Reading Early Plays (REP)
@playsrep.bsky.social
REP meets regularly online to read & explore drama written before the closure of the London theatres in 1642. Currently reading through the repertoire of The King’s Men company. Each play is introduced by Dr Martin Wiggins.
www.readingearlyplays.com
www.readingearlyplays.com
Reposted by Reading Early Plays (REP)
Stars and Statues Made Human, Olympian Knights, Princes of Virginia!
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
November 4, 2025 at 10:37 AM
Stars and Statues Made Human, Olympian Knights, Princes of Virginia!
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
Stars and Statues Made Human, Olympian Knights, Princes of Virginia!
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
November 4, 2025 at 10:37 AM
Stars and Statues Made Human, Olympian Knights, Princes of Virginia!
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
This Wednesday in REP we read three masques for the Lady Elizabeth’s Wedding in 1613.
- written by Chapman & Beaumont, designs by Inigo Jones, music by Johnson, Coprario & Confesse
No Farthingales May Be Worn
“Had I plantation of this isle, my lord … And were the king on’t, what would I do?”
- Tonight in REP we will have an AGM at 7pm, followed by a reading of The Tempest to mark its 1612/13 revival by The Kings’ Men.
- Tonight in REP we will have an AGM at 7pm, followed by a reading of The Tempest to mark its 1612/13 revival by The Kings’ Men.
October 29, 2025 at 11:12 AM
“Had I plantation of this isle, my lord … And were the king on’t, what would I do?”
- Tonight in REP we will have an AGM at 7pm, followed by a reading of The Tempest to mark its 1612/13 revival by The Kings’ Men.
- Tonight in REP we will have an AGM at 7pm, followed by a reading of The Tempest to mark its 1612/13 revival by The Kings’ Men.
Reposted by Reading Early Plays (REP)
The Shakespeare Institute Players are currently in China, touring English-translated extracts from The Peony Pavilion, a great classic written by #TangXianzu, #Shakespeare's Chinese contemporary! What an experience.
October 27, 2025 at 11:02 PM
The Shakespeare Institute Players are currently in China, touring English-translated extracts from The Peony Pavilion, a great classic written by #TangXianzu, #Shakespeare's Chinese contemporary! What an experience.
Tonight we read The Maid's Tragedy by Beaumont and Fletcher (marking its revival by The King’s Men in 1612/13)
- no difficulties finding a text, as we will be reading from group leader Martin Wiggins’ own edition of the play.
- no difficulties finding a text, as we will be reading from group leader Martin Wiggins’ own edition of the play.
October 22, 2025 at 7:58 AM
Tonight we read The Maid's Tragedy by Beaumont and Fletcher (marking its revival by The King’s Men in 1612/13)
- no difficulties finding a text, as we will be reading from group leader Martin Wiggins’ own edition of the play.
- no difficulties finding a text, as we will be reading from group leader Martin Wiggins’ own edition of the play.
We hope Princess Elizabeth & Frederick V turned up on time for the King’s Men 1613 revival of Othello, performed in celebration of their wedding (we know; not a great wedding play!)
If they wanted to attend REP’s reading of the play they’d need to be there at 7pm not 7.30 (it’s a long play).
If they wanted to attend REP’s reading of the play they’d need to be there at 7pm not 7.30 (it’s a long play).
October 15, 2025 at 7:33 AM
We hope Princess Elizabeth & Frederick V turned up on time for the King’s Men 1613 revival of Othello, performed in celebration of their wedding (we know; not a great wedding play!)
If they wanted to attend REP’s reading of the play they’d need to be there at 7pm not 7.30 (it’s a long play).
If they wanted to attend REP’s reading of the play they’d need to be there at 7pm not 7.30 (it’s a long play).
On Wednesday, the 1612 revival of Henry IV Part Two will follow our last week’s reading of Part One, as the King’s Men find the retiring Shakespeare still looking over their collective shoulders.
#ShakespeareSunday
#ShakespeareSunday
September 28, 2025 at 6:18 PM
On Wednesday, the 1612 revival of Henry IV Part Two will follow our last week’s reading of Part One, as the King’s Men find the retiring Shakespeare still looking over their collective shoulders.
#ShakespeareSunday
#ShakespeareSunday
This week we resume our chronological reading of the plays of the King’s Men: Shakespeare is nearly done with writing, but the company is not done with his plays. So we begin with their 1612 revival of Henry IV Part 1
#ShakespeareSunday
#ShakespeareSunday
a man with a beard is holding a piece of paper in his hand .
Alt: a man with a beard is holding a piece of paper in his hand; he looks as we imagine Shakespeare might; with his quill he seems to be conducting music
media.tenor.com
September 21, 2025 at 7:55 PM
This week we resume our chronological reading of the plays of the King’s Men: Shakespeare is nearly done with writing, but the company is not done with his plays. So we begin with their 1612 revival of Henry IV Part 1
#ShakespeareSunday
#ShakespeareSunday
The new season of REP play-readings kicks off with 1 Henry IV at 7.30 p.m. on 24 September, and will feature the King’s Men repertory of 1612-14, including The Duchess of Malfi, Valentinian and several Shakespearean revivals.
- see the full autumn schedule here:
www.readingearlyplays.com
- see the full autumn schedule here:
www.readingearlyplays.com
Welcome | Reading Early Plays
Reading Early Plays is a group that meets regularly online to explore drama written before the closure of the London theatres in 1642. We are interested in tracing the connections within groups of pla...
www.readingearlyplays.com
September 5, 2025 at 1:17 PM
The new season of REP play-readings kicks off with 1 Henry IV at 7.30 p.m. on 24 September, and will feature the King’s Men repertory of 1612-14, including The Duchess of Malfi, Valentinian and several Shakespearean revivals.
- see the full autumn schedule here:
www.readingearlyplays.com
- see the full autumn schedule here:
www.readingearlyplays.com
While our playreading sessions are on summer break our playmakers are wrestling with complex questions such as “How do you retrieve the headless corpse of a relative from a heavily guarded Venetian piazza?”
The answer, of course, involves sailors, friars, devils and The Cunning Florentines.
The answer, of course, involves sailors, friars, devils and The Cunning Florentines.
August 29, 2025 at 9:28 AM
While our playreading sessions are on summer break our playmakers are wrestling with complex questions such as “How do you retrieve the headless corpse of a relative from a heavily guarded Venetian piazza?”
The answer, of course, involves sailors, friars, devils and The Cunning Florentines.
The answer, of course, involves sailors, friars, devils and The Cunning Florentines.
“The soliloquies were rather ingeniously achieved by allowing the actor to smoke his pipe silently, while a low voice whispered his thoughts.”
- Julius Caesar in modern dress on British television in 1938.
- Julius Caesar in modern dress on British television in 1938.
OTD in early British television
The evening schedule of Sunday 24 July 1938 was occupied by Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Julius Caesar (billed under its full name) given in modern dress under the direction of the invariably innovative Dallas Bower.
www.illuminationsmedia.co.uk/otd-in-early...
The evening schedule of Sunday 24 July 1938 was occupied by Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Julius Caesar (billed under its full name) given in modern dress under the direction of the invariably innovative Dallas Bower.
www.illuminationsmedia.co.uk/otd-in-early...
OTD in early British television: 24 July 1938 - Illuminations
John Wyver writes: The evening schedule of Sunday 24 July 1938 was occupied by Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Julius Caesar (billed under its full name) given in modern dress by a strong company under t...
www.illuminationsmedia.co.uk
July 24, 2025 at 10:22 AM
“The soliloquies were rather ingeniously achieved by allowing the actor to smoke his pipe silently, while a low voice whispered his thoughts.”
- Julius Caesar in modern dress on British television in 1938.
- Julius Caesar in modern dress on British television in 1938.
UPDATED: the trailer for our Playmakers’ newest writing project, now with a title reveal!
(really not #ShakespeareSunday !)
(really not #ShakespeareSunday !)
July 13, 2025 at 8:13 AM
UPDATED: the trailer for our Playmakers’ newest writing project, now with a title reveal!
(really not #ShakespeareSunday !)
(really not #ShakespeareSunday !)
Reposted by Reading Early Plays (REP)
REP’s Playmakers have a new project: a new source, a new story, a new date, a new set of characters to match with a new set of King’s Men actors; eventually, a new play that looks like an old one.
July 6, 2025 at 5:11 PM
REP’s Playmakers have a new project: a new source, a new story, a new date, a new set of characters to match with a new set of King’s Men actors; eventually, a new play that looks like an old one.
REP’s Playmakers have a new project: a new source, a new story, a new date, a new set of characters to match with a new set of King’s Men actors; eventually, a new play that looks like an old one.
July 6, 2025 at 5:11 PM
REP’s Playmakers have a new project: a new source, a new story, a new date, a new set of characters to match with a new set of King’s Men actors; eventually, a new play that looks like an old one.
Tonight in REP: an evening of court masques and other incidental King's Men performances (1609-12) with accompanying music & design coming to you via Zoom.
July 2, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Tonight in REP: an evening of court masques and other incidental King's Men performances (1609-12) with accompanying music & design coming to you via Zoom.
On British television in July 1939, “Fiat Justitia”, an eclectic anthology of literary scenes on the subject of the law, including Much Ado About Nothing & The Merchant of Venice
#Shakespeare
#Shakespeare
OTD in early British television
Lookers-in on the evening of Saturday 1 July 1939 were treated to a 50-minute anthology of scenes from literature about the law.
www.illuminationsmedia.co.uk/otd-in-early...
Lookers-in on the evening of Saturday 1 July 1939 were treated to a 50-minute anthology of scenes from literature about the law.
www.illuminationsmedia.co.uk/otd-in-early...
OTD in early British television: 1 July 1939 - Illuminations
John Wyver writes: Lookers-in on the evening of Saturday 1 July 1939 were treated to a 50-minute anthology of scenes from literature about the law. Compiled by Barbara Nixon and produced by Desmond Da...
www.illuminationsmedia.co.uk
July 1, 2025 at 4:33 PM
On British television in July 1939, “Fiat Justitia”, an eclectic anthology of literary scenes on the subject of the law, including Much Ado About Nothing & The Merchant of Venice
#Shakespeare
#Shakespeare
Heminges moonlighting for his friend the Mayor, and working with Thomas Dekker, not a writer he’d had a great deal of contact with via the King’s Men, though they did revive, & perform at court, his and Webster’s Merry Devil of Edmonton in 1612
1612: Dekker's first mayoral rodeo, under the tutelage of a certain Mr Hemynges (of whom you may have heard 👀). They devised and produced a sea chariot, Neptune's throne, Envy's Castle, and Virtue's throne, inter alia
June 26, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Heminges moonlighting for his friend the Mayor, and working with Thomas Dekker, not a writer he’d had a great deal of contact with via the King’s Men, though they did revive, & perform at court, his and Webster’s Merry Devil of Edmonton in 1612
A very nice reading of the title character in The Lady of Chabry at #Britgrad2025
Thank you @shakescenery.bsky.social
Thank you @shakescenery.bsky.social
June 19, 2025 at 8:41 PM
A very nice reading of the title character in The Lady of Chabry at #Britgrad2025
Thank you @shakescenery.bsky.social
Thank you @shakescenery.bsky.social
At 6.15pm we read a play - if you’re at the Shakespeare Institute for #Britgrad2025 come & read with us.
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, as performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it’s quite convincing & enjoyable.)
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, as performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it’s quite convincing & enjoyable.)
June 19, 2025 at 9:31 AM
At 6.15pm we read a play - if you’re at the Shakespeare Institute for #Britgrad2025 come & read with us.
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, as performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it’s quite convincing & enjoyable.)
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, as performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it’s quite convincing & enjoyable.)
This evening at @britgrad.bsky.social we read a play - if you’re at the Shakespeare Institute for #Britgrad come & read with us.
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it is quite convincing.)
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it is quite convincing.)
June 19, 2025 at 7:50 AM
This evening at @britgrad.bsky.social we read a play - if you’re at the Shakespeare Institute for #Britgrad come & read with us.
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it is quite convincing.)
(* please note: this is not a real Jacobean tragedy, performed by Shakespeare’s company! We wrote it ourselves, but we do like to think that it is quite convincing.)
Reposted by Reading Early Plays (REP)
Of interest to #earlymodern folks -- new research shredding light on the insult on Shakespeare as an "upstart crow" www.leeds.ac.uk/main-index/n...
'Upstart Crow' - who insulted Shakespeare, and why?
New research has cast fresh doubt on the origins of one of the most famous insults aimed at William Shakespeare, pointing the finger at a friend of the Bard.
www.leeds.ac.uk
June 18, 2025 at 12:30 PM
Of interest to #earlymodern folks -- new research shredding light on the insult on Shakespeare as an "upstart crow" www.leeds.ac.uk/main-index/n...
Reposted by Reading Early Plays (REP)
19th June - REP goes to @britgrad.bsky.social
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.
June 10, 2025 at 9:36 AM
19th June - REP goes to @britgrad.bsky.social
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.
Reposted by Reading Early Plays (REP)
We have some incredible workshops lined up for BritGrad 2025, starting with Dr Alex Thom who will be speaking on strategies and timelines for the pursuit of funding ✨
June 14, 2025 at 2:38 PM
We have some incredible workshops lined up for BritGrad 2025, starting with Dr Alex Thom who will be speaking on strategies and timelines for the pursuit of funding ✨
Tonight in REP we return to Julius Caesar, for its 1613 revival by The King’s Men.
June 11, 2025 at 7:40 AM
Tonight in REP we return to Julius Caesar, for its 1613 revival by The King’s Men.
19th June - REP goes to @britgrad.bsky.social
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.
June 10, 2025 at 9:36 AM
19th June - REP goes to @britgrad.bsky.social
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.
16.15 - Dr Martin Wiggins & Prof Roberta Barker give a plenary lecture on Casting Early Plays.
18.15 - REP’s Playmakers invite conferencers to join them in reading The Lady of Chabry a play newly cast & created for Shakespeare’s King’s Men company.