SHAKESPEARE

Synopsis

Documentary telling the story of the founding of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival by Stratford-born journalist Tom Patterson. Patterson got together a committee of local people and invited Tyrone Guthrie to advise on the Festival and direct the plays. A fund was set up, an Elizabethan stage built, and Alec Guinness and Irene Worth were signed to perform alongside Canadian actors in Richard III and All’s Well That Ends Well. Four clips from the film may be downloaded from the Canadian Adaptations of Shakespeare website (http://www.canadianshakespeares.ca/multimedia/video/m_v_4.cfm). The clips are:
Tom Patterson. Tom Patterson dreams of establishing a Shakespearean theatre in his home town and talks to two men in a rowing boat.
Alec Guinness. Guinness gives a lesson in breath control when speaking Shakespeare to Timothy Findley.
Tyrone Guthre. Directs the entrance of the ghosts in Richard III (V v). The whistle of a train passing by interrupts and anoys him.
Battle Scene from the Opening Nght of Richard III, 1953. Illustrates the elaborately designed and choreographed sets.

Language

English

Country

United States

Medium

Film

Technical information

Colour / Sound

Year of release

1954

Duration

45 mins

Credits

Director

Morton Parker

Producer

Guy Glover

Writer

Gudrun Parker

Contributor

Alec Guinness; Irene Worth; Michael Bates; Timothy Findley; Tom Patterson; Tyrone Guthrie

Additional Details

Production type

Documentary/Educational/News

Plays

Richard III

Subjects

Drama

Keywords

Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); Verse speaking; Rehearsals; Stratford (Ontario) Shakespeare Festival

Related items

Music of the ‘Speare

Notes

Notes

The BFI National Archive holds preservation material only, no viewing copy (2005).

Archive

Name

BFI National Archive

Web

http://www.bfi.org.uk/archive-collections/searching-access-collections/research-viewing-services External site opens in new window

Phone

020 7255 1444

Fax

020 7436 0165

Address

21 Stephen Street
London
W1T 1LN

Name

Library of Congress, Motion Picture, Broadcasting & Recorded Sound Division

Web

http://catalog.loc.gov/ External site opens in new window

Phone

(20) 707-8572

Fax

(20) 707-237’1

Address

Motion Picture & Television Reading Room
James Madison Building, LM 336
101 Independence Avenue, SE
Washington, D.C.
20540-4690
United States

Distributor

Name

National Film Board of Canada

Email

customerservice@nfb.ca

Web

http://www.nfb.ca External site opens in new window

Phone

(514) 283 9000

Fax

(514) 283-7564

Address

Sales and Customer Service (D-10)
PO Box 6100
Station Centre-Ville
Montreal
QC H3C 3HS
Canada