![]() ![]() Another major innovation is that Dryden uses artistic license in making Octavia, Antony’s Roman wife, come to Egypt and meet Cleopatra. In the 1600s, blank verse was a relatively new innovation and was associated with progress, as when John Milton claimed in Paradise Lost (1678) that he was restoring poetry to “liberty” by freeing it from the “bondage” of rhyme. Unlike Shakespeare’s play, All for Love is written exclusively in blank verse (non-rhyming poetry) rather than rhyme. For instance, he has observed the “unities” of time and place-which is to say, the convention in classical drama that all the action of a play should take place in the same place and within twenty-four hours. However, his version is more contemporary in that it is written in a “neoclassical” style that was very popular in Dryden’s time. There is continuity to Dryden’s version of Antony and Cleopatra in that, like other fictional depictions of the lovers, he has drawn heavily on classical sources (particularly Plutarch) in his generally positive depiction of the protagonists. As in all other versions of the story of Antony and Cleopatra, the lovers remain constant to each other and die tragically at the end of the play. Although the political landscape of All for Love changes dramatically-not coincidentally, much like mid-late 1600s England, which had experienced a civil war and a consequent transformation in society and politics-Dryden’s central protagonists fundamentally stay the same. At the same time, however, his depiction of Antony and Cleopatra as constant in their love for one another also reveals his conservativism and investment in continuity. His willingness to innovate-inserting new characters, new verse styles, and unhistorical events-further implies his overarching interest in the theme of change and suggests the value of creating art that resonates with contemporary audiences. In this sense, Dryden sees the authority of antiquity and English literary history itself as subject to change and alteration. In the end, Dryden further subverts readers’ expectations by arguing that love is more constant than politics, fame, or wealth.ĭryden’s verse prologue admits that the story of Antony and Cleopatra has been “oft told.” However, his version is different from his predecessors’-most famously, William Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra. In a broader sense, All for Love is a play about change because it takes a very old story that has been often retold in literature-the decline and fall of the historical lovers Antony and Cleopatra-and offers a new, updated version for seventeenth-century English audiences that speaks to their own concerns. Cleopatra, too, is obsessed with retaining her royal authority even as that power slips away from her. Antony’s response to the ruination of his fortunes is to constantly speculate about how his time in Egypt has changed him. It asks how the sudden loss of power impacts two people, Antony and Cleopatra, whose sense of self been defined by their status as two of the ancient world’s most powerful monarchs. The production will also have set design by Tom Hansen, lighting design by Dalton Hamilton, video projections design by Mike Billings, costumes by Devon Spencer, sound design by Tj O'Leary, props by Brenda Scott, casting by Mark Paladini, music supervision by Teressa Jennings, and stage management by Philip Gold.Ĭlick here for the current touring itinerary.All for Love is a play preoccupied with change. All Things Equal offers each theatregoer the chance to better know this woman, her yearning for equality, and her love for this nation's precious institutions.” “Our play also reveals the love song that ran through her remarkable life and shares the music that was her giddy delight. ![]() “In creating this play about her richly-lived life and hard-fought struggles, I came to ever more deeply marvel at her strength, tenacity, sly wit, and compassion,” says Holmes. The tour has dates scheduled through May 6, 2023, with a final stop in Jamestown, New York, at The Reg Lenna Center for the Arts. The play, which presents an intimate portrayal of late Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg, will star Michelle Azar under the direction of Laley Lippard. Jean Kauffman is the standby. Petersburg, Florida, at the Free Fall Theatre. ![]() All Things Equal–The Life and Trials of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a new play by Tony winner Rupert Holmes ( The Mystery of Edwin Drood), will launch a 16-city national tour October 5 in St. ![]()
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