(CF 277) possibly the best directed of the entire classic series. Howard Sackler has a bunch of professionals on hand and he lets them (with one exception) tear up the scenery. Poor Judy Dench, who has so little to say as Lavinia before the plot makes her say no more, can only make pathetic noises for most of the play until her final death cry. The evil brothers, played here by John Dane and Christopher Guinee, are not only evil but sarcastically so--and this works on a recording as it might not on the stage. Perhaps Maxine Audley's Tamora is a bit too Wicked Witch of the West now and then; but her co-partner in evil, Aron the Moor, is brought to life by Anthony Quayle in a role he made famous on stage, going even further in the outright enjoyment of his ill-doing. Yes, this play can easily raise laughs and takes an Olivier to keep the audience in the tragic mood. (Reports are that he did it so well that some audience members became ill and had to leave.) Which brings us to Michael Hordern's Titus. Hodern is a fine actor but not a great one. He suffers well but not grandly. I am surprised that his Big Moment--"I am the sea"--is lost among all the other images in that speech. But anyone can direct someone else's play. This recording, soon to be rivaled by one in the Arkangel series, is definitely worth having for Quayle's performance alone.
Rating: 
Summary: !!! LOVE IT !!!
Review: OH MY GOSH!!! "Titus Andronicus" is one of the best plays ever written, especially when played for the comedy. DEFFINATELY READ THIS BOOK!!!
The whole play basically revolves around the action of the evil Tamora marrying another evil guy. Tamora gets really angry, and lets her two sons, Chiron and Demitrius, rape Titus's daughter, Lavinia. Ever hear that old Greek legend about how two guys raped a girl, and cut off her tounge so she could never tell the tale? In that version, the girl is, fortunately, able to miraculously weave her story into a coat and send it off for help. But Lavinia in "Titus Andronicus" is not quite so lucky. Chiron and Demitrius cut off her tounge AND her hands (I can tell THEY read there nighttime fairytales).
After this everyone runs around like madmen and there are a few casualties. Finally Lavinia is able to communicate to her father and remaining brothers using a book, etc. Eventually Tamora pretends to be a spirt-type-thing called 'Revenge' and her sons pretend to be 'Murder' and 'Rape'. But Titus Andronicus is even smarter. He pretends that he beleives there stupid bluff, and eventually captures Chrion and Demitrius after their mother leaves. Then, to make a long story short, Titus 'plays the cook' and cuts off the guys' heads and has his daughter use her stubs to gather their blood. Then he goes and cooks their guts into a pie.
That night at dinner, he serves the pastry to Tamora, who thinks she has won. After the people have eaten about half of the meal, Titus gets up and basically says, 'Look, Lady, you just ate your own sons, you idiot.' Then there is a huge blood bath and few are spared. The guy who IS spared becomes king, etc. Hehehe. Great, huh?
Seriously, though, I would deffinately recommend this edition of the book because it has REALLLLLLLLLYYYYYYY good footnotes. No joke. Hope you will take some time to read this cool book!!! :-D
Rating:
Summary: !!! LOVE IT !!!
Review: OH MY GOSH!!! "Titus Andronicus" is one of the best plays ever written, especially when played for the comedy. DEFFINATELY READ THIS BOOK!!!
The whole play basically revolves around the action of the evil Tamora marrying another evil guy. Tamora gets really angry, and lets her two sons, Chiron and Demitrius, rape Titus's daughter, Lavinia. Ever hear that old Greek legend about how two guys raped a girl, and cut off her tounge so she could never tell the tale? In that version, the girl is, fortunately, able to miraculously weave her story into a coat and send it off for help. But Lavinia in "Titus Andronicus" is not quite so lucky. Chiron and Demitrius cut off her tounge AND her hands (I can tell THEY read there nighttime fairytales).
After this everyone runs around like madmen and there are a few casualties. Finally Lavinia is able to communicate to her father and remaining brothers using a book, etc. Eventually Tamora pretends to be a spirt-type-thing called 'Revenge' and her sons pretend to be 'Murder' and 'Rape'. But Titus Andronicus is even smarter. He pretends that he beleives there stupid bluff, and eventually captures Chrion and Demitrius after their mother leaves. Then, to make a long story short, Titus 'plays the cook' and cuts off the guys' heads and has his daughter use her stubs to gather their blood. Then he goes and cooks their guts into a pie.
That night at dinner, he serves the pastry to Tamora, who thinks she has won. After the people have eaten about half of the meal, Titus gets up and basically says, 'Look, Lady, you just ate your own sons, you idiot.' Then there is a huge blood bath and few are spared. The guy who IS spared becomes king, etc. Hehehe. Great, huh?
Seriously, though, I would deffinately recommend this edition of the book because it has REALLLLLLLLLYYYYYYY good footnotes. No joke. Hope you will take some time to read this cool book!!! :-D
Rating: 
Summary: What were you thinking, William Shakespeare?
Review: On a first reading of this macabre play all hints of Shakespeare's poetic genius are overwhelmed by rape, mutilation, and murder. This cannot be Shakespeare. And yet, despite fervent efforts by many scholars to prove otherwise, the evidence supports Shakespeare as author.
Although popular in the Elizabethan period, later generations dismissed Titus Andronicus as a practice play, a huge joke, a gristly theatrical feast, and a quease-inducing play. Contrastingly, the commentary in my Oxford Shakespeare edition argues that the revenge motif was a suitable topic for Shakespeare. The Elizabethan audience was acclimated to violence, including bear baiting as a sport, weekly public hangings, and an occasional witch execution. Revenge drama, like The Spanish Tragedy by Thomas Kyd, was immensely popular. Shakespeare knew his audience.
Did the young Shakespeare intend this play to be serious drama, or was it a brutal parody of Elizabethan revenge drama? There is little agreement among scholars.
In a re-reading of Titus Andronicus, I attempted to see beyond the gore and carnage for indications of Shakespeare's poetic style. Tamora's poetic plea - Sweet mercy is nobility's badge - offers advice that is ignored by all, including Tamora herself. The lengthy speech by Marcus upon encountering the mutilated Lavinia is poetic, although one questions the propriety of a dramatic speech while Lavinia is bleeding profusely. Also, Aaron's proud confession to Lucius is chilling drama.
Few characters seem fully developed. The close relatives of Titus Andronicus seem one-dimensional. Marcus Andronicus is the loyal brother, Lucius is the noble son, and Lavinia is the innocent daughter. Likewise, Tamora, the captured queen of the Goths, and her two sons, Chiron and Demetrius, seem almost caricatures of evil. They joyously plot rape and murder.
The revengeful Titus Andronicus offers some complexity, possibly foreshadowing Shakespeare's later creations like King Lear, Macbeth, and Othello. We see him as a heroic chieftain that is politically inept, a stoic parent that accepts the sacrifice of his many sons in battle, a distraught and nearly insane victim, and a cunning practitioner of revenge.
I was puzzled most by character of Aaron the Moor. Is he merely a villain? There is a spark of humanity in his concern for his young infant, but it sputters out and we see only implacable evil: But I have done a thousand dreadful things as willingly as one would kill a fly, and nothing grieves me heartily indeed, but that I cannot do ten thousand more.
Not surprisingly, Titus Andronicus is seldom performed. The Royal Shakespeare Company's recent production is their first since 1981. Interestingly, Titus is played David Bradley, an actor known to millions as the irascible caretaker Filch in the Harry Potter movies.
I highly recommend the Oxford Shakespeare edition. I give this edition four stars, largely for the extensive commentary and editing by Eugene M. Waith.
Rating: 
Summary: Bloody, senseless drama!
Review: Quentin Tarantino must surely have got his inspiration for his senseless and bloody scenes from this Shakespearean play. For those lovers of blood and gore, you will be delighted in this play. Shakespeare starts with the usual beheadings, but then in a stroke of mad `genius' decides to up the ante and add mutilations, rape, cannibalism, betrayal, setups, murder and a host of other villainous acts to shock the audience. The only ones who will be disappointed are those who love eye gouging, but rest assured, Shakespeare has pretty much covered everything else.
The racism in the play is sickening. At every opportunity, Aaron the moor is self deprecating, equating his blackness with evil and calling himself slave, thick-lipped etc. I am hardly a fan of political correctness, but why the excessive name calling. It seems Shakespeare had this racist streak in him, which may have been a product of his times. Check out Othello and The Merchant of Venice for more evidence of this.
The `hero' in the play, Titus Andronicus was someone I had much difficulty sympathizing with, probably because of the improbability of losing more than 20 sons to a war, and his lack of mercy at the beginning of the play which started everything else. His near lapse into insanity is reminiscent of King Lear and both plays share the same theme of ingratitude: in Lear it is the ingratitude of his daughters while here it is the ingratitude of the state.
I would not recommend this book to those who want to read some good Shakespearean drama. Try King Lear instead.
Rating:
Summary: One of Shakespeare's best but always misunderstood plays
Review: Since this was Shakespeare's first tragedy - it's understandable how he could write something so utterly out of character for him. Everyone must find their own feet to stand on. I find that the college students I teach respond well to this particular piece. The violence, gore and blood keep our up-to-date students involved. They also seem to respond well to Aaron. They are amazed at the evilness and the twisted plot. I will continue to teach this in my classroom and think this version is just fine for the beginning Shakespeare student.
Rating:
Summary: The First Wizard of Gore
Review: This is perhaps The Bard's least well known work, but a classic nonetheless. If H. G. Lewis had been a playwrite living in Old England, this is no doubt the kind of drama he might have produced. It has more blood & violence than the most exploitive exploitation film. Heads severed off, murdered children baked into a stew & served to their father, rape, vengeance, mayhem, insanity... all served up in the guise of classic literature. PERFECT!
Rating:
Summary: Blood, guts and gore: a satire of revenge
Review: Titus Andronicus is a tragedy of comical proportions. People are easily raped, maimed, and murdered at the drop of a tongue or arm throughout. Titus' feigned insanity brings wretched results for his edible enemies. The request for a detached hand results in hilarious conversation among a handful of volunteers.
This play reminds me of the scene from the Monty Python and the Holy Grail film where the knight has been chopped arm and limbless but still wants to keep fighting.
Revenge ends in a heap of chopped up bodies in Titus. No, the characters are not fleshed out and in great opportunity of winning your sympathoies; they are not supposed to be. The plot is bigger than the players in this one, and it works this way. Revenge does not take much about a person into account. In the end, only the demonlike Aaron keeps his tongue, but who will listen to him? That, dear reader, is the point.
