King Lear, old and tired, divides his kingdom among his daughters, giving great importance to their protestations of love for him. When Cordelia, youngest and most honest, refuses to idly flatter the old man in return for favor, he banishes her and turns for support to his remaining daughters. But Goneril and Regan have no love for him and instead plot to take all his power from him. In a parallel, Lear’s loyal courtier Gloucester favors his illegitimate son Edmund after being told lies about his faithful son Edgar. Madness and tragedy befall both ill-starred fathers.
Introduced by Barbara Hodgdon, Professor of English, University of Michigan, Distinguished Professor Emerita at Drake University. Guest editor for a special issue of Shakespeare Quarterly (2002) on Shakespeare films.
Co-sponsored by the Nanovic Institute for European Studies, Shakespeare at Notre Dame and the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center.
Tickets: $6, $5 faculty/staff, $4 seniors, and $3 all students
Call 574-631-2800 or visit http://performingarts.nd.edu