I Am A Geek, And True

http://www.telerama.fr/techno/20743-shakespeare_geek.php Over the last few days I’ve gotten quite a little traffic from a site that turns out to be completely in French.  I see my name quite clearly, so I run it through Google Translate and here’s what I got: Duane Morin is a geek, a true: not only is that American computer programmer, but he spends much of his spare time to update its various blogs. Including the one he takes on William Shakespeare. Nothing that relates to the author of Richard III escapes Duane: As this video of a young girl who recited a passage from Romeo and Juliet in helium; This site reflects La Nuit des rois in sign language ; this anecdote or an actor who would accidentally stabbed while playing Julius Caesar. So you can be a fan of Shakespeare as it is a great fan of Star Wars. I guess that describes me and my little site here pretty well :). But I’m curious about the overall context.  Can someone who speaks French tell me what the point of the page was?  There are several other sites listed.  Is it just a sort of “Sites of the week” sort of thing, or is there a theme?  Are there other Shakespeare references on the page? Thanks :).  I tried to write a comment on the original post, but you have to register to do that and I couldn’t get through the French to do it.

New England Shakespeare 2008 Auditions

Here’s something I don’t post much about, but I’d like to : casting calls.  I stumbled across the New England Shakespeare Festival auditions page for their 2008 touring production of Much Adoe About Nothing (that’s how they’re spelling it).  …seeking actors and actresses of all ages and types, non-traditional casting, all roles open, for its upcoming summer tour of Much adoe about Nothing. Auditions by appointment will be held in the spring…. They are also hiring tech interns, a stage manager and a wardrobe supervisor. So if you’ve always wondered how you can get in on the Shakespeare action, and you want to tour New England, here’s your chance.  All performers are paid, and company members receive housing and transportation while on tour. (I shouldn’t have to say this, but I have no affiliation with this organization, and nobody came to me asking me to post this announcement.  I really did just find it and think it worthy of posting.  Yadda yadda yadda, blah blah blah.)

Iambic Pentameter and the Three Second Rule

http://ronrosenbaum.pajamasmedia.com/2007/10/16/ No, this does not mean that if you accidentally drop a line you’re allowed to pick it up and eat it within three seconds. 🙂  Remember that post I made about audio examples of the “correct” way to do iambic pronunciation? Ron Rosenbaum, he of Shakespeare Wars (which I’m not finished with), has a lengthy article up on the habit of making the slightest pause between each line, and why that might be.  Someone writes in to him with an interesting suggestion about how human memory is organized and experienced, and how it fits in quite nicely.  A neat read.

48 Classic Books to Boost Your Learning Experience

So, I found this link on Life Optimizer about classic books to “boost your learning experience.”  What’s that mean?  I’ve always liked the idea (referenced in the post) that they “give you different lenses to look through.”  The author actually explains how he created his list, looking at two references on the subject “How To Read A Book” and “The Well-Educated Mind”.  His list is composed of those classics that are recommended in both books. Anyway, you just know that when somebody lists important classic books I’m gonna be there to see how our man Shakespeare does.  This particular list has a category for “Drama”, which has 13 entries.  Care to take a guess how many old Shakey is responsible for? 3(*) of them.  For the next question, no, no other playwright is listed more than once.  Which ones?  Richard III, Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Hamlet.  Interesting combination.  (*) Technically 4, if you count “Sonnets” listed in the Poetry section.

BiblioShakespeare: Shakespeare Challenge

BiblioShakespeare: Shakespeare Challenge
Up for a challenge? Biblioshake’s got people worked up about 6 months to read four books *about* Shakespeare. That’s a little different. Can I count Shakespeare Wars, since I’m halfway through it already? I may have to invest this Christmas in a few of the more “novel” biographies that try to breathe a little bit more life into old Will and not just present everything as dry academic stuff.