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This article refers to the play. For other uses, see As You Like It (disambiguation)
Facsimile of the first page of As You Like It from the First Folio, published in 1623.
Facsimile of the first page of As You Like It from the First Folio, published in 1623. Mr William Shakespeares Comedies Histories & Tragedies is the first published collection of William Shakespeare 's plays

As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600. Pastoral, as an adjective refers to the lifestyle of Shepherds and Pastoralists moving livestock around larger areas of land according to seasons and availability Comedy (from the Greek κωμωδίαkomodia has a popular meaning (any discourse generally intended to amuse especially in Television, Film, and William Shakespeare ( baptised It features one of Shakespeare's most famous and oft-quoted lines, "All the world's a stage", and has been adapted for radio, film, and musical theatre.

Contents

Date and text

The play was entered into the Register of the Stationers Company on August 4, 1600; but it was not printed until its inclusion in the First Folio in 1623. The Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers (better known as the Stationers' Company) is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London Mr William Shakespeares Comedies Histories & Tragedies is the first published collection of William Shakespeare 's plays

Performance

There is no certain record of any performance before the Restoration. The English Restoration, or simply The Restoration began in 1660 when the English monarchy, Scottish monarchy and Irish monarchy were restored There is one possible performance, however, at Wilton House in Wiltshire, the countryseat of the Earls of Pembroke. Etymology The county formerly 'Wiltonshire' or 'Wiltunscir' (9th century is named after the former county town of Wilton (itself named after the River Wylye William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke hosted James I and his Court at Wilton House from October to December 1603, while London was suffering an epidemic of bubonic plague. William Herbert 3rd Earl of Pembroke, KG, PC ( 8 April 1580 – 10 April 1630) was the son of Henry Herbert James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625 was King of Scotland as James VI, and King of England and King of Ireland as James Bubonic plague is the best-known manifestation of the bacterial disease plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis (formerly known as The King's Men were paid £30 to come to Wilton House and perform for the King and Court on December 2, 1603. The King's Men was the company of actors to which William Shakespeare (1564&ndash1616 belonged through most of his career A Herbert family tradition holds that the play acted that night was As You Like It. [1]

In the Restoration era, the King's Company was assigned the play by royal warrant in 1669. The King's Company was one of two enterprises granted the rights to mount theatrical productions in London at the start of the English Restoration. It is known to have been acted at Drury Lane in 1723, in an adapted form called Love in a Forest; Colley Cibber played Jaques. The Theatre Royal Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. Colley Cibber (ˈkɒli ˈsɪbɚ (11 June 1671 &ndash 12 November 1757 was a British actor-manager playwright and Poet Laureate. Another Drury Lane production seventeen years later returned to the Shakespearean text (1740). [2]

Notable recent productions of As You Like It include the 1936 Old Vic Theatre production starring Edith Evans and the 1961 Shakespeare Memorial Theatre production starring Vanessa Redgrave. Year 1936 ( MCMXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Old Vic is a Theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Dame Edith Mary Evans DBE ( 8 February 1888 &ndash 14 October 1976) was an actress who had a long and distinguished career on the Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. "Shakespeare Theatre" redirects here For the theatre of that name in Newcastle see Shakespeare Theatre (Newcastle; for Shakespeare's original theatre see Vanessa Redgrave, CBE (born 30 January, 1937) is an English Academy Award, two-time Cannes Best Actress, The longest running Broadway production starred Katharine Hepburn as Rosalind, Cloris Leachman as Celia, William Prince as Orlando, and Ernest Thesiger as Jacques, and was directed by Michael Benthall. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12 1907 – June 29 2003 was an American actress of film television and stage Cloris Leachman (born April 30, 1926) is an Academy Award -winning American Actress of stage, Film and William Prince (born January 26, 1913, Nichols New York; died October 8, 1996, Tarrytown New York) was an American Ernest Frederic Graham Thesiger CBE ( 15 January, 1879 - 14 January, 1961) sometimes credited as Ernst Thesiger, was English theatre director (1919 - 1974 born Michael Pickersgill Benthall. It ran for 145 performances in 1950. Year 1950 ( MCML) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Another notable production was at the 2005 Stratford Festival in Stratford, Ontario, which was set in the 1960s and featured Shakespeare's lyrics set to music written by Barenaked Ladies. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Stratford Shakespeare Festival (formerly known as the Stratford Festival of Canada is an annual celebration of Theatre running from April to November in the Canadian Stratford is a city on the Avon River in Perth County in Southwestern Ontario, Canada with The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 Barenaked Ladies (often abbreviated BNL or occasionally BnL) is a Juno -winning and Grammy -nominated Canadian Alternative

Characters

Walter Deverell, The Mock Marriage of Orlando and Rosalind, 1853
Walter Deverell, The Mock Marriage of Orlando and Rosalind, 1853

Synopsis

Scene from As You Like It, Francis Hayman, c. 1750.
Scene from As You Like It, Francis Hayman, c. Francis Hayman ( 1708 - 2 February 1776) was an English painter and Illustrator who became one of the founding members of 1750.

The play is set in a duchy in France, but most of the action takes place in a location called the 'Forest of Arden', which is most likely a toponym for a forest close to Shakespeare's home town of Stratford-upon-Avon. A duchy is a territory fief, or domain ruled by a Duke or Duchess. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Arden is an area mainly located in Warwickshire, England, traditionally regarded as stretching from the River Avon to the River Tame. Toponymy refers to the scientific study of place-names ( toponyms) their origins meanings use and Typology. Stratford-upon-Avon (ˌstrætfɚd əpɒn ˈɛɪvən is a Market town and Civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. The Oxford Shakespeare edition rationalizes this geographical discrepancy by assuming that 'Arden' is an anglicisation of the forested Ardennes region of Belgium, and alters the spelling to reflect this. Anglicisation or anglicization (see -ise vs -ize) is a process of conversion of verbal or written elements of any other language into a more comprehensible English For the political subdivision of France see Ardennes (department. Other editions keep Shakespeare's 'Arden' spelling, since it can be argued that the pastoral mode depicts a fantastical world in which geographical details are irrelevant. Pastoral, as an adjective refers to the lifestyle of Shepherds and Pastoralists moving livestock around larger areas of land according to seasons and availability The Arden edition of Shakespeare makes the suggestion that the name 'Arden' comes from a combination of the classical region of Arcadia and the biblical garden of Eden, as there is a strong interplay of classical and Christian belief systems and philosophies within the play. Classical antiquity (also the classical era or classical period) is a broad term for a long period of cultural History centered on the Mediterranean Arcadia or Arkadía ( Greek Αρκαδία is a region of Greece in the Peloponnesus. Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin Not to be confused with Eden Gardens.The Garden of Eden ( Hebrew "pleasure" גַּן עֵדֶן Arabic: جنات عدن, A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Furthermore, Shakespeare's mother's name was Mary Arden, and the name of the forest may also be a pun on that. Mary Arden may refer to Mary Shakespeare, nee Mary Arden mother of William Shakespeare Mary Arden (judge

Frederick has usurped the Duchy and exiled his older brother, Duke Senior. Exile means to be away from one's home (ie city state or country while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened by prison or death upon return The Duke's daughter Rosalind has been permitted to remain at court because she is the closest friend and cousin of Frederick's only child, Celia. Orlando, a young gentleman of the kingdom who has fallen in love at first sight of Rosalind, is forced to flee his home after being persecuted by his older brother, Oliver. Frederick becomes angry and banishes Rosalind from court. Celia and Rosalind decide to flee together accompanied by the jester Touchstone, with Rosalind disguised as a young man.

Audrey by Philip Richard Morris
Audrey by Philip Richard Morris

Rosalind, now disguised as Ganymede ("Jove's own page"), and Celia, now disguised as Aliena (Latin for "stranger"), arrive in the Arcadian Forest of Arden, where the exiled Duke now lives with some supporters, including "the melancholy Jaques", who is introduced to us weeping over the slaughter of a deer. Philip Richard Morris (4 December 1836 Devonport - 22 April 1902 92 Clifton Hill Maida Vale, London was an English painter of genre and maritime In Roman mythology, Jupiter was the king of the gods and the god of Sky and Thunder. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. This page is about the proverbial land of Arcadia for the province in modern Greece see Arcadia; for other uses see Arcadia (disambiguation Arden is an area mainly located in Warwickshire, England, traditionally regarded as stretching from the River Avon to the River Tame. Exile means to be away from one's home (ie city state or country while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened by prison or death upon return A deer is a Ruminant Mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. "Ganymede" and "Aliena" do not immediately encounter the Duke and his companions, as they meet up with Corin, an impoverished tenant, and offer to buy his master's rude cottage.

Orlando and his servant Adam (a role possibly played by Shakespeare himself, though this story may be apocryphal [3]), meanwhile, find the Duke and his men and are soon living with them and posting simplistic love poems for Rosalind on the trees. A tree is a perennial Woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or Rosalind, also in love with Orlando, meets him as Ganymede and pretends to counsel him to cure him of being in love. Ganymede says he will take Rosalind's place and he and Orlando can act out their relationship.

Meanwhile, the shepherdess Phebe, with whom Silvius is in love, has fallen in love with Ganymede (actually Rosalind), though "Ganymede" continually shows that "he" is not interested in Phebe. The cynical Touchstone has also made an amorous advance on the dull-witted goatherd girl Audrey, and attempts to marry her before his plans are thwarted by the intrusive Jaques. NOTICE TO WOULD-BE ROMEOS **************

Finally, Silvius, Phebe, Ganymede, and Orlando are brought together in an argument with each other over who will get whom. Ganymede says he will solve the problem, having Orlando promise to marry Rosalind, and Phebe promise to marry Silvius if she cannot marry Ganymede. The next day, Ganymede reveals himself as Rosalind, and since women are not allowed to marry women, Phebe ends up with Silvius.

Orlando sees Oliver in the forest and rescues him from a lioness, causing Oliver to repent for mistreating Orlando. A forest is an area with a high density of Trees There are many definitions of a forest based on various criteria The lion ( Panthera leo) is a member of the family Felidae and one of four Big cats in the Genus Panthera. Oliver meets Aliena (Celia's false identity) and falls in love with her, and they agree to marry. Orlando and Rosalind, Oliver and Celia, Silvius and Phebe, and Touchstone and Audrey all are married in the final scene, after which they discover that Frederick has also repented his faults, deciding to restore his legitimate brother to the dukedom and adopt a religious life. In Fiction, a scene is a unit of drama A sequel is what follows an aftermath Jaques, ever melancholy, declines their invitation to stay in the forest with them and also decides to adopt a religious life.

Critical response

Rosalind by Robert Walker Macbeth
Rosalind by Robert Walker Macbeth

Scholars have long disagreed about the merits of the play. Robert Walker Macbeth ( 30 September 1848, Glasgow - 1 November 1910, Golders Green, London was a Scottish painter etcher Critics from Samuel Johnson to George Bernard Shaw have complained that As You Like It is lacking in the high artistry of which Shakespeare was capable. Samuel Johnson (often referred to as Dr Johnson) (18 September George Bernard Shaw ( (26 July 1856 &ndash 2 November 1950 was an Irish Playwright. Shaw liked to think that Shakespeare wrote the play as a mere crowdpleaser, and signalled his own middling opinion of the work by calling it As You Like It — as if the playwright did not agree. Tolstoy objected to the immorality of the characters, and Touchstone's constant clowning. Leo Tolstoy, or Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy ( –) (Лев Никола́евич Толсто́й, was a Russian Writer widely regarded Morality (from the Latin la moralitas "manner character proper behavior" has three principal meanings Other critics have found great literary value in the work. Harold Bloom has written that Rosalind is among Shakespeare's greatest and most fully realized female characters. Harold Bloom' (born July 11, 1930) is a Literary critic. Bloom defended 19th-century Romantic poets at a time when their reputations Despite critical disputes, the play remains one of Shakespeare's most frequently performed comedies.

The elaborate gender reversals in the story are of particular interest to modern critics interested in gender studies. Gender studies is a field of Interdisciplinary study which analyzes the phenomenon of Gender. Through four acts of the play, Rosalind — who in Shakespeare's day would have been played by a boy — finds it necessary to disguise herself as a boy, whereupon the rustic Phebe (also played by a boy), becomes infatuated with this "Ganymede", a name with homoerotic overtones. Ganymede most often refers to Ganymede (mythology, a Trojan prince in Greek mythology taken by Zeus to Mount Olympus Ganymede (moon, Homoeroticism refers to the representation of same-sex love and desire most especially as it is depicted or manifested in the Visual arts and Literature. In fact, the epilogue, spoken by Rosalind to the audience, states rather explicitly that she (or at least the actor playing her) is not a woman.

Themes

Religious Allegory

University of Wisconsin professor Richard Knowles, the editor of the 1977 New Variorum edition of this play, described in his famous article "Myth and Type in As You Like It" (ELH , volume 33, March (1966) pp 1-22) how the play contains mythological references in particular to Eden, to Hercules and to Christ. Hercules is the Roman name for the Mythical Greek hero Heracles, son of Zeus and the mortal Alcmena. Christ is the English term for the Greek ( Khristós) meaning "the anointed " However he was unable to determine any sustained allegorical meaning and concluded therefore that it could not be an allegorical play. Other scholars however have argued that the play indeed contains a consistent allegorical meaning--and that this can be translated into production.

Language

Act II, Scene 7, features one of Shakespeare's most famous monologues, which states:

"All the world's a stage And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages. All the world's a stage is the phrase that begins a famous Monologue from William Shakespeare 's As You Like It, spoken by the melancholy "

This famous monologue is spoken by Jaques. A monologue is an extended uninterrupted speech or poem by a single person

As You Like It also features much humorous and clever wordplay (e. g, Jaques's attribution of "ducdame"), occasioned by chance encounters in the forest, and several entangled love affairs, all in a serene pastoral setting which makes it often especially effective staged outdoors in a park or similar site.

Pastoral mode

The theme of pastoral comedy is love in all its guises in a rustic setting, the genuine love embodied by Rosalind contrasted with the sentimentalized affectations of Orlando, and the improbable happenings that set the urban courtiers wandering to find exile, solace or freedom in a woodland setting are no more unrealistic than the string of chance encounters in the forest, provoking witty banter, which require no subtleties of plotting and character development. Pastoral, as an adjective refers to the lifestyle of Shepherds and Pastoralists moving livestock around larger areas of land according to seasons and availability A forest is an area with a high density of Trees There are many definitions of a forest based on various criteria The main action of the first act is no more than a wrestling match, and the action throughout is often interrupted by a song. At the end, Hymen himself arrives to bless the wedding festivities. In Greek mythology, Hymenaios (also Hymenaeus, Hymenaues, or Hymen; Ancient Greek:) was a god of Marriage ceremonies

William Shakespeare’s play As You Like It clearly falls into the Pastoral Romance genre; but Shakespeare does not merely use the genre, he develops it. . . Shakespeare also used the Pastoral genre in As You Like It to ‘cast a critical eye on social practices that produce injustice and unhappiness, and to make fun of anti-social, foolish and self-destructive behaviour’ , most obviously through the theme of love, culminating in a rejection of the notion of the traditional Petrarchan lovers. Francesco Petrarca ( July 20, 1304 – July 19, 1374) known in English as Petrarch, was an Italian scholar [4]

The stock characters in conventional situations were familiar material for Shakespeare and his audience; it is the light repartee and the breadth of the subjects that provide texts for wit that put a fresh stamp on the proceedings. Wit is a form of intellectual Humour. A wit (person is someone skilled in making witty remarks At the centre the optimism of Rosalind is contrasted with the misogynistic melancholy of Jaques. Misogyny (mɪˈsɒdʒɪni is hatred (or contemptof women Misogyny is parallel to Misandry — the hatred of men Shakespeare would take up some of the themes more seriously later: the usurper Duke and the Duke in exile provide themes for Measure for Measure and The Tempest. Measure for Measure is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603 or 1604 The Tempest is a comedy written by William Shakespeare. It is generally dated to 1610-11 and accepted as the last play written solely by him although

Adaptations and cultural references

Music

In the song Limelight by Rush, released in 1981, Geddy Lee says, "all the world's indeed a stage, and we are merely players" which also references one of their live albums All the World's a Stage

Radio

According to the history of radio station WCAL in the U.S. state of Minnesota, As You Like It may have been the first play ever broadcast. " Limelight " is a song by the Canadian Progressive rock band Rush. Rush is a Canadian rock band originally formed in August 1968 in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, currently comprised of Geddy Lee OC (born Gary Lee Weinrib on July 29, 1953 in Willowdale Toronto) is a Canadian musician best known as the lead vocalist All the World's a Stage is a double Live album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in This article is about radio broadcasting for other uses see Radio (disambiguation. WCAL 919 FM is a student-run college radio station serving California University of Pennsylvania and the surrounding area including Washington Fayette Westmoreland Greene and A US state is any one of the fifty subnational entities of the United States of America that share Sovereignty with the federal government Minnesota ( Native Americans demonstrated the name to early settlers It went over the air in 1922. Year 1922 ( MCMXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.

Film

See also As You Like It, on screen. More than 420 feature-length film versions of William Shakespeare ' s plays have been produced making Shakespeare the most filmed author ever in any language

As You Like It was Laurence Olivier's first Shakespeare film, though he only acted in it, rather than producing and directing. As You Like It is a 1936 film directed by Paul Czinner and starring Laurence Olivier as Orlando and Elisabeth Bergner as Rosalind Laurence Kerr Olivier Baron Made in the UK and released in 1936, the film also starred director Paul Czinner's wife Elizabeth Bergner, who played Rosalind with a thick German accent. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Year 1936 ( MCMXXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Paul Czinner ( May 30, 1890 - June 22, 1972) was a Writer, Film director, and producer. Elisabeth Bergner ( August 22 1897 &ndash May 12 1986) was an actress The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Although it is much less "Hollywoody" than the 1930s versions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and Romeo and Juliet, and although its cast was made up entirely of Shakespearean actors, it was not considered a success by either Olivier or the critics.

In 1992 Christine Edzard made another film adaptation of the play. It features James Fox, Cyril Cusack, Andrew Tiernan, Griff Rhys Jones and Ewen Bremner. James Fox, (born 19 May 1939) is an English Actor. Biography Early life James Fox was born in London to The action is transposed to a modern and bleak urban world.

A third version of As You Like It was released in 2006, directed by Kenneth Branagh. As You Like It is a film released in 2006, directed by Kenneth Branagh. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Kenneth Charles Branagh (born 10 December 1960) is an Emmy Award -winning Academy Award -nominated Northern Irish Actor It stars Bryce Dallas Howard, David Oyelowo, Romola Garai, Alfred Molina, Kevin Kline, and Brian Blessed. Bryce Dallas Howard (born March 2 1981) is an American actress, perhaps best known for her film roles in the M David Oyelowo (born 1 April 1976 in Oxford) is an English Actor of Nigerian descent Romola Sadie Garai (born 1 July 1982) is an award-winning English actress. Alfred Molina (born 24 May 1953 is a Tony Award -nominated British / American Actor. Kevin Delaney Kline (born October 24 1947 is an American Academy Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and two time Tony Award -winning stage and film Brian Blessed (pronounced /ˈblɛsɪd/ born 9 October 1937) is an English Actor, Author and Adventurer, widely recognised Although it was actually made for cinemas, it was released to theatres only in Europe, and had its U. S. premiere on HBO in 2007.

Musical Theatre

1. David Aquisito and Sammy Buck adapted this play into an 80's themed musical entitled "Like You Like It. "

2. Mark Nichols recorded fifteen songs, and a good deal of underscore: http://www.TheReallyBig.com/AsULikeIt/

3. The "Hey Nonnino" song as rock video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcSP9Tg4rjU

4. Silvius lines set to puppetry. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjEMXjEcxjU

5. Chris Petit directs Whitman College musical version Act II Orlando poetry. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pgow8VBbWdE

References

  1. ^ F. E. Halliday, A Shakespeare Companion 1564–1964, Baltimore, Penguin, 1964; p. Frank Ernest Halliday (February 10 1903 &ndash March 26 1982 was a twentieth-century English academic and author 531.
  2. ^ Halliday, Shakespeare Companion, p. 40.
  3. ^ Dolan, Frances E. "Introduction" in Shakespeare, As You Like It. New York: Penguin Books, 2000.
  4. ^ Sheffield Theatres Education, UK, Webpage: Comedies-As You Like It, http://www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/creativedevelopmentprogramme/productions/asyoulikeit/comedy.shtml

External links

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