One of the few recent modern productions of The Dutch Courtesan was presented in 2008 by Edward’s Boys, the all-boys company set up by Perry Mills in 2005 with students from King Edward’s School, Stratford-upon-Avon. Edward’s Boys has established itself as one of the foremost companies working on the early modern repertory. Past productions include [read more…]
On 2nd July, Michael Billington wrote an article for the Guardian asking ‘Is it OK to rewrite classic plays?‘. Billington’s article, in which he raises concerns about the perceived need to simplify early modern plays for a modern audience, has sparked a heated discussion, but offers our production of The Dutch Courtesan as an example [read more…]
On Friday 21st June, leading theatre critic Michael Billington set the stage for the evening performance of The Dutch Courtesan, discussing the production of Jacobean plays on the contemporary stage in conversation with Dutch Courtesan director Michael Cordner. [vimeo 69756391 w=575&h=322]
On Tuesday 4th June, Perry Mills joined us to work with the cast and to share his insight into The Dutch Courtesan. In 2008 Perry directed the play with Edward’s Boys, the company of boys from King Edward’s School, Stratford-upon-Avon, which works on the repertory of the early modern boys companies. Perry later shared his [read more…]
Until recently a play’s objects have been an under-examined component of the early modern repertory.[1] Editors’ glosses may go some way towards explaining the meaning of a now-forgotten implement, but even seemingly straight-forward explanations seldom manage to reinvigorate the cultural currency the playwright and original audiences once understood that object to have. Rediscovering some of [read more…]
The Dutch Courtesan is rarely performed on the modern stage. We list here several productions, along with references to reviews and reports [*please note, links marked with an asterisk require institutional log in]. If you know of others, please let us know and we will add it to the list. Theatre Royal, Stratford East [read more…]
The Olivier Award-winning actor Oliver Ford Davies is a Professional Associate of the Department of Theatre, Film and Television at the University of York and gave the 2011 Cantor Modern Art Lecture at the University on Did Gertrude Know? Some Problems in Performing Shakespeare. In addition to a distinguished array of performances in leading Shakespearean [read more…]
The Dutch Courtesan features, in its dialogue and in its stage action, a host of objects. Many remain familiar parts of our lives. Others, however, now require explication, and some seem puzzlingly exotic. There is, for instance, the “standing cup parcel-gilt, of thirty-two ounces, eleven pound, seven shillings” which Mulligrub proudly purchases (3.2), or the [read more…]
We have designed these pages as a place where questions about the play can be raised, and views sought about the issues they raise. We have started the ball rolling by posing a few queries and requests for information below, and will doubtless add to them as rehearsals proceed. We also invite visitors to the [read more…]