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A review by leesmyth
Women of Will: The Remarkable Evolution of Shakespeare's Female Characters by Tina Packer
4.0
I chafed at the extensive (and usually unlabeled) speculation about what Shakespeare must have thought and experienced, and what must have been happening in his life for him to have written the plays he did. More generally, the book is replete with assertions about various historical periods, for which I'd love to see specific supporting references or citations.
And I vigorously disagree with a good deal of the discussion of the plays themselves - even given the author's avowedly narrow focus, I can't help thinking she's often asking the wrong questions and making the wrong assumptions.
That said, I think her perspective is a valuable one. She's coming at Shakespeare from her lived experience as a long-time director and actor. She's been wrestling with these texts and how to bring them alive to audiences, in community with other actors, for decades. Art and passion are surely at the center of her universe and she finds them transformative.
I most enjoyed the fourth section ("Chaos Is Come Again: The Lion Eats the Wolf") and the Epilogue, as well as the discussions of Much Ado About Nothing, Pericles, and The Winter's Tale.
And I vigorously disagree with a good deal of the discussion of the plays themselves - even given the author's avowedly narrow focus, I can't help thinking she's often asking the wrong questions and making the wrong assumptions.
That said, I think her perspective is a valuable one. She's coming at Shakespeare from her lived experience as a long-time director and actor. She's been wrestling with these texts and how to bring them alive to audiences, in community with other actors, for decades. Art and passion are surely at the center of her universe and she finds them transformative.
I most enjoyed the fourth section ("Chaos Is Come Again: The Lion Eats the Wolf") and the Epilogue, as well as the discussions of Much Ado About Nothing, Pericles, and The Winter's Tale.