Shakespeare (larp)

Helena cures the King of France and chooses Bertram as her husband. Bertram flees the marriage and sets seemingly impossible conditions for accepting her. Some main characters include: Helena, Bertram, Countess of Roussillon, Parolles, King of France Some key hints are: Physician’s daughter; ring; bed trick

All’s Well That Ends Well

Roman leader Mark ____ relationship with Egypt’s _____ strains his alliance with Octavius. Defeat at Actium leads to both lovers’ deaths. Some main characters include: Octavius Caesar, Enobarbus, Octavia Some key hints are: Egypt versus Rome; battle of Actium; asp

Antony and Cleopatra

Banished Rosalind enters the Forest of Arden disguised as Ganymede, where she tests Orlando’s love and several couples find partners. Some main characters include: Rosalind, Orlando, Celia, Oliver, Jaques, Touchstone Some key clues are: Forest of Arden; Ganymede; “All the world’s a stage”

As You Like It

Shakespeare bases his story on Plautus’s Menaechmi, a play about identical twins who accidentally meet after a lifetime apart. Two sets of identical twins, separated in childhood, arrive in the same city. Mistaken identities produce a chain of accusations and confusion. Some main characters include: Antipholus of Syracuse, Antipholus of Ephesus, Dromio of Syracuse, Dromio of Ephesus, Adriana, Egeon Some key clues include: Two Antipholuses and two Dromios; Ephesus

The Comedy of Errors

Begins with the common people, or plebeians, in armed revolt against the patricians.The play explores one reason that Rome prevailed over such vulnerabilities: its reverence for family bonds. A victorious Roman soldier despises the common people. Exiled after a political struggle, he attacks Rome until his mother persuades him to spare it. Some main characters are: Volumnia, Aufidius, Menenius, Virgilia Some key clues are: Roman grain riots; mother’s appeal; Volscians

Coriolanus

Imogen remains faithful to her banished husband Posthumus despite Iachimo’s deception. Disguises, war, and lost heirs end in reunion. As young men, they rescue a starving stranger (Imogen in disguise); kill stepson. Some main characters are: Imogen, Posthumus, Iachimo, King Cymbeline, Cloten, Pisanio Some key hints are: Iachimo’s wager; Imogen disguised as Fidele

Cymbeline

Shakespeare’s most popular, and most puzzling, play. A Danish prince learns that his uncle murdered his father and took the throne. His pursuit of revenge destroys the royal family. Some main characters are: Claudius, Gertrude, Ophelia, Polonius, Laertes, Horatio Some key hints are: Ghost of the father; play within a play; Yorick’s skull

Hamlet

Who does Shakespeare make plays about?

Henry the fifth, sixth, and eighth

Shakespeare may have written this as the first of his plays to be performed at the Globe, in 1599. For it, he turned to a key event in Roman history: Brutus joins a conspiracy to kill ____, fearing his rise to absolute power. Antony’s funeral speech turns Rome against the assassins. Some main characters are: Brutus, Cassius, Mark Antony, Portia, Calpurnia Some recognition clues are: Ides of March; “Et tu, Brute?”; funeral oration

Julius Caesar

After three witches predict he will rule Scotland, he murders King Duncan. Guilt and further killings bring down him and his wife. Some key characters include: Banquo, Duncan, Macduff, Malcolm, the Weird Sisters Some key hints are: Three witches; bloody dagger; Birnam Wood

Macbeth

Eago tricks the Venetian general ____ into believing his wife Desdemona has been unfaithful. Jealousy leads ____ to kill her. Some main characters are: Desdemona, Iago, Cassio, Emilia, Roderigo Some main hints are: A stolen handkerchief becomes false evidence

Othello

An aging king divides Britain according to his daughters’ declarations of love. He rejects honest Cordelia and suffers betrayal, madness, and loss. Some main characters are: Cordelia, Goneril, Regan, Gloucester, Edgar, Edmund, the Fool Some main hints are: Love test; storm on the heath; Gloucester’s blinding

King Lear

Brutus joins a conspiracy to kill Caesar, fearing his rise to absolute power. Antony’s funeral speech turns Rome against the assassins. Some main characters are:  Brutus, Cassius, Mark Antony, Portia, Calpurnia Some key hints are: Ides of March; “Et tu, Brute?”; funeral oration

Romeo and Juliet

What are the last names of the feuding families of Romeo and Juliet?

Capulet and Montague.

• Juliet belongs to the Capulet family.

• Romeo belongs to the Montague family.

A Roman general’s feud with Tamora, queen of the Goths, escalates into brutal revenge against both families. Some main characters: Tamora, Aaron, Lavinia, Saturninus, Lucius Some key hints: Lavinia’s mutilation; revenge banquet

Titus Adronicus

During the Trojan War, ____ and ____ fall in love, but a prisoner exchange separates them. War and shifting loyalties sour the romance. Some main characters are: Pandarus, Hector, Achilles, Diomedes Some key hints are: Trojan War; Pandarus as go-between

Triolus and Cressida

In an Athenian forest, four lovers become entangled in fairy magic while amateur actors prepare a play for a royal wedding. Some main characters include: Hermia, Lysander, Helena, Demetrius, Oberon, Titania, Puck, Bottom Some key hints are: Love potion; donkey head; Pyramus and Thisbe

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Benedick and Beatrice trade insults before friends trick them into admitting love. Meanwhile, a false accusation threatens Hero’s wedding to Claudio. Some main characters: Beatrice, Benedick, Hero, Claudio, Don Pedro, Don John, Dogberry Some key clues: Overheard conversations; slandered bride; Dogberry

Much Ado About Nothing

After a shipwreck, Viola disguises herself as Cesario and serves Duke Orsino. She loves him, while Olivia falls for Viola’s disguise. Some main characters include: Viola, Sebastian, Orsino, Olivia, Malvolio, Sir Toby Belch Some key events include: Identical twins; Cesario; yellow stockings

Twelfth Night

Antonio’s loan to help Bassanio court Portia gives Shylock a claim to a pound of flesh. Portia argues the case in court while disguised as a lawyer. Some main characters include: Antonio, Shylock, Bassanio, Portia, Jessica, Lorenzo Some key events include: pound of flesh; three caskets; quality of mercy

The Merchant of Venice

Petruchio pursues Katherina while her sister Bianca’s suitors compete for her hand. The play’s treatment of marriage and obedience invites debate. Some main characters include: Katherina, Petruchio, Bianca, Baptista, Lucentio, Hortensio Some main events include: Katherina and Petruchio; wooing Bianca

The Taming of the Shrew

Falstaff sends identical love letters to two married women to get their money. Mistress Ford and Mistress Page repeatedly outwit him. Some main characters include: Falstaff, Mistress Ford, Mistress Page, Ford, Page, Anne Page Some key hints are: Laundry basket; Herne the Hunter; Falstaff duped

The Merry Wives of Windsdor

The King of Navarre and three friends swear off women to study. Visiting women undo the vow, then require the men to prove their sincerity. Some main characters are: King of Navarre, Berowne, Princess of France, Rosaline, Don Armado Some key hints are: tudy oath; masked courtship; interrupted marriages

Love Labor’s Lost

Valentine and Proteus are friends until Proteus pursues Valentine’s beloved Silvia. Julia follows Proteus in disguise as his loyalty falters. Some main characters are: Valentine, Proteus, Julia, Silvia, Speed, Launce Some key hints include: Faithless Proteus; Julia disguised as Sebastian; dog Crab

Two Gentlemen of Verona

____ defends his disputed English crown against France and rival claims. His rule is strained by war, shifting loyalties, and a quarrel with the Church. Some key characters are: Philip the Bastard, Arthur, Constance, Pandulph Some clues events are: Arthur’s claim; Philip the Bastard; disputed succession

King John

Exiled duke Prospero uses magic and a storm to bring his enemies to an island. His daughter Miranda meets Ferdinand, and Prospero chooses reconciliation. Some main characters are: Prospero, Miranda, Ariel, Caliban, Ferdinand, Alonso Some key events are: Storm and island; Ariel and Caliban; Prospero’s books

The Tempest

King Leontes falsely accuses Queen Hermione of infidelity and loses his daughter Perdita. Years later, reunion and a seemingly living statue heal the family. Some main characters include: Leontes, Hermione, Perdita, Polixenes, Florizel, Paulina Some key hints are: “Exit, pursued by a bear”; Hermione’s statue

The Winter's Tale

____ flees a dangerous king, marries Thaisa, then loses her at sea. After many years, he reunites with her and their daughter Marina. Some main characters include: Thaisa, Marina, Simonides, Gower, Antiochus Some key clues are: Sea voyages; Gower as chorus; lost family restored

Pericles

Theban cousins Palamon and Arcite become rivals after both fall for Emilia. Their competition ends with Arcite’s death and Palamon’s marriage. Some main characters are: Palamon, Arcite, Emilia, Theseus, the Jailer’s Daughter Some key hints include: Cousins competing for Emilia; adapted from Chaucer

The Two Noble Kinsmen

A sequence of 154 poems, mostly in three quatrains and a concluding couplet, that explores love, beauty, time, and mortality. Some main clues are: The Fair Youth, the Dark Lady, and a rival poet are recurring figures, though their identities remain uncertain. and “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”; Sonnet 130: “My mistress’ eyes...”

The Sonnets

A narrative poem in which Venus pursues the young hunter Adonis. He resists her, goes hunting, and dies from a boar’s attack. Some key characters are: Venus, goddess of love; Adonis, the young hunter. Some hints are: Venus’s unreturned desire; fatal boar hunt

Venus and Adonis

A narrative poem about the assault of Lucrece by Sextus Tarquinius. Her death helps spark resistance to Rome’s monarchy. Some main characters include: Sextus Tarquinius; Collatine; Lucius Junius Brutus. Some key hints are: Roman monarchy; Lucrece’s assault and its political aftermath

The Rape of Lucrece

A disguised duke watches his deputy Angelo enforce harsh laws. When Isabella pleads for her condemned brother, Angelo abuses his power. Some main characters are: Duke Vincentio, Angelo, Isabella, Claudio, Mariana Some key hints are: Vienna; disguised duke; bed trick

Measure for Measure

A generous Athenian spends his fortune on false friends. Abandoned when his wealth runs out, he retreats from society in bitter anger. Some main characters are: Apemantus, Alcibiades, Flavius Some key clues are: Lavish gifts; false friends; gold discovered in exile

Timon of Athens