Digging Deeper with Denver Public Library
The Denver Public Library recommends these library resources to enhance your experience at Nashville Ballet’s production of Lucy Negro Redux
Lucy Negro Redux is an original ballet choreographed by Nashville Ballet’s Artistic Director Paul Vasterling based on Caroline Randall William’s book of poetry of the same name. The piece explores the author’s thesis that the “Dark Lady” and the “Fair Youth” – the subjects and inspiration of hundreds of Shakespeare’s love sonnets – were undoubtedly a black woman and a young man, respectively.
READ
I’ll Fly Away: Poems by Rudy Francisco, spoken word author – a poetry collection about language barriers and (mis)communication. Check out his live performances on YouTube.
Mad Blood Stirring by Simon Mayo. The British radio DJ’s first novel for adults is a sprawling yarn about 1,000 black American sailors held in Dartmoor’s Block 4 who staged productions of Shakespeare during their incarceration.
Shakespeare’s Sonnets edited by Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. The authoritative edition from The Folger Shakespeare Library, including annotations, illustrations, and more.
WATCH
H4. (Kanopy)
H4 translates Shakespeare’s plays, Henry IV parts I and II, into a futuristic Los Angeles to explore political struggles in the black community.
Shakespeare’s Sonnets (Kanopy)
This beautifully produced program features specially filmed performances of all 154 sonnets by a stellar cast of actors including, Fiona Shaw, Sir Patrick Stewart and David Tennant.
The Hobart Shakespeareans (DVD)
Rafe Esquith teaches fifth-grade in a dangerous section of Los Angeles and engages the children in Shakespeare, making sure his students understand the importance of self-respect and hard work.The film builds to a climax with the students performing Hamlet with the assistance of such famous actors as Ian McKellen and Michael York.
LISTEN
Fools and Mortals by Bernard Cornwell (CD audio)
Young actor Richard Shakespeare struggles to make his mark in a theater company dominated by his estranged older brother, William. Their rivalry is the centerpiece of this high-stakes story of conflict and betrayal.
Shakespeare’s Sonnets Poetry in Audio by William Shakespeare, read by David Butler (eaudio)
Over 150 exquisite poems deal with love, friendship, the tyranny of time, beauty’s evanescence, death, and other themes in language unsurpassed in passion, precision, originality, and beauty.
Shakespeare: In Music & Words (CD audio)
Features famous classical pieces inspired by Shakespeare’s best-loved plays and poems, and a selection of Shakespeare’s most famous speeches from his plays and sonnets performed by a variety of singers, voice actors and musicians.