The Two Noble Kinsmen (The New Cambridge Shakespeare)

Since the late twentieth century, when scholarly attention began to focus on sexuality, collaboration and Shakespeare's late plays, The Two Noble Kinsmen has become an essential script. Turner and Tatspaugh's edition presents a strong case for taking the play more seriously now than ever before. A lively introduction discusses Shakespeare's craftsmanship in adapting a medieval tale for the Jacobean stage, the extent of co-authorship with John Fletcher, the rhetorical complexity of Shakespeare's late style, the themes of sexuality and friendship, and contemporary critical responses to the play. In addition to presenting a detailed history of performance, the edition calls attention to productions that have demonstrated the play's theatrical vitality and solved – or failed to solve – difficulties inherent in the text. Bringing the textual history completely up to date, the edition reflects renewed interest in The Two Noble Kinsmen, confirming it as a play for today.