– Thoughtful Analysis of Essential Literature
The panel begins with a brief exercise in parsing Shakespearean prose, followed by a reading of Act II’s scenes, with attention to Polonius’ ambitious scheming, and Hamlet’s feigned (or genuine?) madness with his friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.
The panel reads the first act of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, providing an overview of the action and the textual history, with selected readings from within the five scenes paying particular attention to puns, irony, and the mirroring of characters.
In a special, Christmas episode, the panel reads selections from W. S. Gilbert’s libretto to H.M.S. Pinafore, and discusses how they are representative of Gilbert’s penchant for comic ‘topsy-turvy’ plots which include keen-eyed social commentary.