Much A Do about nothing

The war is over. Pedro Prince of Aragon, with his followers Benedick and Claudio, visits Leonato, Duke of Messina, father of Hero and uncle of Beatrice. Claudio falls in love with Hero and their marriage is agreed upon. Beatrice and Benedick despise love and engage in comic banter. The others plot to make them fall in love with each other, by a trick in which Benedick will overhear his friends talking of Beatrice's supposed secret love for him, and vice versa. Meanwhile Don John, the prince's misanthropic illegitimate brother, contrives a more malicious plot with the assistance of his follower Borachio: Claudio is led to believe that he has witnessed Hero in a compromising situation on the night before her wedding day – in fact it is her maid Margaret with Borachio. Claudio denounces Hero during the marriage ceremony. She faints and on the advice of the Friar, who is convinced of her innocence, Leonato announces that she is dead. Beatrice demands that Benedick should kill Claudio.  The foolish constable Dogberry and his watchmen overhear Borachio boasting of his exploit and the plot is exposed. Claudio promises to make amends to Leonato: he is required to marry a cousin of Hero's in her place. When unmasked, she is revealed as Hero. Beatrice agrees to marry Benedick.

Anthony and Cleopatra

Rome’s hero, Anthony, has conquered Egypt and fallen in love with the beautiful Cleopatra, much to the disapproval of his wife, and his emperor Octavius Caesar. When Anthony’s wife dies suddenly and a revolt in Rome is threatened by Pompey, Anthony returns to Rome where he agrees to marry Caesar’s sister, Octavia, in order to strengthen their alliance. A messenger brings the news to Cleopatra who flies into a jealous rage. After ensuring peace with Pompey, Anthony and Octavia leave Rome but soon learn of Caesar’s renewed attack on Pompey and his publicised displeasure with Anthony. Whilst Octavia returns to Rome to reason with her brother, Anthony goes to Egypt to be with Cleopatra. The conflict rises and Caesar declares war on Egypt. Poorly equipped, Anthony wages a misguided war, loses those close to him, and accuses Cleopatra of betrayal. She flees to her monument and sends word that she is dead. Hearing this, Anthony attempts suicide and inflicts a slow but fatal wound. He is brought to Cleopatra at the monument to die. Rather than be captured and paraded in Rome, Cleopatra kills herself with extraordinary dignity and Caesar returns to Rome triumphant.

The Merchant of Venice

Bassanio asks his friend Antonio, a merchant, for money to court the wealthy heiress Portia. As Antonio’s funds are tied up at sea he asks Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, for a loan. Shylock, embittered by Antonio’s past treatment of him, makes strict conditions: Antonio must repay the debt within three months or forfeit a pound of flesh. Bassanio sets out to win Portia, whilst his friend Lorenzo elopes with Shylock’s daughter, Jessica. Bassanio wins Portia’s hand but soon learns that Antonio’s ships have failed. Bassanio returns to Venice, followed secretly by Portia. Although Bassanio offers many times the debt, Shylock wants his pound of flesh. Portia, disguised as a lawyer, begs Shylock to show mercy. When he finally refuses, Portia reveals a loophole in the law, which prevents him from shedding Christian blood. As punishment the Duke rules that Shylock’s money be split between Antonio and the City. Antonio offers back his half if Shylock agrees to leave it to Jessica and convert to Christianity, which he does. News arrives that Antonio’s ships have returned and everyone, except Shylock, celebrates.

The Taming of The Shrew

The play begins as a young man is thrown out of an alehouse. A Lord takes him home and gathers a group of actors to stage a play for the man, who is tricked into thinking himself a nobleman. The main story begins. Several young bachelors gather in Padua to woo Bianca, the youngest daughter of the wealthy Baptista Minola. He wishes his eldest daughter, Katherine, to marry first, so Gremio and Hortensio try to find Katherine a husband. The problem is that she is notoriously difficult to handle. Petruchio arrives from Verona in search of a rich wife and soon sets out to win Katherine. After a rocky start, Petruchio tries to tame his new wife by being more contrary than she is, depriving her of food, sleep and fancy clothes. Bianca’s suitors try to outdo each other by posing as the ‘perfect husband’. Eventually Lucentio, a young Florentine posing as a schoolmaster, wins her hand, and Petruchio wins a bet that his wife is the most obedient. Gremio and Hortensio lament that their new wives have become more ‘shrewish’ than Katherine.

A Winter’s Tale

Leontes, King of Sicilia mistakenly thinks his wife Hermione has cheated on him with his friend Polixenes, King of Bohemia. Overcome with jealousy he sends Polixenes and Hermione to jail. Polixenes escapes but Hermione gives birth in prison. The baby girl, named Perdita, is disowned by Leontes and abandoned. Meanwhile, Leontes’ son, Mamillius, dies and Hermione too is carried dead from jail. A distraught and repentant Leontes goes into isolation. Perdita is discovered by a shepherd who raises her as his own. Sixteen years later, Perdita falls in love with Polixenes’s son Florizel. The couple escape to Sicilia where they come before Leontes. Perdita’s identity is revealed and the Kings are reunited. But Leontes is haunted by the memory of Hermione. He goes to see a statue of the Queen and discovers it is Hermione herself, who has been in hiding since her supposed death. Leontes is reunited with his wife, daughter and best friend.

Richard III

Richard is determined to become King. He turns his brothers against each other and persuades the King to send Clarence to prison, where Richard has him killed. He seduces the recent widow of the Prince of Wales and the pair marry. King Edward soon dies of ill health and Richard becomes regent for Edward’s sons. To ‘protect’ the young princes, Richard sends them to the Tower and plans their murder. After his wife dies in suspicious circumstances, Richard plans to marry his niece but her mother, Edward’s widow, has arranged a match for her daughter with the Earl of Richmond. The battle lines are drawn as Richmond leads an army to overthrow Richard. On the eve of battle, the ghosts of Richard’s victims visit him and forecast his demise. During the battle, Richard falls from his horse and is killed by Richmond. Richmond is crowned King Henry VII on the battlefield.

All’s Well That Ends Well (which inspired Lucinda Coxon’s The Eternal Not)

Helena, a lowborn beauty, serves as a gentlewoman in the household of the Countess of Rousillion. Bertram, the Countess' son, is making preparations to leave for Paris to become a ward of the King of France. Helena has long nursed a secret love for Bertram, despite their class differences. It is revealed that the King is terminally ill. Helena, whose father was a well-renowned physician, offers to cure him if he will allow her to marry the Lord of her choice - he agrees. Her medicinal knowledge proves fruitful, and she saves the King's life. The King is overjoyed and accedes to her condition, after which she chooses the reluctant and unwilling Bertram. She offers him freedom to deny her, but the King insists on the marriage as a reward to Helena. After their wedding, Bertram decides he would rather face death in battle than remain married to Helena. He resolves to leave and fight in the Italian war. While at war, he writes dismissively home to Helena:
"When thou canst get the ring upon my finge which never shall come off, and show me a child begotten of thy body that I am father to, then call me husband, but in such a ‘then’ I write a ‘never’." (III.ii.55-58)
Bertram thinks these things are impossible tasks. Nevertheless, Helena sets out with a plan to recover her husband.
Helena, meanwhile, enlists the aid of Diana, a maiden who has taken Bertram's fancy. Together they execute the bait-and-switch “bed trick” during which Helena successfully gets the Rossillion family ring and sleeps with Bertram as per the conditions in his letter. In the final act, Helena's cunning plot is revealed, and Bertram promises to be a faithful husband to her and "love her dearly, ever, ever dearly." (V.iii.354)
Lucinda Coxon’s The Eternal Not continues the story…..