Rating: 
Summary: Big influence on my son's musical development
Review: When I first recieved these videos (my son was 4-5 mos old) I was slightly disappointed -- they seemed simplistic (something I could make myself with some handpuppets, a trip around town and a video camera). However once my son got to be about a year old these videos offered my husband and I the luxury of a half hour of showering and doing brief chores in the morning before going to work with no fuss. Now that my son is almost 3 years old (having accumulated Baby Einstein, Van Gogh, Beethoven, many others) I can see what an influence they have been -- in the car listening to Carmen or Beethoven's 9th symphony, I was flabbergasted when he told me "that's the song from the dog part of my movie" or "thats the song from the movie about the goat painting pictures" and he now ASKS to listen to Beethoven's Ode to Joy over and over again (when I would sometimes rather be listening to The Police instead). I am beginning to appreciate that my son perhaps has an above-average ear for music and I think the visual connections to music that were offered by all of these videos have played a large part in his development. I still think they're a little overpriced and overrated for the material that went into them (the reason for only 4 stars), but I am EXTREMELY HAPPY that my son has had them to grow up with.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Educational Tool!
Review: As one who strongly supports reading to children, I was a "little" anti-TV for my youngster, until watching "Baby Van Gogh," which is another video produced by the same company. Julie Aigner-Clark is a genius! Her innovative products, exceptionally creative, are designed to entertain children while they learn. "Baby Shakespeare," is no exception. With an imaginative approach, this instantly engaging video teaches language (12 words) through cleverly written text, and real world objects, while stimulating auditory senses with classically arranged musical pieces. My son was immediately mesmerized from the first viewing, two-months old, and remains fascinated to this day, now fourteen months old. I heard about Baby Einstein products from friends, but did not become interested until I learned of the company's dedication to providing financial support to MANY children's charities such as the Autism Society of America, Ronald McDonald House, The Eden Institute, a leading school for educating autistic children, and a host of other organizations committed to children with special needs. I now own several Baby Einstein videos and most of the companion books - they are excellent educational tools. Additional recommendations - "Baby Mozart," "Baby Van Gogh," "Baby Dolittle Neighborhood Animals," also, Richard Scarry's "BEST" videos are excellent for children 1 year and up.
Rating:
Summary: Puppets, Poetry, and Playthings
Review: This was once my daughter's favorite video. Now it is fast becoming a favorite of my son's. It is called Baby Shakespeare but there are only a few lines of his used. This is similar to Baby Mozart with its footage of toys in motion and classical music, but this one has added poetry to the mix. The video is broken into segments. Each segment begins with an opening curtain, a toy camera, and a word. The word is shown and a poem about the word is used. The poems are really not for children (especially the snow poem which is probably above many adult heads). There is then plenty of footage of toys in motion. The segments vary in length (Cat is really short). The segments then end with a closing curtain. The credits attribute the music to Beethoven but there are at least two pieces using Mozart. This one also uses more in the way of puppets, especially Bard the dragon (he's on the cover of the box). As a lover of classical music, I find this video far less annoying after numerous repetitions than many other children's videos. Just remember to turn this one off before the ending credits. After the sleepy final segment (Moon) hopefully lulls your child to sleep, the credits jump in with a rousing Ode to Joy.
Rating:
Summary: For kids from 1 to 92?
Review: What's great about Baby Shakespeare? 1. The children singing the ABC song (twice)
2. The format for teaching 12 words: train, flower, apple, cat, grass, frog, leaf, snow, tree, cow, butterfly, moon. They say the word, then show the word on screen, then say it again, then show a picture of it. The way they start with a rough sketch and morph into the real thing is also quite interesting.
3. Music by Beethoven
4. The poems have something to do with the words being taught.
5. Lots of cool and colorful toys - the Baby Einstein series really loves toys with figures that climb stairs.
6. Each segment starts with the click of a camera, so you know you're moving on to the next word. What's not so great about Baby Shakespeare? 1. The actual theatre piece is only 28 minutes long. The 101 minutes on the jacket includes a concert and poetry recital. (This is video folks, not an audio cd)
2. Some of the toys are in the wrong places. The "cat" segment has footage of a worm in an apple, the "cow" segment has a train.
3. The poems are way above the level of the intended audience. Couldn't they have found children's poems? I rated this 4 stars because my son loves it, especially the ABC song segments. I have to wonder though, how poems by Nash, Kinnell, Yeats, Frost and Wordsworth, among others, relate to a monkey with cymbals, and a flatulence joke among cows. Kids from 1 year old will love the kidstuff, older folk will appreciate the poems, and try to remember the rest of the familiar ones.
Rating:
Summary: Baby Shakespeare VHS - Baby Einstein Company
Review: This is our son's (13 months old) favorite video, and it's yet another "perfect 10" in the Baby Einstein Company's impressive series of videos! I hold a Master's degree in the field of infant speech-language and communicative development, and I would definitely recommend this particular video for your own baby's speech-language and cognitive facilitation and development. This visually and auditorally creative and stimulating video also provides an excellent opportunity for parental interaction and facilitation which will enhance your baby's (and toddler's) overall cognitive-communicative skills and development to a greater degree than other infant videos which typically require little or no active participation from or interaction between the child and his/her parents. (Tip: fast forward to the end of the video credits for some simple yet highly effective communication-enhancing ideas and strategies to utilize while watching the video with your child.). This video (and accompanying book of poetry) scores a perfect "10" on all accounts!
Rating:
Summary: Easy on parents' ears
Review: If you are looking for toddler videos that you can listen to repeatedly without going crazy, this video and "Baby Van Gogh" are good choices. Our first Baby Einstein video was "Neighborhood Animals"; my daughter (13 months) loved it, but I found the music and "script" very irritating after a very short while. This one in particular is a lot easier on the ears.
Rating:
Summary: Another winner
Review: Our daughter is now 14 months old and seems to be outgrowing her beloved Baby Mozart and Baby Bach. She loves both Neighborhood Animals and World Animals, but her favorites these days are Baby Van Gogh and Baby Shakespeare. They're so colorful they really hold her attention AND she especially loves the ABC song in Baby Shakespeare. She also likes to clap at the end of a segment before the curtain opens again - a cute convention with the toy camera introducing each one. It's also full of cute puppets that she's so into these days. And I have to say that the readings chosen for Baby Shakespeare are much better than those in Van Gogh. The only segment that wasn't up to par was the one with the cymbal-playing monkey. They spent way too much time on that one toy and it's the only segment that lags.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely wonderful DVD!
Review: This is the 1st Baby Einstien DVD we bought. I have a 4 year old and 6 month old. They both love it but I must say that our 6 month old loves it most. He has been watching it since he was about 2 months old. He can just hear Julie Clark's voice at the beginning and he will stop fussing and start looking for the movie. The colors are great and the poetry wonderful. I would recommend this DVD to anyone with babies or small children.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful video
Review: I'm a huge Baby Einstein fan. I bought my daughter Baby Mozart when she was 5 1/2 months and she loved it. Now at 8 1/2 months we own several of theses videos. Baby Shakespeare is her favorite. She enjoys this video so much. Loves Bard. Julie is a genius. Love everything about this video. Put together very well.
Rating:
Summary: A must-have!
Review: The Baby Einstein videos are truly a godsend in our home and this is one of the best in the group! My son started watching these videos right after his first birthday and he adores them. They are entertaining and educational. The poetry is beautiful and timeless. I recommend this to any parent with a child between the ages of 1 and 3.
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