The Belle of Amherst Review

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(More customer reviews)This astonishing video performance of Julie Harris' one-woman show about poetess Emily Dickinson's life and work is a true tour-de-force. Ms. Harris' range of expression both physically and vocally evokes Emily Dickinson so precisely that one can hardly imagine that she ever looked or sounded any other way. The poems which are featured in this script are so deftly and subtly interwoven that the entire presentation feels seamless and eminently REAL. I am a Theatre Arts/Speech teacher at a small High School in Virginia, and my students are perpetually astonished at the humor and relevance of a video made more than twenty years ago - usually, they want to tune out anything "old". This is a rich and sumptuous piece of living literature with a tremendously broad appeal - not just Dickinson's poetry, but her unique life is showcased in this privileged interview. This is EXACTLY the kind of "living literature" that we need most in our homes and in our schools - by bringing authors and works of note to life, we can perpetuate the essential reverence for the power of the written word which has perenially distinguished our culture. Please don't let the relatively high price of this product deter you - it is an investment which will repay itself many times over!

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BELLE OF AMHERST - DVD Movie

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Much Ado About Nothing / New York Shakespeare Festival (Broadway Theatre Archive) (1973) Review

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(More customer reviews)I first saw this version of Much Ado about Nothing in the '70's, and have remembered it ever since, so I was delighted when the Broadway Theatre Archive made it available again. The setting, the "Rough Riders" era of the turn of the century, somehow suits the material better than any other I've seen, in particular Dogberry and his inept Watchmen, who appear here as Keystone Kops. Sam Waterston and Kathleen Widdoes are both completely believable, and the supporting cast is excellent.
This version is for those who want to savor every moment of the play. As far as I could tell, it includes almost every word of Shakespeare's text, and to that are added quite a few sequences without dialogue, making the entire length of the production closer to three hours than to two. For this play, this is definitely to my taste, but may not be to everyone's.
The DVD includes nothing but the performance and scene selections (by acts only). Since this play was originally filmed for television, the visual and sound quality are not exceptional, although they're not actually bad.

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In 1972, twenty million people saw the broadcast of this CBS-TV production of Shakespeare's classic tale of romance, mistaken identity, and the battle of the sexes. Though this turn-of-the-century version has Roosevelt's Rough-Riders and bicycle riding suffragettes, the story is the same: Beatrice and Benedick fight their merry war of words; the evil Don Juan conspires to disrupt the wedding of Hero and Claudio; and it's up to Dogbery to save the day. Critically acclaimed and loved by audiences, this rollicking comedy is brassy, bouncy and all-together entertaining. First presented at the New York Shakespeare Festival, this production later became the first truly successful Shakespeare play in Broadway history that did not boast a major star. Features Oscar-nominee Sam Waterston (Law & Order)as Benedick and the Tony-nominated performances of Emmy-winners Kathleen Widdoes (As the World Turns) and Barnard Hughes (Midnight Cowboy).

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