Shakespeare in Love

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Shakespeare in Love

Full-Length Play, Dramatic Comedy  /  6w, 18m

Based on the screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard
Adapted for the stage by Lee Hall

Music by Paddy Cunneen
Originally produced on the West End by Disney Theatrical Group & Sonia Friedman Productions, directed by Declan Donnellan, and designed by Nick Ormerod

Based on the Academy Award-winning movie, this enchanting, hilarious, romantic stage play reimagines William Shakespeare's creative process – and explores his inspiration – as he writes Romeo and Juliet.

Image: 2014 West End Production (Johan Persson)

Shakespeare in Love

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    6w, 18m
  • Duration
    Duration
    More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Adaptation (Stage & Screen)
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult
Accolades
Accolades
  • Nominee: 2015 Olivier Award for Best New Comedy
Shakespeare in Love
Also Available
Shakespeare in Love (High School Edition)

Details

Summary
Young Will Shakespeare has writer's block. The deadline for his new play is fast approaching, but he's in desperate need of inspiration. That is, until he finds his muse... the feisty, brilliant and beautiful Viola. This crafty young woman is Will’s greatest admirer and will stop at nothing (including breaking the law) to appear in his next play. Against a bustling background of mistaken identity, ruthless scheming and backstage theatrics, Will’s love for Viola quickly blossoms, inspiring him to write his greatest romantic masterpiece.
History
Shakespeare in Love premiered on the West End at the Noel Coward Theatre in London in July 2014 under the direction of Declan Donnellan.
Cast Attributes
Keywords
Performing Groups
  • Time Period 16th Century/Elizabethan
  • Setting Multiple locations in and around Elizabethan London
  • Features Period Costumes
  • Additional Features Animal Spot
  • Duration More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • Cautions
    • No Special Cautions

Media

5 STARS! “An absolute joy from beginning to end!” – Daily Express
5 STARS! "Funny, often genuinley moving, and generates a glow you could warm your hands by...The best British comedy since One Man, Two Guvnors and deserves equal success." - Daily Telegraph,  

5 STARS! "An absolute joy from beginning to end!" - Daily Express, Read More 
"There's the elating sense that the material--with its rivalry between the public playhouses echoing between the Monatgues and the Capulets--is reveling in it's natural elements in the theatre...It makes you feel grateful to be alive." - The Independent, Read More 
"Marvelously fluid, riotously funny, and often intensely, even startlingly poignant...This may be, in part at least, a comedy about Shakespeare falling in love; but joking aside, it could just make you fall, all over again, in love with Shakespeare." - Chicago Tribune, Read More
RELATED ARTICLES ON BREAKING CHARACTER
Censorship, Art & the Elizabethan EraDisney Theatrical Group
March 12, 2019
The Structure of a SonnetDisney Theatrical Group
March 12, 2019
Shakespeare in Love from Screen to StageDisney Theatrical Group
March 12, 2019
Wherefore Art Thou? 10 things you didn't know about Shakespeare in LoveKatie Coryell
January 28, 2019



Videos

  • Shakespeare in Love Trailer youtube thumbnail

    Shakespeare in Love Trailer

Photos

  • Shakespeare in Love

    Image: 2014 West End Production (Johan Persson)

  • Shakespeare in Love

    Image: 2014 West End Production (Johan Persson)

  • Shakespeare in Love

    Image: 2014 West End Production (Johan Persson)

  • Shakespeare in Love

    Image: 2014 West End Production (Johan Persson)

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £85 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

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Scripts

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Authors

Lee Hall

Lee Hall

Lee Hall was born in Newcastle Upon Tyne in 1966 and studied English Literature at Cambridge University. He has worked as a writer in theatre, TV, radio and film. He has been writer in residence at the Royal Shakespeare Company and Live Theatre, Newcastle Upon Tyne.

Theatre: W ...

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Author

Marc Norman

Tom Stoppard

Tom Stoppard

Tom Stoppard’s most recent play, Leopoldstadt, opened at Wyndham's Theatre in 2020 and transferred to Broadway in 2022. It won multiple Awards, including an Olivier Award and Tony Award for Best Play. He wrote his first play, Enter a Free Man, whilst working as a journalist i ...

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