Spotlight On ANONYMOUS: Shakespeare's Top 5 Deceptions

Today we conclude our special series consisting of five entries total, each of which highlight a different facet of the rich and wonderful world of William Shakespeare and all with a particular emphasis on the controversial new feature film that explores the time, place, politics and goings-on of the Elizabethan era and focuses on the possibility that the true author of the esteemed plays we now know may very well have been someone else entirely - Edward de Vere - and how the question of the canon's true creation then comes into play - ANONYMOUS.

"All the world's a stage," after all, so it should come as no surprise that acts of lust, bloodshed and betrayal would exist in the actual life - or even the supposed one - of the man who created the most bloody and thought-provoking tragedies in the history of literature - whoever he may have actually been. Perhaps some brief analysis of the finest leading players, most memorable lines and moments, as well as an exploration of other notable acts of grand betrayal in Shakespeare's plays will aid us on the journey to understanding the thesis of ANONYMOUS and bring us into a closer relationship with the individual who penned the greatest plays in the English language.

Now that we have already analyzed the top ten male and female Shakespearean performers of the last few decades, as well as the most memorable lines and moments, today, in our final installment of the 5 Top 5 countdown, we are focusing on the most surprising and dramatic moments of deception in Shakespeare - including moments from HAMLET, JULIUS CAESAR, THE WINTER'S TALE, AS YOU LIKE IT and more!

Be sure to check out the introductory essay in this Spotlight On ANONYMOUS series here, as well as the four previous columns in this 5 Top 5 special series singling out the top present day leading men and leading ladies of Shakespeare on film and onscreen, as well as best lines and moments.

A little bit AMADEUS, with a touch of TIMON OF ATHENS; a dash of DANGEROUS LIASONS and a heaping of HENRY IV: Parts 1 and 2; a generous helping of SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE with a wink to MERCHANT OF VENICE; a bit of BARRY LYNDON and a hint at HAMLET; romance and jealousy ala Romeo & Juliet; Iago-ian sexual intrigue evocative of OTHELLO; maybe even a malicious, macabre moment of murderous violence or two reminiscent of MACBETH; then, all of it collectively taken, shaken, stirred and whipped up into a visual feast only the man behind THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW could possibly conjure up - like THE TEMPEST's Trinculo himself. That is only some of what ANONYMOUS can and could very well turn out to be. Find out for yourself now or when ANONYMOUS opens in even more theaters on November 4!

The Serpent's Egg

Perhaps murderer, betrayer and grand deceiver Brutus said it best in JULIUS CAESER: "And since the quarrel / Will bear no color for the thing he is, / Fashion it thus: that what he is, augmented, / Would run to these and these extremities; / And therefore think him as a serpent's egg, /Which, hatch'd, would as his kind grow mischievous, / And kill him in the shell." Deception and betrayal is seemingly as much an essential element to the drama in the works of William Shakespeare as air, water and food are to life - absolutely, positively necessary. The list of deceptions and instances of characters turning on one another if compiled would most certainly be longer than the limitations of even the space here - especially were we to devise one consisting of all the characters who act as such in all the works -  yet there are a handful of moments that rise to the mental surface when contemplating the very best and most exciting betrayal instances - namely, the ones below; with one selection chosen from each of the four genres Shakespeare wrote his plays in, as well as the big, finAl Capper. Many of these moments are also many of the most moving and thrilling character coups in the canon and contain many beloved lines of the Bard's, but the majority of these scenes also act as an example of the unprecedented daringness and provocative nature of Shakespeare's plays and how nothing was, is or ever will be what it seems. A statue coming to life from out of stone? An emperor's right hand men both betraying and murdering him? Brothers killing and betraying brothers? As these unforgettable and evocative moments clearly evidence, how something at first seems almost always has hidden seams which, when opened, reveal new layers of meaning and metaphor underneath - especially when it comes to the wonderful and weird world of William Shakespeare.

#5 OTHELLO

Filled with more moments of jealousy, sexual intrigue and sheer evil than perhaps any other tragedy, OTHELLO is stuffed to the brim with moments of deception - none more tragic and surprising than Othello's murder of Desdemona with a pillow whilst lovemaking at Iago's behest and conviction. Yes, Iago is the ultimate physical embodiment of the act of deception, causing innumerable deaths and much destruction in his wake, and, too, the Iago who closes the curtain seems to be realizing as such since his acquaintences are now all dead - although it is far, far too late to recant, with far too much blood already spilled. See Laurence Fishburne perform Othello's tearful and tormented final monologue here, followed by his destined suicide. The lesson: never, ever trust Iago.

 

#4 AS YOU LIKE IT

Largely concerning and centering around the issue of transvestism, Shakespeare's gender-bending comedy AS YOU LIKE IT contains one of his spunkiest and strongest leading ladies in Rosalind. Watch Helen Mirren - one of the Top 5 Leading Women from earlier in our countdown - play Rosalind as her male alter-ego Ganymede in this clip from the lively 1978 BBC TV production. Even as a man, Mirren is more than merely fetching, as it clear to see in this jovial, witty, madcap sequence. After all, long before THE CRYING GAME, there was AS YOU LIKE IT. And, anyway, with a plot as hilariously complex and characters this ingratiating, what's not to love, let alone like, about this classic comedy?

 

#3 THE WINTER'S TALE

The relationship between the two central characters in Shakespeare's THE WINTER'S TALE is complex to say the least, yet perhaps no moment in all of Shakespeare packs quite the emotional punch that the Act V scene revealing the statue that has stood for twenty years coming back to life as Leontes' wife, Hermione, after she had been hastily and foolishly banished all those years before (while pregnant, no less). His betrayal of her ultimately leads to his greatest, most profound humanistic redemption in an act of truly transcendental storytelling. So, now, in lieu of a clip from an actual production, look at this elegantly designed trailer for the recent Royal Shakespeare Company production of this latter play, featuring a striking visual of the human statue in the attic as well as a moving recitation of some of Hermione's famous speech when she is returned back to life from out of cold stone - and colder hearts, now ever more feverishly defrosting before our very eyes, ears and tears.

 

#2 JULIUS CAESAR

In his INFERNO, Dante created the head of Dis, otherwise known as the devil, to be comprised of three heads - those of the three great betrayers from history: Judas, Brutus and Cassius. Considering two of those three individuals betrayed Julius Caesar, one could argue that JULIUS CAESAR may have the most significant moment of betrayal in any of Shakespeare's plays just based on that fact alone. The foreboding feeling of what is soon coming is built to perfection by Shakespeare in this scene, with every word adding to the almost impossible tension as Caesar meets his death at the hands of his own right hand men, Brutus and Cassius. Watch Charles Gray, narrator for THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW, in the title role in this 1979 BBC production of the historical tragedy, portray the fallen monach to peerless perfection. "The ides of March," indeed.

 

#1 HAMLET

The greatest act of betrayal in all of Shakespeare is undoubtedly the moment that sets into motion the Bard's most beloved and highly-praised play of all - and sets his greatest dramatic creation on his unending quest for life's meaning - the killing of HAMLET's father by Hamlet's own uncle. While the corroboration of Gertrude in enacting of the ear-drop-of-death is a constantly argued point among scholars, it is blatantly clear that Claudius commits the act with much malice aforethought. The man known as Shakespeare himself famously played the Ghost in the original production - the voice of reason in Hamlet's head (and maybe only there) - and the casting of the role in the 1964 Broadway production starring Richard Burton had an actor of near-equal footing (and also the director of said revival): John Gielgud. Just in time for Halloween, witness the chilling and horrifying moment where Hamlet is finally told the truth of his father's death here, as performed by the finest Shakespeare interpreters of their day in a production people still rave about to this very day.

So, what moments of betrayal are the most memorable to you out of all the tragedies, comedies, histories and latter plays? Certainly this list could have included a number of other moments of missed opportunity and bad luck due to malicious acts - the dual-deaths of the title characters in Romeo & Juliet being first and foremost examples; as well as many more richly detailed and dramatically rife Shakespearean scenarios. What an impossibly rich and diverse universe of intrigue Shakespeare created over the course of his 28 plays. What a life. What a man. What priceless art.

Be sure to stay tuned to BroadwayWorld for all things ANONYMOUS as we anticipate its even wider release in movie theaters on November 4. For the seventh and final entry in our SPOTLIGHT ON ANONYMOUS series, check back this weekend for the forthcoming essay all about ANONYMOUS-esque moments of deception in modern drama and musical theatre!