kjellika's 2009 challenge: reading 50 plays

See also:
http://www.librarything.com/topic/46483

I'll try to read one play a week this year.

I'll mostly read William Shakespeare and Henrik Ibsen, but also Knut Hamsun and other Norwegian playwrights (Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Alexander Kielland, Jon Fosse). I'll probably read some ancient Greek dramas as well.

That sounds like a fun and achievable goal. I don't know much about the Norwegian playwrights, so I'll look forward to seeing what you read and what you think. If you are looking for other things to read, three are many of Shakespeare's contemporaries that are worth reading (e.g. Marlowe, Jonson and some lesser-known authors as well).

Kjellika--Old theater major here. I've starred your thread to see what you come up with. Sounds like a great idea. I went on a major Ibsen binge in college. Maybe it's time to pull out those plays and give them another read. Enemy of the People was one of my favorites. Good luck.

#2
I've heard of Marlowe and Jonson, and it might be an interesting task reading them too. I haven't got any of their works on my bookshelves, but I hope I'll find something in the public library.

#3
Some of my favorite Ibsen plays are:
The Wild Duck
A Doll House
Peer Gynt
Rosmersholm

Thanks for your kind wishes :)

Marlowe is very similar to early Shakespeare. Many people pair a reading of his The Jew of Malta with The Merchant of Venice and Edward II with Richard II. Jonson wrote mostly comedies and it's a matter of taste whether you enjoy him or not. If you read him, start with something like Volpone. Most libraries would have at least these items, I would imagine, though if you are in Norway it might take a bit more of a search.

I'll start with
Coriolanus by William Shakespeare.

This is one of his plays I haven't read yet, and I'll read it in Norwegian (translated by Bjørn Alex Herrmann, with an afterword by Kirsti Minsaas), but I might read some parts of it in English as well, if I find interesting words and/or quotes.

Honestly I should read the complete Shakespeare in its original language, but I imagine I'll use to much time on it if I do it now.

My challenge is to read 50 plays in 2009, and I'm also hoping to understand what I'm reading.

Coriolanus should be finished Sunday January 11th.

1. Coriolanus by William Shakespeare.

This play was written in 1608 and is considered to be Shakespeare's last tragedy.
Coriolanus is exiled from Rome, and he and his opponent Aufidius (yes, indeed) plan to capture Rome and burn the city. Coriolanus' mother Volumnia advises her son from doing so, and he accepts. Aufidius understands that he has been let down by Coriolanus, and the tragedy ends as most tragedies do. (4/5)

(Later I'll read Henrik Ibsen's play about ancient Rome: 'Catilina' (considered as his debut as a playwright) and 'Kejser og Galilæer' (two plays, each consisting of five acts).

2. 'Paul Lange og Tora Parsberg' (1898) by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson.

An old play written by the Norwegian author who received The Nobel Prize in 1903.

Not a very topical or modern story, but as in almost all tragedies one or more of the main characters die(s) in the last act.

Just recommended as a curiosity. (3/5)

More about my 2009 reading at:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/54845

3. "Byggmester Solness" (The Master Builder) by Henrik Ibsen.

One of Ibsen's most outstanding plays. It could be autobiograpic (??).
(4.5/5).

4. Medeia by Euripides.

What an exciting story. And what a horrible mother. A real tragedy.

I agree, no matter how vengeful a person feels I cannot understand anyone murdering their own children.

I saw a powerful production of Medea on Broadway with Diana Rigg about 15 years ago. I still remember the scene of the murdered children.

5. Titus Andronicus by Shakespeare.

Well, Medea is a horrible mother, but queen Tamora and her lover Aaron (in the play Titus Andronicus) are really disgusting characters.
It almost made me sick.
But this page-turner deserves 4.5 out of 5 stars, IMO.
Recommended!

6. A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry.

What a play!! What a plot!! What characters!!

Like To kill a Mockingbird it deserves 5 out of 5 stars. :)

Hi kjellika,

Just to say that I'm glad I found your list. I have several themes in my reading this year, and one of them is to read a play a month (not as ambitious as you!). So I'll probably get some good ideas from you. I'm making a note of A raisin in the sun, and will definitely include it.

I read The wild duck last year and, like you, enjoyed it.

Hi kjellika,

So glad you enjoyed Raisin. Someone else mentioned Titus Andronicus on another thread. You've both made it sound intriguing. I'm going to have to read it. One of the few of Shakespeare's that I haven't read.

#16
I'll start (re)reading The Wild Duck (Norwegian: Vildanden) tomorrow.
The master's masterpiece, IMO.

#17
Yes, Titus Andronicus IS intriguing, and a pleasure to read. I'm NOT sure if I would like to watch a performance of it on stage (or on TV, motion picture).

7. The Wild Duck by Henrik Ibsen.
Yes, it IS a masterpiece. I think this play will never become out-dated.

Not sure yet, what play to read next???

How about Pygmalion?
Always loved it as a kid/teenager, partly because I was so happy that the protagonist shared my name haha :)

Hi Eliza,

Well, maybe I will. I know it's a famous play by a famous author, and I purchased it a few weeks ago, so ..... ??
Just two or three days break (of course continuing reading novels: Poor Folk, My Antonia), thinking ...
And I'll soon read my third Shakespeare play this year - maybe The Taming of the Shrew? - which I haven't read yet.

I AM reading Pygmalion now. I guess I'll finish it next week. My opinion so far: Great!

I'm so glad you're enjoying it :)

8. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw.

It IS great. ALL of it!

Next play to read:
The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare.
I'll read my (rather old) Norwegian edition of it (:"Troll kan temmes").

9. The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare. What a shrew! Was she tamed? I think so.

Next play:
"Nokon kjem til å komme" by Jon Fosse. Fosse is a popular contemporary Norwegian playwright. He has also written novels and essays.

I'm not sure if this play is translated (or performed) in English. It's title could be 'Somebody will arrive'

10. 'Nokon kjem til å komme' (from the collection Teaterstykke 1 by Jon Fosse

A short, modern, Norwegian play about love and jealousy.
Characters: He, She, The man

11. 'Lille Eyolf' (Little Eyolf) by Henrik Ibsen.

A rather curious (imo) play about guilt.
Symbolic.
Family tragedy....
The most curious character is "Rottejomfruen" (The Rat Virgin (my transl.))

Next play to read: Part I of 'Orestien' (The Oresteia: 'Agamemnon' by Aeschylus

12. Agamemnon, the first play in The Oresteia by Aeschylus.

All right, this play is a tragedy, and an interesting one in my opinion. About revenge and murder (aren't most tagedies?), but why are children killed (cf. Medeia) and even eaten in ancient Greek plays...?? Grotesque, nauseating. I wonder if it actually happened in old Greece (and other places long ago) as well...??
I didn't get quite familiar with the chorus, but maybe I'll become use to it as I read the next two plays of The Oresteia later this year.

Next: King John by William Shakespeare. I haven't read this one before, well, maybe many years ago..............(??)

You certainly are reading lots of great plays. :)
--BJ

13. King John by William Shakespeare

This is a historic play about the English king John (1199-1216) and how he lived and struggled and died, but alo about his friends, relatives and enemies and their behaviour and thoughts.
I wasn't very impressed reading this play, too long and not very dramatic imo. But I surely love the Shakespearean language: excellent and enigmatic.

I'll soon start reading Don Juan ou Le Festin de Pierre by Moliere.

14. Don Juan ou Le Festin de Pierre by Moliere.

Well, I really expected this play to be more humorous than it is (imo).
I assume I had too Great Expectations, but all the same I'm prepared to read one or more play(s) by Moliere this year. I know some of them are great comedies.
I wonder if Don Juan has got his reputation from other than Moliere .............

Next:
En folkefiende ('An Enemy of the People') by Henrik Ibsen.

15. En folkefiende by Henrik Ibsen.

This is one of Ibsen's famous plays.
I think it is well known abroad too, and I assume it also has something to tell people today, just thinking of "main-stream", majority and authority.

I love Dr. Stockmann and his family. Oh, not his brother of course.
Humorous and it makes you think.
There has to be thruth in politics. Difficult it seems, if you let money rule...(??).

Next play I am going to read is:
Oedipus the King (in Norwegian: Kong Oidipus) by Sophocles.

16. "Kong Oidipus" Oedipus, the King by Sophocles

A famous greek tragedy with a famous theme.
Made me think of Sigmund Freud and psychologi (psychoanalysis).
Greek playwrights are fantastic with very much fantasy, and so far I've loved what I've read by them.

I think I'll now read Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare.
It's "of course" a reread.....

17. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare.

I am sure this is the world's most famous play about young love and how hatred is able to kill - not the love - but the persons loving each other.
Romeo and Juliet is a love story tragedy with some comic scenes and a kind of happy ending - not for Romeo and Juliet (and Paris) - for the families, Montague and Capulet.
One should expect such a story to be sentimental and melodramatic, but it is not, due to the playwright's genius.

FIVE stars!

Next:
"Dronning Tamara" by Knut Hamsun

18. Dronning Tamara by Knut Hamsun.

This play is about the Queen Tamara of Georgia (Caucasus), her husband prince Giorgio, and their children Giorgio and Rusudan. It is also about conflicts between Christianity and Islam. And about love and power and power of love.

Interesting plot and characters.
Knut Hamsun is not regarded as a very great playwright, but as a GREAT novellist. He wrote six plays (three of them make a trilogy (about the philosopher Kareno)), and maybe I read one (or some) of them later this year.

"Dronning Tamara": 3.5 stars

Next one:
Kongsemnerne by Henrik Ibsen

19. Kongsemnerne by Henrik Ibsen

'Kongsemnerne' was published in 1864, and it's a play about Skule the Earl and Håkon Håkonssøn (chosen to become king by the "birkebeiners"), and their fight to become the next king of Norway. The bishop of Oslo, bisp Nikolas Arnesson is one of the main characters and he makes lots of intrigues which result in exciting dialogues and a very intersting story.
Other important persons:
Ragnhild, Skule's wife
Margrete, Skule's daughter (who is later married to Håkon Håkonssøn, they get a son)
Peter, Skule's son with Ingebjørg.
Bisp Nikolas dies, but his ghost appears in the last act (Act V). "Hamletian" (??)
One of the "wanna-be-king" is killed in the end, you know.

****1/2

Next (No. 20):
Den politiske Kandstøber by Ludvig Holberg

20. 'Den politiske Kandstøber' by Ludvig Holberg

This old comedy is about a "Kandstøber" (a craftsman casting pots) who wants to become a politician. He is told that he's been chosen to become mayor of the town. That's a joke. He cannot manage this job, so at last he has to return to his job as a "Kandstøber".

Holberg has written comedies much better than this one, e.g. 'Jeppe på Bierget', Erasmus Montanus etc., etc.

***1/2

Shakespeare next:
A Midsummer Night's Dream

21. A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare.

I did not like it very much. Too many fairies and a rather "unnessesary" act 5.

***

Next play:
The Libation Bearers by Aeschylus. This is the second play of The Oresteia. I read the first one, Agamemnon in March (cf. #28). The Norwegian title of 'The Libation Bearers' is "Sonofferet", see Greske tragedier

22. The Libation Bearers by Aeschylus.

I think this is a better play than the first part of The Oresteia (cf. #28), and
it really deserves 5 stars (top rating), and the chorus wasn't that unnacustomed as it was when I read Agamemnon. I'm able to see its function now.
Two murders. The son (Orestes) killing his mother (Klytaimnestra)and her lover (Aigistos). A revenge against his father's (Agamemnon) murderer(s). A very classic tragedy.

And now I must read the last play of this trilogy, so.............

the next play of this challenge will be:
The Eumenides by Aeschylus

23. The Eumenides by Aeschylus.

This is the last part of The Oresteia.
I liked it very much, and there was a happy ending for Orestes, but why all the chorus after he was acquitted the murder of his mother Klytaimnestra??

Now I'll read Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen (a reread)!!

24. Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen

One of Ibsen's most famous plays, I think.
It's not my favorite Ibsen, though.
I don't like the title character, but she is interesting allthe same. I felt sorry for her husband. He is a quite naïve person.

I wonder what play to read next ?????????

Have you read anything by Racine? I'm reading Phaedra right now (translated into English). The style is very formal, closer to Greek tragedy than Shakespearean, but I'm enjoying it so far. I'm reading it from dailylit.com, so I won't finish for a couple weeks. You could start soon and have a review out before me!

So far I haven't read anything by Racine, but I've heard of Phaedra of course. I haven't got anything by Racine on my bookshelves, so I think I'd have to try the local library if I should read it now. There are so many unread plays on my shelves, so.... But from the info in your message I assume I would like this play, and maybe I read it later this year. Time will show.

By the way: What is dailylit.com?

Kjell :)

Dailylit.com is a web site that will send you excerpts of works every day. So Phaedra is broken into 18 parts, which I have emailed to me every work day. They have all sorts of books. I have always stuck to the free stuff, and I find that drama and poetry are a bit better in the format than prose (in my opinion, anyway). Anyway, it's just another way to sneak in a bit of reading during the day :-)

I can certainly understand reading the stuff on the shelves first, though it doesn't keep me out of the library as much as it should.

I think I'll start reading Death of a Salesman in a few days. Another famous play.

>wrmjr66
Thanks. I just visited dailylit.com. The web is amazing. I'll probably take the opportunity to read books on the screen later (but I like the paper editions MUCH more, I guess it's due to my age, or?)

I prefer paper editions too. One of the reasons I like dailyLit is that they send small excerpts, which are the right type of reading for computer screens. I never end up reading for an hour, as I would with a physical book, and that saves my eyes!

25. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller.

Yes, I did like it, but I'm not sure why it is that famous. A little curious to me, maybe I'll understand more of it if I reread it in some years (??).

Half way through.
Postponing this challenge.
Now I'm going to read the new complete works by Knut Hamsun (27 volumes), published 2007-2009.

See: http://www.librarything.com/topic/67316

Hello there. A poster named Medellia directed me to this thread. I'm new here. I had started a thread about plays, and nobody answered except Medellia, and she suggested I might try here. So I'm here.

The last play I completed was by an American author named Samson Raphaelson called "Accent on Youth." It was lovely. I would love to speak with someone who really knows American drama, not just the greats, but the near-greats, like Raphaelson.

I'm currently reading "Caesar and Cleopatra" by George Bernard Shaw. (It is a five act play, and I'm up to Act 4.) I have read 11 other plays by Shaw (I started reading him in the early 1990's) and when I finish "CaC" I plan to read another play by Shaw called "Captain Brassbound's Conversion."

I've read most of Ibsen's major works. I don't think I've ever read anything else by a Norweigan author. (I'm American.) BTW -- I love the statue you feature in your bio, kjellika -- may I know what it is called ?