Key Stage: 2

Description

PAYU Price Code link:  Price Code M

BBC School Radio Broadcast - 8 episodes

Episode length - 15 minutes

See also: BD0016 Shakespeare

Shakespeare Retold is a series of stories written by well-known children's authors. Each story is inspired by or based on a play by William Shakespeare. These are not straight retellings but stories with a spin, told only the way each individual author could tell them. Some are closer to the original play than others. The stories are intended as a very light introduction to some of the characters and themes found in Shakespeare's plays and have been written to appeal to children at KS2.

1 - King Lear: A Tragedy in Five Acts, written by Andy Stanton

2 - Macdeath (based on Macbeth), written by Pamela Butchart

3 - The Tempest: The Isle of Noises, written by Frank Cottrell-Boyce

4 - The Taming of the Kat Dog (based on The Taming of the Shrew), written by Gareth P Jones

5 - A Midsummer Camp's Dream (based on A Midsummer Night's Dream), written by Laura Dockrill

6 - Henry V - A Soldier's Tale, written by Geraldine McCaughrean.

7 - All for a Pound of Flesh (based on The Merchant of Venice) by Jamila Gavin

8 - Ol'Fella (based on Othelle) by Paul Stewart

 1 - King Lear: A Tragedy in Five Acts

Fun and irreverent, Andy Stanton's retelling of King Lear centres on Lear and his daughters, with many secondary characters in Shakespeare's complex original not making an appearance. The story retains the (almost pantomime) nastiness of the two wicked sisters and the return of good daughter Cordelia, but there is plenty of modern dialogue and silly humour. Lear ultimately asks whether he can jump ship to another Shakespeare play with a happier ending. His choices are no happier thatn his own story, and when he finally asks if he can be transported to a comedy, Cordelia tells him that both he and she have died "two minutes ago", leading Lear to sigh that "it's been an absolutely terrible day".

2 - Macdeath

In this adaptation, the narrator is a primary school pupil who volunteers to tell the story of Macbeth to her classmates. What follows is an exuberantly funny version of the tale told in a distinctively modern and childlike voice.

3 - The Tempest: The Isle of Noises

In The Isle of Noises, we meet a "real life" shipwrecked sailor, Ned Blood, who has a chance encounter with Shakespeare outside the Blackfriars Theatre and goes on to help Shakespeare create some of the special effects used in the first performances of The Tempest at Blackfriars. Ned's own shipwreck story seems to inspire Shakespeare to write Caliban's famous lines describing the magic of the island, "Be not afeard, the isle is full of noises" and Ned appears to recognise in the final lines of the play that Shakespeare is saying farewell to the theatre with a crowning achievement that (to use Ned's words) "is like every play you have ever written, sir…".

4 - The Taming of the Kat Dog

The notion of "taming" a woman being unsuitable for today's audience, Gareth P Jones in his story replaces the characters Katherine and Bianca with two pedigree dogs from the same litter. Kat is the poorly behaved, feisty pup. Bianca is the delightful pup who breeder Mrs Minola refuses to sell until a willing owner is found for the troublesome Kat. The role of Petruchio is taken by Peter, a young boy who agrees to take ownership of Kat, but plays a number of tricks on her until Kat eventually grows into a well-trained puppy.

5 - A Midsummer Camp's Dream

In this story, Puck takes centre stage. In Shakespeare's play Puck is also known as Robin Goodfellow and here he becomes a girl called Robin, a keen magician and brother to Obie (Shakespeare's Oberson). The story takes place in a Midsummer Camp, where Obie has forgotten his magican powers in favour of his girlfriend Tania. The camp leader is Nick Bottom and the lovers are Dem, Sander, Helen and Mia. Robin is disgusted by all the smoochy lovey-doviness in camp. She accidentally turns Nick into a donkey and the mix-up with the lovers is retained as the main plot of the story.

6 - Henry V: A Soldier's Tale

This version of the story is told by Pistol. Pistol takes on the role of the original play's Chorus - he even mirrors some of the Chorus' most famous lines - by inviting us, as listeners, to imagine great courts, armies and battlefields. Pistol explains all about Henry's mischievous youth, his kingship ad his decision to fight in France. We learn about the invasion and Harfleur and Pistol gives us echoes of Henry's famously rousing St Crispin's Day Speech before the Battle of Agincourt. Pistol comes across as a lovable rogue, but there is a real sense of pathos in his re-telling. He wants us to know of the vain-glorious futility of war; despite the victory in France, his friends are dead and he can't get a living now that he is back in England.

7 - All For a Pound of Flesh

In this adaptation, the story is told through the eyes of a young slave boy who realises that, to most, he is as invisible as "a dog or a goat". It is a faithful and detailed retelling which raises some very interesting questions about freedom, slavery and humanity. Is Portia any freer than a slave if her father has decreed that she must marry anyone who solves a riddle? Aren't we all human, whether we are Jewish, Christian, slave or master?

8 - Ol'Fella

In this modern day retelling, the story is relocated to a high school. The theme of racial prejudice against Othello is removed but the jealousy and purely evil motivations of Iago (Jags) remain intact. Othello becomes the popular and kind Olly, nicknamed Ol' Fella on account of his big, beefy build. Olly's surname is "Moore" - an echo of Othello "The Moor" in the original play. The plot begins with Jags feeling jealous that Olly has given Caspar (who takes the Cassius role) a place in the football team. The handkerchief becomes a baseball cap which Olly gave to Mona as a gift. Jags uses social media to provide evidence of the fake relationship he creates between Caspar and Mona. The story does not end with any deaths, but with the discovery of Jags' treachery and the humilliation of Olly, who loses both the girl and his spotless reputation.

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