The Reduced Shakespeare Company - The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) Reviews

• It helps if you know your Shakespeare very well

  
  By A9MAUO67ABVOB on 2001-06-18
  When the Reduced Shakespeare Company performs , it is a case of three apparently indefatigable actors (Adam Long, Reed Martin, Austin Tichenor) whirlwinding through the plays, some of which are barely mentioned, some of which are treated at greater length--all in 90 minutes. Well, the Good News is that the show is now available from Acorn Media on a VHS. (Note: this video contains material not shown on PBS.)

  To cut to the chase, you really have to know your Bard to get all the jokes. Treating "Titus Andronicus" as a cooking class works if you are familiar enough with the plot (the recent movie might help here); and unless you know your English kings from Richard II to Richard III (with all the Henrys in the middle), the football game with a crown as ball will have little meaning. ( I thought the line about cutting Henry VI into three parts was the best in this sketch.)

  Possibly the bit that calls for the audience's greatest degree of knowledge and concentration is the resume of a plot that combines all the Shakespearean comedies into a single play (with a very long title). There are plenty of in-jokes and bad puns throughout Act I to demand your fullest attention--and again, few of them work if you do not know the originals.

  The first act ends with a little situation in which one of the troupe refuses to do "Hamlet" and flees from the theater. When Act II begins, he has not been brought back and the remaining actor must fill the time with Monty Python-like bad routines. Once back on track, the audience is enlisted to help one of their number (I assume she is not a plant) "feel" the part of Ophelia. The trio's versatility is put to the test at the very end when they repeat the entire Hamlet production quickly, then very quickly, and finally very quickly and backwards!

  So all in all, this is a joyous romp for those "in the know" and one that might seem pretty pointless for those who have avoided Shakespeare once school was over. Therefore I must give it 4 stars out of 5 in general, although it deserves 5-plus for those who have stuck with the iambics all these years.

  A perfect gift for your English teacher, by the way. Unless you are an English teacher, in which case buy one for yourself.
  
  

• Finally on DVD!

  
  By A11YV6VC51HJTV on 2003-11-07
  I was introduced to the Reduced Shakespeare Company when I was cast in a production of "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [Abridged]" in college. The play was the funniest thing I'd ever done -- I pulled a muscle when I first read the script simply from laughing too hard -- and I've been a huge fan of theirs ever since.

  Finally, their premiere production is available on DVD! This video of a production starring Reed Martin, Austin Tichenor and Adam Long is as funny as the script was the first time I read it. I was unusual, after having been in the play myself, to see how some of the originators actually envisioned the scenes, as well as how the scenes had evolved in the years since the play was first published -- the Titus Andronicus cooking show, for instance, went from a cross-dressing gag to an Emeril parody. It was still hysterically funny.

  The DVD also has a surprising amount of special features, including a video of the complete "Romeo and Juliet" segment from the first ever production of the show, starring Adam Long, Jess Winfield and Daniel Singer. (It's also interesting to note how THAT scene evolved from the first production until the date of publication.)

  If you're an RSC fan, this is a great DVD. If you've never seen one of their shows before, watch this DVD -- you'll become a fan.
  
  

• What dreck!

  
  By on 2001-11-27
  If looking for a witty and intelligent send-up of Shakespeare you should avoid this video like the plague! I ordered this in hopes of finding a cerebrally humorous spin on the Bard -- in the vein of the Black Adder or Monty Python series -- and was profoundly disappointed. What I found were pedestrian pratfalls and predictable jokes. If you seek sophmoric humor this video might suit you very well. Otherwise, look elsewhere.
  
  

• Preview Before Sharing With Students

  
  By A23Q35UIKW3ZK9 on 2002-05-20
  For maximum enjoyment, you should know Hamlet because it takes up half of the production. Also, the jokes are best if you have a pretty solid knowledge of Mr. Shakespeare. Even so, the video is appealing in a Three Stooges kind of way even if you have no idea about this guy Shakespeare. The fact that all of the comedies are covered in one fell swoop is a funny (and accurate) commentary in itself. The best part is that Shakespeare is seen as F-U-N for all ages. ***Caution- As with every video, preview before showing to your classes. There are a few curse words and other touchy material. Othello's *ahem* manhood is alluded to in a ...stereotypical way and the Titus Andronicus cooking show, while humorous, does rely on a bit of black humor. I find the majority of this video to be best suited to English majors and 12th-grade students.
  
  

• Worth Every Penny

  
  By A1KOE1128CTCTI on 2001-11-09
  I just happened to see these guys on PBS and I laughed so hard I developed a headache and a slight bronchial congestion. I bought the VHS and it is one of my prized collectibles. Only one sour note, it is not available in DVD.
  
  
• Class in stitches!
  By A238N41KA3EY86 on 2002-03-21
  My Shakespeare class is made up of high school juniors and seniors who beg for more each time I show them a segment from this video! They appreciate the rip-roaring humor these three gentlemen pump into Shakespeare's works. As their teacher, I enjoy watching them delight in the Bard. Some may feel this video is trite, but the fact remains that real enjoyment can only be had if one is familiar with the work. Watching this video has enticed my students to actually want to read the plays!
  This is a teachers must-have tool if you're doing Shakespeare.
  
  
• Hilarious, good-humored fun
  By A17F1F7T8PRDGN on 2002-11-30
  I saw this group when I was studying abroad in London. While I have not seen the video, the concept is great: All of Will Shakespeare's works in 90 minutes. From Romeo and Juliet to Hamlet, to the lesser known works, this video provides an entertaining hour and a half. Shakespeare purists will probably hate this video, but for those who are not as strict in their interpretation of the Bard, you will probably love it. For English teachers, this is a wonderful tool to help students see a lighter side of high school's "required readings." Hopefully, PBS will also put out a video of their Complete History of the United States in 90 minutes as well. ...
  
  
• Hilarious Troupe
  By A224WAVK68KDN9 on 2001-10-15
  OK, I'll be honest. I haven't actually seen this tape yet, but I've been lucky enough to see these guys perform their "abridged" versions of the master works live a couple of times. ABSOLUTELY LAUGH OUT LOUD HILARIOUS. And this from a woman who doesn't find much funny (Monty Python, Elizabeth Peters and Margaret Cho are about the extent). BUY THIS TAPE. Support this troupe. Laugh a lot!
  
  
• A gut-busting laugh!
  By A3C66VNC5EH4CN on 2002-01-02
  I must admit that I too do not own this video, but am about to buy it. I saw Reduced Shakespeare on PBS on New Year's day and am still sore from laughing. It is inspired lunacy and of course it is even funnier to lovers of Shakespeare's works. Although I must admit that I always thought that Titus Andronicus was beyond saving. I was wrong!
  
  
• Hilarious in ALL interpretations!
  By A3EWFYFR0JGQB1 on 2002-09-10
  I've always been a fan of Shakespeare, but his eloquent Old English was sometimes, ok, ALWAYS over my head. A couple of years ago my school (with my acting skills, of course) put on an ensemble version of the play. Working with our interpretation and performing in front of an audience was amazingly hilarious, and I thought the real version couldn't be any better. Then my mother and I went to London in July of last year with online-purchased tickets in hand to head to th Piccadilly Circus to see "Complete Works" there. It was wonderful! I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my life! The actors are incredibly talented, pulling off numerous characters with only three men (yes--they even play the women, which is histoically accurate, might I add). I honestly haven't seen the video yet, but I know it will hold even more surprises! I can't wait to see it, and I hope you feel the same!
  
  
• It should have been 5, but that DIRECTION!!...
  By A2MW90O3P2GOO5 on 2003-05-07
  The material, the actors, the show, are all hilarious from beginning to end. This SHOULD have been a DVD to treasure in its entirety... BUT. In adapting the piece to the TV screen, the director (Paul Kafno, I name names!) has gone berserk! Incessantly cutting to the audience reacting to the jokes, instead of allowing US to react; cutting to close-ups when it is vital to the joke that we see the full stage; a positive genius for having the camera in the wrong place at the wrong time; and at least half a dozen (based on audience reaction) jokes we don't get to see because the camera is showing the afore-mentioned reactions; all serve to undercut what could have been a perfect gem
  
  
• Laugh at "the Bard?" No, Laugh WITH "the Bard!"
  By A3EIB0GQAA30OL on 2005-09-01
  The reduced Shakespeare Company's Production of "The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged)" rates as the funiest "play on plays" I have ever seen! What makes the production extraordinary is that it's funny if you don't know Shakespeare, funnier if you know a LITTLE Shakespeare, and absolutely HYSTERICAL if you know Shakespeare's plays! As an added bonus, the "Special Features" includes an amateur video of a portion of the ORIGINAL performance of the play by the Reduced Shakespear Company, and, even for the reduced video quality, it's very, very funny! This was a purchase well worth the money!
  
  
• Cool
  By on 2001-05-31
  Saw it on PBS. It is a work of genius to rival the Bard's craft, and worthy of great acclaim.
  
  
• me and my willy
  By A7RTQ9PHHA3R6 on 2001-09-18
  The Reduced Shakespeare Co. is by far the funniest production i have ever come to see. i would have never thought that being stuck in English class and reading shakespeare would ever pay off. i get the jokes more than my friends do but either way if you've read 1 book by willy or you've read them all this movie, book, and play are a worthy investment.
  if i may make a sugestion: don't READ shakespeare... i swear they've probably made a movie of it.
  
  
• A real disappointment.
  By A39D6I6HMIY3D on 2002-11-13
  I wanted to like this video. I love shakespeare and I think it is ripe for parody. As funny as these guys are, and they are very funny, the humor is in their skills and not in the material. Buy this video for the humor and slapstick, but do not expect an intelligent use of the Bard's material. I believe the concept (presenting the works all at once in a rapid humorist way) is a great idea. Unfortunately this presentation did not do it successfully.
  
  
• Laughed so hard it hurt
  By A3NK98D17TAN6Q on 2003-12-29
  my mother in law on Christmas Eve. I gave this to my husband for Christmas and we were only going to show bits to the family to see how it was-but we ended up watching the whole thing. My mother in-law, a great grandmother twice over, laughed so hard she almost needed medical attention. The next day, she would see things that reminded her of scenes and would laugh all over again. My teenage boys also found this to be hilarious and wanted to see it more than once. Definitely a DVD for the whole family...I'm not a fan of the "Titus" scene-humor about cut off hands isn't my bag-but it was in the play... I liked the Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet parts, especially since they were required reading in school. The only drawback is that you laugh so long at each joke you miss the next line. You should definitely own this one so you can catch the parts you missed first go around.
  
  
• An Imaginative, Irreverent and Insanely Funny Farce
  By AQBRMBQ99ESI7 on 2006-03-13
  This will not appeal to everyone. People who love Shakespeare but take it too seriously will find it appalling. For anyone who has a sense of humor and likes the absurd, it is a must see, even if you don't like Shakespeare. It is hilarious!
  
  Three guys take it upon themselves to produce an evening of the complete works of Shakespeare. They even throw in the sonnets for free. Needless to say, this involves some cutting of corners. A lot of corners are cut. This results in lots of corners being cut. The results are hilarious.
  
  Every play gets at least an allusion but a few are taken with a little more depth. The evening starts out with Romeo and Juliet and then progresses to a quick summary of Titus Andronicus. The comedies are breezed through and then we get Macbeth, the histories and are set up for Hamlet. They actually do Hamlet three times...four if you count doing it backwards.
  
  It's a night of fun and audience participation. It is highly recommended.
  
  
  
• "I refuse to perform vomitless Shakespeare!"
  By A302QBBIPHAYSG on 2006-09-16
  
  There are a few moments in the play that thankfully my younger children didn't seem to get, but I wouldn't have missed their acting it out afterwards for all the money in the world!
  
  One reviewer wrote that it helps to have a knowledge of Shakespeare before watching, and I agree to an extent. That does make it funnier when they combine the titles of the comedies, however I also feel that someone unfamiliar will want to become familiar after watching this group play with the material so easily.
  
  Fantastic and refreshing!
  
  
• Don't Get Shakespeare? Try this!
  By A3VIJ5TEZMFX8A on 2007-03-11
  I first encountered this grandly amusing entertainment as a live production at my university campus some years ago. My son and I decided to to go based solely on the play's title, and a winking characature of Shakespeare displayed on the poster. Little did we know what that wink signified, as we had no idea of the lunacy that was in store for us. When "The Reduced Shakespeare Company" came available on VHS (then, later, DVD), I purchased it, and have been enjoying and sharing it ever since.
  
  As a secondary English teacher, I have difficulty sometimes getting my students to embrace the classics. When I mention Shakespeare, eyes roll, heads fall onto desks, and moans can be heard. It's like getting a small child to eat his vegetables. Like broccoli, the classics are good for us, but they're hard for some to digest.
  
  Enter the Reduced Shakespeare Company with its "The Complete Works of "William Shakespeare (Abridged)." I have used excerpts in class to show the kids that Shakespeare can be a lot of fun. With their more-or-less complete versions of "Romeo and Juliet" and "Hamlet," even my most resistant students know the major plot points and themes of these plays.
  
  The overview of the other plays is inspired, lumping the main ideas of Shakespeare's comedies into one tossed-salad. The histories are also compressed in a manner that only Americans could have devised.
  
  And, one can never view "Othello" in quite the same way after hearing the "Reduced Shakesperians" rendition of "Othello Rap."
  
  This performance is much more (or less) than a teaching tool. It is a rollicking, comedic fun time for all. If you like Shakespeare already, you'll like the witty satire going on here. If you like the Three Stooges, the slapstick is right up your alley. If you have a short attention span, don't worry. One can view this performance as a whole, or pick out bits one finds amusing.
  
  I have viewed "The Complete Works" several times now, both with my family and with my students, and each time I find a new joke, or even a new insight, that I missed earlier.
  
  Some have suggested that Shakespeare is perhaps rolling in his grave at this treatment of his plays. I like to believe, however, that if he were alive today, Will would be laughing--all the way to the bank.
  
  
• WOWO!!!!!
  By A3MOAWAHDRPPCI on 2002-02-16
  I don't understand anyone who doesn't think Reduced Shakespeare is anything less than perfection...because it's the perfect combination between intellectual humor and slapstick. It's funny for those who don't know Shakespeare and hilarious for those who do! I'd recommend this video to anyone! The book is great to read to!
  
  
• Twisted And Hilarious
  By A3DWXVGOE2XZIQ on 2002-10-23
  Well worth your time and money......yes, they do manage to cram it all in, my kids loved it (it's how they wished *all* Shakespeare was). It's the ending you always wanted to really see for Hamlet, we *knew* Titus was going to be a cooking show, Othello you have to see (because you wouldn't imagine *this* one!), how fast can you possible run through English history anyway...Henry who? And the best part is they manage to keep the story lines intact, so it's not sacrilegious. An absolutely great way to storm the Bard.....belongs in every Shakespeare collection.....*way* too funny to pass up.
  
  
• DO NOT EAT OR DRINK THE FIRST TIME YOU SEE THIS DVD!!!
  By A1DKTFS20C0BF2 on 2005-01-07
  At the time I am writing this review, I am a college junior pursuing an English major. I was introduced to this comedic troupe completely by accident when I heard explosions of laughter coming from my next-door neighbors dorm room. I wandered over to see what was so funny at 2:00 am and walked into a sight that I still laugh at to this day.
  
  Four of my best friends were sprawled around the room laughing their heads off at something on the TV. I glanced over to see what they were looking at, and found them watching the "Hamlet" portion of this DVD. I sat down to watch it with them, and even though I had no clue what was going on, and had just been woken up, even I was forced into hiliarity by this performance.
  
  The next day I returned to their room (soda in hand)
  and watched it again with them from the beginning, laughing so hard that at one point I actually spat out a mouthful of Diet Coke all over the carpet when they pulled a particularly funny joke. Since then I have been a fan and have watched this movie more times than I can count, and I now own my own copy.
  
  You do not have to know Shakespeare to understand this show. The three actors (Reed, Austin, and Adam) take you on a rip-roaring, side-tickling, laugh-out-loud adventure into Shakespeare's work in only 90 minutes, and it doesn't even seem that long while watching the show, because you are so easily distracted by the slapstick humor and complete and utter lunacy of this show.
  
  What I do find interesting is the attempt at the beginning of the show to put on an air of seriousness and thus throw off the thought that this is a comedy. Austin gets up on stage and does a five minute ramble on "stepping into the future" and "placing a copy of the Complete Works into every hotel room in the world". Adam does a remarkably funny spiel about Shakespeare's life, badly confusing it with Adolf Hitler, which is the first indication of this crazy ride.
  
  From a condensed version of "Romeo and Juliet", to "Othello" performed as a rap, to all of the histories in one fell swoop as a football game, this three men are talented at keeping you off-balance and laughing the entire way.
  
  I highly recommend that anyone even looking at these reviews invest the money and buy a copy of this DVD or VHS. You will not be disappointed! However, I also suggest that you do not eat or drink while watching this production, unless you (inevitably) wish to find yourself cleaning up spilled food and drink at the end, as I did when I first saw this movie.
  
  
• 4 thos who spk the lang Shkespear spok
  By AXWZODCO5M16S on 2005-10-18
  A romp through Shakespeare, with an asterisk. The 'abridging' is hilarious - It is best to familiarize oneself with some of the plays to catch the shortcuts incorporated. Now that my 11-year-old daughter has seen this, she may even read the Shakespeare she is presented with in school!
  
  
• Woah, baby!
  By A4C69BVFXIGVC on 2001-08-06
  I got this video a month or two ago, and it's keeping me in stitches! Even if you don't know any Shakespeare at all, this video would still crack you up.
  
  
• This be a hoot!
  By AQ6SV7LDSMGBE on 2002-04-11
  I show this to my HS Sophomores. It's a blast. They asked to see it again.
  
  
• Funny without having read all the the Bard's works
  By A3AAESKSIRB34W on 2002-07-29
  Some of the other reviews have suggested you may not enjoy this as much if you're not familiar with most of Shakespeare's works, but my 8 year old whose knowledge of Shakepeare is via Disney and the Wishbone television series, laughed throughout at the antics of the actors. The humour includes moments of slapstick and pure silliness as well as poking fun at the great works. Knowing the basic plot of Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet will help your enjoyment, but it's certainly not necessary to get a good laugh.
  
  
• the reduced shakespeare company
  By A2940HWGJA0XO6 on 2002-09-02
  absolutely amazing. there were times i was laughing too hard to see, and other times that my dad was laughing so hard i thought he might die! they are non stop funny and everyone i've showed this to has wanted a copy.
  
  
• Othello-- Green Jello--well, it rhymes
  By on 2002-12-05
  I used to work at the Criterion Theatre in London and saw this show seven times a week for a little over a year. I didn't get tired of this one. Even saw the original "woman" (Adam Long, brilliant in this video) a few times. It is mostly slapstick humor, but there are a few "educated" jokes thrown in (Example: the American Football game of the Histories) that are also quite funny. True, the Comedies sequence can be a bit hard to follow if you are not familiar with the plays, but it also works well as a bit of nonsense. Well, the whole show is nonsense...
  My favorite is the Hamlet sequence, and just in case you were wondering, the Ophelia girl is not a plant. I cannot now remember which play had the interpretive performance art sequence, but that is rather good too.
  I recommend this for older school and university students.
  
  
• Excuse my typos....
  By ASAHP8Q966ZKM on 2004-01-01
  ...but I'm still weak with laughter. The appeal of this tape is wide ranging. I watched it with another adult, a 3rd young retarded adult, an 8 year old & a 5 year old. So, 3 of the 5 of us didn't know Shakespeare from Uncle Sam - but we laughed until we cried. By the 2nd viewing, everyone was shouting out her favorite lines. OOB! OOB! The first half is a lightning attack on "all of the plays, including the sonnets." The second half (oh dear) they realize there's still one play to go: Hamlet. They enact it several times, becoming more & more manic, & culminating with "Ladies & Gentlemen, Hamlet backwards." At this point the other adult fell off the couch. ~wink~ put down some papers, or pass around Depends. OOB!
  
  
• "I'll Get the Wig..."
  By A3FUCAIIN9T5HC on 2005-01-09
  I first saw this DVD at my best friend's house at a recent sleep-over on New Years Eve. Thank god her parents were not at home because we would have probably annoyed them with the amount of times we laughed at the antics of Adam, Reed and Austin. Their performance was an absolute hoot! The play condences Shakespeare's 37 plays and 152 sonnets into one 90 minute comedy riot. The performance contains lots of hilarious slap-stick comedy and one-liners in a laugh-fest that would set the greatest of comedy genius' rolling in the aisles.
  
  What can you look forward to? All 16 of Shakespeare's comedies are combined into one play called (among other things) "Four Weddings and a Transvestite" and all of his histories are made into a football game with the performers running all over stage "killing" each other and throwing a crown around with running commentary. "Romeo and Juliet" is done in a 15 minute run of slap-stick with Austin narrating and Reed and Adam performing all the parts. "Titus Androgenus" is done as a cooking show and "Othello" turns into a rap. Act Two of the show is devoted to "Hamlet", with an audience member playing Ophelia. They also do two fast versions and a backwards version as an encore.
  
  This performance is sure to please anyone who enjoys Shakespeare or comedy. It is a hilarious blend of comedy and "educational Shakespeare". This is a must have!
  
  

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