at least curious what "airing live on social media" means because I am interested in the advancement of the technologies to do that, however.

Should be very interesting to keep an eye on these projects!

More Strange Than True: Yay! More Midsummer Movies!

Look what I found in my browsing today!  Behold More Strange Than True, coming soon to a cinema near you (assuming you are in the UK):

After beheading her husband, Queen Titiana takes over the mystical woods where lost souls and ghouls wander about confused in this surrealist film inspired by William Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'.

First thought:  "Wait, did they spell Titania wrong or did they do that on purpose?"  It's listed that way as well in the credits so I guess it's Tie-tee-AH-na instead of Tie-TAY-nee-ah.

Second thought: "After beheading her husband..." who the...what the.....huh?

I'm not quite sure what to expect out of this one, but I think Bardfilm is going to have a field day if this summary from the director is any indication:

Writer/Director Ben Rider originally intended to adapt A Midsummer Night's Dream into a musical. He abandoned the idea when he decided his vision to interpret the play as a post-modern homage to German Expressionist cinema, particularly the works of German filmmaker F.W. Murnau, mixed with the stylistic films of Guy Maddin, such as Archangel (1990), would be better suited to the surreal elements of Shakespeare's writing.

What? Who? How?  Is Death going to ride in on a bicycle with his scythe hanging out of a grocery bag like a baguette?

Anybody in the UK recognize any of these names, or their work?

The World Needs Shakespeare Baby Books

This blog started in 2005, when my first child was just barely three years old.  She's now entering high school and has two younger siblings.  They've grown up with Shakespeare.  It goes without saying that if I could have found age appropriate Shakespeare material for them since birth, I would have been all over it.  True there was that short lived "Baby Einstein" series that had a "Baby Shakespeare" offering, but that was really just random poetry and nothing especially Shakespeare.

My kids are grown now and reading Shakespeare on their own, but I think about all the new and soon to be parents out there that are in the same situation that I was, that maybe want some Shakespeare stuff for baby, and aren't finding it, but don't have a great soapbox like I do :)

So that is the reason I'm very excited about this Kickstarter for Behowl the Moon,  a "board book" based on A Midsummer Night's Dream and aimed at ages 0-3.


It's important to get the word out about a project like this.  It's not the kind of thing that goes straight to viral and makes its goal in half an hour.  At the time of this post they're about 1/3rd of the way there, and I seriously hope that they make it.  I keep saying my kids are too old, but as my pal Bardfilm reminded me, one day I'll need something to read to the grand babies.  Can you just imagine?  Passing our love of Shakespeare down two generations?  I just can't even.

Projects like this seeing the light of day pave the way for other projects to do the same, and the world gets more Shakespeare for all ages, and before you know it there's generations of geeklets growing up with love, rather than fear, of the greatest writer the world has ever known.  Who says you can't change the world? Go big or go home.

I know that money's a funny thing and not all of us have the kind of disposable income we wish we had.  But I also know that I've got well over ten thousand followers, all with friends and family and followers of their own, so take a moment and hit whatever version of the "share" button you prefer and keep spreading the word! Let's push them over their goal and get this thing made!

Behowl the Moon: An Ageless Story from Shakespeare's MSND