Comprehending Shakespeare: Shakespeare as a Soap Opera
Click here for a printable version of this lesson plan.
Object: Make Shakespeare easier to understand by comparing it to a modern form of
drama. Encourage students to view Shakespeare as a living story rather than as
a dead art form.
Grade level: 9th-12th
Subject: English / Drama
Timeframe: 2-3 hours
Materials: Video: 5-10 minutes recorded from a familiar daytime talk show
Video: The Taming of the Shrew (1967)
Worksheet: "Shakespeare as a Soap Opera"
Introductory Hook: As students file into the classroom, the teacher should be watching
a recorded sample from a popular daytime talk show (preferably something
where angry people are throwing chairs and arguing) Have the students watch the
scene for 2-5 minutes before beginning lesson.
Introduction: Begin the class by writing the word “Shakespeare” on the board. Lead
students in a brainstorming session. What things come to mind when they hear
the word “Shakespeare?” Possible answers may include: “classic”, “Romeo
and Juliet”, “boring”, etc. Encourage anything they come up with as there are no
wrong answers at this point.
Continue with a discussion of the audiences during Shakespeare’s time. Though
Shakespeare’s plays were occasionally performed for royalty, most of his audience
were of the ale-swilling standing-room-only peasant class. The audience was generally
quite raucous and many of the scenes were quite suggestive, pandering to the
reality-television crowd.
Lesson 1: Shakespeare, the Shrew, and the Talkshow Crowd:
Begin the lesson by playing a snippet from the wooing scene in William
Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. (Act II, Scene 1). Any section where
Petruchio is pursuing Katherine through the house should do. After the video, lead
a discussion with the class. What parts in the scene struck them as humorous? Who
were they rooting for in the scene or did it shift as the scene progressed? What
adjectives would they use to describe the two characters? How was this similar to
the snippet of the daytime talk show that was playing when they entered the classroom?
Encourage them to arrive at the following conclusions:
- The characters are flawed but we watch them anyway because of their unpredictable behavior.
- Battle of the sexes – the same passionate fighting between the sexes that we see on daytime
television was used by Shakespeare to catch the attention of his audience.
What kind of audience was Shakespeare trying to reach with this scene? How does
this affect the view of Shakespeare as a dry classical author?
Lesson 2: Shakespeare and the Soap Opera
Begin the lesson by dividing the class into groups of 3-5. Give each of the groups a copy of the
worksheet “Shakespeare as a Soap Opera.” The plays summarized in the worksheet are as follows:
- Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
- Twelfth Night
- Othello, Moor of Venice
- The Tempest
- Richard III
- The Taming of the Shrew
Have them select one of the scene synopses and create a 2-5 minute soap opera based around
the plot. Encourage them to stick with the rules of the soap opera drama (i.e. over-dramatic,
serious reactions to ludicrous circumstances, ridiculously huge chracters). Give the groups thirty
minutes to create their scenes, then have each group perform their scene for the class. Try to
make sure that they adhere to the basic premise of the synopsis, but allow plenty of room for
expansion, creation of additional characters, or surprise endings.
Assessment:
Have each student write a half-page essay about how their opinion of Shakespeare
was changed by this project. Why do they think Shakespeare is often
misrepresented in our society?
Follow Up Activity:
Have several of the students take on personas from the scenes that they have
performed. Divide the class into a talk show format, select a host, and have the
audience ask the characters questions. This activity can be especially effective
when opponents are paired on the show (i.e. Othello and Iago, Hamlet and Claudius)
Click here to go to the home page for Shake the Bard Theatre Company
Click here to go to the Lesson Plans for Teachers Page.
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