Shakespeare: The Animated Tales

Originally airing on HBO in late 1992 and early 1993, Shakespeare: The Animated Tales is a joint Soviet-British production of six of the Bard's plays (Hamlet, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Romeo and Juliet, The Tempest, and Twelfth Night). Based on condensed screenplays from Shakespeare scholar and novelist Leon Garfield, and animated by the famed Russian Soyuzmultfilm studio, the series is aimed at introducing young audiences to the works of the greatest writer the world has ever known. Although the abridgments provoke mixed feelings, the strengths here far outweigh the weaknesses. Each of the plays retains Shakespeare's language (which will, of course, present a problem for many children; yet, I would argue, in this case, that exposure is more important than perfect comprehension), as well as the major themes. Blood flows and lovers clasp, and these aspects of the Bard's work are not toned down for kids. Young boys will probably take to Macbeth--with its battle scenes and one-on-one bloodshed as the titular hero hacks his way to the top, while young girls will be attracted to the tragic story of the star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet (the delicately handled love scene nevertheless makes it clear that the duo are naked, a sight which set my 11-year-old daughter Jazza off on a protracted giggling fit). With the exception of Romeo and Juliet, whose cel animation is rather pedestrian looking, the animation of the tales is both striking and varied. Hamlet, the story of the quintessential fence sitter, features extraordinary animation created by painting on glass. The haunting, swirling colors capture perfectly the ghostly elements of the tale as well as the brooding, lonely aspects of the central character. Macbeth, which uses regular cel animation, is a very stylized piece filled with wonderfully contrasting colors (the dolorous looking Macbeth and the shiny gold King's crown, for example). A Midsummer Night's Dream is a brighter, pastel-like piece which nicely captures Shakespeare's lighthearted romantic fantasy set in an enchanted wood. Finally, both The Tempest and Twelfth Night use stop-motion puppet animation to tell their tales of a deposed duke's revenge on his relations (The Tempest), and a romantic story of a shipwrecked girl who dresses up as a boy with comic results (Twelfth Night). Although the series will probably be used by senior high students who won't want to read the play, these abridgments are better than Cliff's Notes, and may be the only Shakespeare that many kids will be exposed to in their early years. So while the lover of literature in me cringes at the lost scenes in the animated tales, the practical side of me is thankful that condensed (but not watered-down) Shakespeare will be available to a much wider audience. Highly recommended. [Note: illustrated paperback editions of the tales are also available from Random House for $6.99 each or $11.99 each with library binding.] (Available from most distributors.)