The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) (TV 2000)

Three guys, one dead playwright, and 37 plays, all in under two hours. In this universally acclaimed theater experience, Adam Long (one of the troupe's founding members), Reed Marin, and ... See full summary »

Director:

Paul Kafno

Writers:

Adam Long, Reed Martin (additional material),

Stars:

Adam Long, Reed Martin, Austin Tichenor

Cast

Cast overview:
Adam Long	...	Himself / others
Reed Martin	...	Himself / others
Austin Tichenor	...	Himself / others

Storyline

Three guys, one dead playwright, and 37 plays, all in under two hours. In this universally acclaimed theater experience, Adam Long (one of the troupe's founding members), Reed Marin, and Austin Tichenor manage to compress the complete works of Shakespeare into about an hour and 40 minutes of high-speed over-the-top hilarity. Knowledge about Shakespeare's works is helpful, but not at all necessary. All that is needed is time enough to watch and someone to dial 911 in case you pass out from laughing so much.

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Plot Keywords:

theater | drag queen | filmed play | rap | professor | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

Canada UK

Language:

English

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Did You Know?

Trivia

The music played by 'Adam Long' as he plays the guitar during the epilogue of the Romeo and Juliet sketch is the main theme from Romeo and Juliet, directed by Franco Zeffirelli.

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Quotes

Reed Martin: Take the time now to locate the exit nearest your seat.
[makes gestures a la an airplane flight attendant pointing out the exits]
Reed Martin: If the room should experience a sudden change in pressure, oxygen masks will drop down in front of you. Place the mask over your mouth and nose and continue to breathe normally. If you're here with a small child, please place your own mask on first, and let the little bugger fend for himself.
[laughter]

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Connections

References Jaws (1975)

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Soundtracks

"Mah Nà Mah Nà"
(uncredited)
Written by Piero Umiliani
Performed by Austin Tichenor

User Reviews

"Brevity is the soul of wit.*" "*Ain't that the truth!"

I had seen bits and pieces of this before, mainly done by competitors in speech and debate tournaments. I found the script funny, but there was always something lacking in the competitors.

When my mom, aunt, and I had the opportunity to see the entire original play in London, I discovered why! Not only was it the obvious; professional actors who actually knew what they were doing, but intense physical comedy. The combination of slapstick galore, eloquent Shakespearean verse, modern twists for humor, and cheap cheesy props made this THE funniest play I have ever seen, and believe me, that's a strong compliment; I'm an avid theatre goer and find many things funny, but this is the creme de la creme! After an hour and a half of non-stop diaphragmatic convulsing over absurd Shakespeare, the show was over and we returned to our hotels, groups, and individual tour. Several of the occurrences always stuck with me; and though this is not uncommon for me, I would think of something that happened in the show that would get me laughing hysterically out of nowhere. A short while after my mother and I returned home, I discovered through the Reduced Shakespeare Company's website that the video was available and jumped for joy! At Christmas, one of my many wonderful gifts happened to be this video! As we see, it stars Adam Long, one of the 3 writers of the show, who continues to perform it in London last I knew, Reed Martin, and Austin Tichenor. All three hilarious in their own ways. Although this is definitely better seen live, as most shows are, I have not met a single person who didn't laugh hysterically at SOME point while watching the video. This is one of my favorite videos in my collection, right up there with my Monty Python shrine! On a semi-related note, anyone interested may want to check out the actual script to "The Complete Works. . ." It's available through the Reduced Shakespeare Company's website, and I'm sure through certain booksellers, or Amazon, or even a public library somewhere. The script is mostly what is on the video, but contains many hilarious footnotes, pictures, and several introductions that are definitely worth it! 10 stars!