Ok, I just got these REALLY cool Shakespeare tattoos, and the kids are LOVING them! Several people have asked where they can get some, so I’ve put them on my website for you to buy if you want for your kids! Enjoy! OR I’ll send them free with any books you purchase!!!
Shakespeare Tattoos – Kids LOVE them! was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
Ok, my version of Macbeth for Kids is funny, but if you have a spare 3 minutes, this is an absolutely funny and fantastic view of Macbeth and Macduff arguing over whether Macduff was actually “born” or not! Great stuff by Timothy McSweeney:
(Macbeth and Macduff are fencing in front of a castle.)
MACBETH: Macduff! Let fall thy blade on vulnerable crests. I bear a charmed life, which must not yield to one of woman born.
MACDUFF: Despair thy charm! Macduff was from his mother’s womb untimely ripped.
(They stop sword fighting.)
MACBETH: Pardon?
MACDUFF: I was extracted surgically, in an operation.
MACBETH: Okay, but thou wast still born, right?
MACDUFF: No. Untimely ripped.
MACBETH: Okay, but after thou wast ripped, thou wast of woman born.
MACDUFF: I don’t know…
go here to read the hilarious rest of the scene!
Macbeth vs. Macduff – Born or not born? was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
I have had many requests for signed copies of my books for students, classes, and teachers. I have finally set up my site so I can accommodate these requests easily! So, you can now buy your books directly through me and they will be signed! (yeah!) You can purchase them here.
If you ever have any questions, let me know!
That’s all!
Break a leg out there!
Brendan
Get Author Signed Copies of my Plays! was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
In order to celebrate the launch of my 13th book, Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book for Kids, I put together a little “Did you know?” page. It’s different things we learned along the path of creating this melodramatic 15 minute play from the original works of Kipling’s The Jungle Book. Enjoy!
DID YOU KNOW?
1) Disney’s cartoon version of The Jungle Book didn’t follow Rudyard Kipling’s actual story, it was “inspired” more than “based” on the book
2) The Jungle Book is a collection of 7 short stories and 7 songs
3) Kipling wrote a play version of the The Jungle Book that was never published or produced onstage
4) The monkeys in The Jungle Book are called the Bandar-log. In Hindi, “Bandar” means monkey, and “log” means people. That’s why they are known as the “monkey-people”!
5) Rudyard Kipling was born in India, where the stories of The Jungle Book take place
6) Akela means “lone” or “solitary” in Hindi
7) Cub Scouts adopted the character of Akela (the wolf) as their symbol of leadership
8) The name Mowgli is a made up word that is supposed to mean “frog” in the stories
9) Mowgli is supposed to be pronounced “Mow-gli” with Mow rhyming with cow
10) Kipling’s father, John Lockwood Kipling, drew some of the illustrations used in the original magazine publications of The Jungle Book stories
11) Tabaqui, the jackal, is pronounced Tabarky and he made up this name himself
12) There is an actual Kipling Society where you can learn all about Rudyard
13) ‘Shere’ means “Tiger” in some Indian dialects. And Khan is a title; implying Chief of the Tigers
14) ‘Baloo’ is Hindi for “Bear”
15) ‘Bagheera’ is Hindi for, you guessed it, “Panther”
16) ‘Kaa’ is actually pronounced, “Kar”
17) Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is one of The Jungle Book stories
18) ‘Rikki-Tikki-Tavi’ is pronounced, “Rikky-tikki-tar-vi”
19) ‘Nag’ the snake is pronounced, “Narg”
20) Rudyard Kipling wrote a sequel to The Jungle Book called, The Second Jungle Book
21) There is no King Louie in the original book
22) Rudyard is his middle name: Joseph Rudyard Kipling
23) Rudyard Kipling was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1907
24) The founder of the Boy Scouts personally asked Kipling’s permission to use names and images from The Jungle Book
25) Kipling admitted stealing some of the stories of The Jungle Book from other authors.
25 Facts about The Jungle Book was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
A little known fact about Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book.
Did You Know – Shere Khan? was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
In my most recent direction of my Hamlet for Kids there came the moment when the young actor comes on stage and says the line, “Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him. When I was a kid, he was the jester, the funniest guy I knew.” And the play moves on… but, this one kid, as he was going through rehearsing in many different ways, stumbled on saying it as “Yo, Rick” and his first improv was around, “Who is this Rick guy?” But, he settled for going with the break dancer avenue, as he put it, “the best breakdancer I ever knew…” Well, see for your self:
Yorick the Break Dancer (Yo-Rick!) was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
I recently coached a parent who was running an after-school program, and she asked me how I do the “death auditions” for my plays. It made me realize that I haven’t done a simple quick layout of my first day for a while, so, here it is: 1) I do a 5-8 minute, melodramatic solo performance…
Death Auditions – Give me your best Death! was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
So, I just performed Romeo and Juliet with a bunch of kids yesterday, and there were some fun anecdotal events that occurred that I just have to share! Maybe you can integrate these into your performance someday. First of all, Star Wars is all the rage, so Tybalt decided to walk out on the stage with a light…
Hamming up Romeo and Juliet was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
That’s right, I said “IN”, the Merchant IN Venice! Read below from one of our guest bloggers about a rare opportunity…
Venetian ghetto 500 years ago
I have always wondered how it would be to see Shakespeare’s characters in the places which the Bard himself thought for them, how it would be to see Lorenzo wooing Jessica outside a Venetian palace or Shylock claiming the “pound of flesh” that Antonio owed him. Now you have the opportunity to walk through the streets (or “calli” in the Venetian dialect) which have inspired Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice.
In the summer of 2016, the Colombari Company and Ca’ Foscari University of Venice will be part of an initiative called “Shylock Project” that aims at bringing the characters of The Merchant of Venice for the first time on a special stage, the Venetian Ghetto, the Jewish quarter in Venice. The Ghetto was the place where Jews were forced to live by the Venetian Republic and 2016 marks the quincentennial of its establishment. (That’s 500 years!) The Ghetto is also the place where we will perform The Merchant of Venice!
Furthermore, many brilliant scholars will be discussing the play in several meetings and seminars! Do not miss the chance to be part of this unique event, visit our website to have more information: www.themerchantinvenice.org
Federico Baldan
The Merchant IN Venice! was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
Little known fact about King Louie from Jungle Book
Did You Know? – King Louie from Jungle Book was originally published on Shakespeare for Kids Books
Brendan's thoughts 