Antony and Cleopatra

Arkangel, which intends to produce all 38 of Shakespeare's plays, presents one of Shakespeare's tragedies, which concerns the struggle between the desire for a woman and the duty of politics. The cast consists of gifted British film and theater actors. This dramatic performance is faithful to Shakespeare's text, and the actors are excellent; it is no mere reading of the text. But while there is never a moment when one has to strain to hear the words of a performer, the play is not easy to follow without the text. The use of Scottish and cockney accents for some of the characters takes some time to adjust to, but in the end it works. M.L.C. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine

This production performed by the Shakespeare Recording Society (with special guests)--is excellent in its recording quality. Pamela Brown's performance as Cleopatra herself certainly stands out. What she does with the words of the anguished queen is like what Edith Piaf did with a common love song. With her deep breaths and moaning, it would have been easy for Brown to fall over that delicate edge of emoting into a pit of melodrama, but she never does. Listeners are given an energetic and passionate woman. And with Anthony Quayle's dashing Antony and Paul Daneman's regal Caesar, the triumvirate is wildly successful. R.A.P. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

The challenge of taking a play created for the stage and translating it to the audio format may seem daunting, but this production does just that--exceptionally well. The use of sound is outstanding--seagulls caw, swords clash, and crickets chirp to indicate sea, battle, and night scenes. The actors speak close to the microphone to convey the play's asides, and transitional music creatively denotes setting changes from Rome to Alexandria. As for voice talent, the triumvirate triumphs, and Frances Barber perfectly captures both Cleopatra's rage and hysteria. With neither the text nor a live actor to reference, in group scenes it can be difficult to tell exactly who is speaking, but not so much as to adversely affect this enjoyable experience. M.D. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine