British Universities Film & Video Council

moving image and sound, knowledge and access

Still Will

Synopsis
Radio series showcasing feature reports and discussions on cultural subjects. For a poet and playwright whose virtuosic way with words continue to dominate English literature, there’s an extraordinary and often overlooked potency also in his silences, stillness and quietness. Laura Barton listens closely to the spaces between Shakespeare’s words and explores the acoustic qualities of the circumstances in which they were performed. She talks with the actor Niamh Cusack, who’s played Desdemona and Juliet in large theatres and, most recently, Paulina in The Winter’s Tale at the intimate Sam Wanamaker Playhouse. Acoustician Byron Harrison imagines the soundworld inhabited by actors on the Elizabethan stage and unpicks the science of theatre design. Shakespeare scholar Lesel Dawson reads the plays for moments of silent wonder, resistance, horror and narrative tension and Steven Connor considers how Shakespeare communicates ‘beyond words’ - looking with ears, hearing with eyes.
Series
Sunday Feature
Language
English
Country
Great Britain
Medium
Radio
Transmission details
1 May 2016 at 18:45 (Channel: BBC Radio 3)
Duration
45 mins

Credits

Producer
Alan Hall
Contributor
Byron Harrison; Laura Barton; Lesel Dawson; Niamh Cusack; Steven Connor

Additional Details

Production type
Documentary/Educational/News
Subjects
Drama
Keywords
acoustics; Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); sound effects; stage design; Elizabethan stage

Production Company

Name

Falling Tree Productions

Archive

Name

British Library Sound Archive

Email
listening@bl.uk
Web
http://www.bl.uk/nsa External site opens in new window
Phone
020 7412 7676
Fax
020 7412 7441
Address
96 Euston Road
London
NW1 2DB

Record Stats

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