Aims
This course aims to:
• teach you to understand the structure of the sonnet and how this helps the approach
to performance
• teach you to recognise figures of speech and use these with understanding to clarify
meaning and mood
• help you speak the lines with confident enjoyment and a sense of performance
Content
Shakespeare’s sonnets are written in the same iambic metre as the blank verse in his plays. Being only 14 lines long they are compact and self-contained. The speaking of the sonnets requires the same awareness of the imagery and wordplay as the actor speaking longer speeches in the plays - without having to consider the character in the context of the play. Many people are nervous about speaking Shakespeare aloud and these beautiful poems are a way of making detailed work possible. The sonnets have a sound structure which we will explore as performers, and you will be able to work on a sonnet of your own choice. If you want to memorise your sonnet, please do, but this is by no means compulsory. If there are too many duplicates I will provide an alternative. We will be looking at Shakespeare's use of assonance, alliteration and other figures of speech. All the sonnets are written in the first person and can be expressed imaginatively as an actor would in performance.
Presentation of the course
Each session will begin with a brief vocal warm up using a different line from a sonnet each day as the stimulus. We will study a different sonnet each day. Please wear comfortable clothing and footwear.
Course sessions
Each day we will start the class by working as a group and looking at one sonnet, which we will share aloud.
1. Sonnet 18: First line: Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
2. Sonnet 65: Since brass nor stone nor earth nor boundless sea
3. Sonnet 104: To me, fair friend, you never can be old
4. Sonnet 116: Let me not to the marriage of true minds
5. Sonnet 138: When my true love swears that she is made of truth
All of the above sonnets share key themes, including; time passing, sexual insecurity, love
(of course) and jealousy.
Learning outcomes
You are expected to gain from this series of classroom sessions a greater understanding of the subject and of the core issues and arguments central to the course.
The learning outcomes for this course are:
• you will have a secure understanding of the formal structure of a Shakespeare sonnet
• you will be able to perform them with confidence
Required reading
Please bring a copy of the collected sonnets to each class, including the first class.
* Shakespeare, William, Shakespeare's Sonnets (Penguin Classics, 2015)
