"Beware the Ides of March"

 Today is the 15th of March, therefore, this is the Ides of March. Which means that it is the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar.A rather gruesome anniversary, but it shapes the world like not many others did, for centuries to come. I blog about it every year, it's a sort of tradition, because I love history and I get in an Ancient Rome mood round this time of year. That and an Irish mood, too, but I digress. So yeah, as you probably, we owe to Shakespeare the line "Beware the Ides of March," you can hear it in Julius Caesar. I have yet to see the whole play, shame on me. For me, it reminds me of this scene from the HBO series Rome. I am going to watch it. If you do, fair warning: it is very bloody.

Hamlet on stage

It struck me recently: I haven't seen a play in a long while. Not since I am a dad, at least. A few years ago, I used to go and watch them whenever I could. I need to put this on my new year's resolutions list: go and see some plays. And I also found out, thanks to the Facebook page of the National Theatre that they are making a production of Hamlet. It is the very first play of Shakespeare I read and maybe my favourite one. Yet I don't think I have ever seen it performed on stage, only in films. So I might see if I can watch it on cinema screen, like I did for many NT productions a decade or so ago.

The Summer of our Discontent

"Now is the summer of our discontent..." I am paraphrasing Shakespeare, but here it is: our first heatwave is on its way. It's pretty much here, as far as I am concerned: I get uncomfortable when it goes up to 25 degrees. And it will go above it. At least now, thanks to social media, I know that I am not the only one to suffer: there is a whole community of people who hate summertime. I'm glad, because I literally cannot stand the noise, the blissful sun worshipping of people who seem so eager to get burned. So I found a support group, I try to cope with the heat and well, if everything goes well, summer will be over soon enough.

"Beware the Ides of March"

 Today is the 15th of March, the Ides of March. People who are into history will of course know that this is the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar. That's how the Ides of March are most (in)famous for. The expression "Beware the Ides of March" is taken from Julius Caesar. Which I haven't seen, to my great shame. But anyway, every year, I go full on Roman and I blog about it. And I try to remember the lesson of that fateful date. I mentioned them in 2022 and again in 2024. I am sharing them again: "1)even the most powerful man in the world is vulnerable, especially when he made himself enemies, however subservient they may appear to be. 2)we must be wary of the power vacuum created after a coup d'état." So yeah, enjoy your 15th of March.

The Weird Sisters

I am sharing another picture taken by my father during one of his walks. This time, it is three witches, who of course reminded me of the Weird Sisters in the Scottish Play. By the way, it's a great play to watch come Halloween.

Beware the Ides of March (always)

Today is the 15th of March, day of the Ides of March. It is also and therefore the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar.When you love history like me, you ought to remember it. So I try to commemorate it every year on this blog. The line "Beware the Ides of March" comes from Julius Caesar by Shakespeare. Anyway, we beware the Ides of March and not only on the 15th of March. I mentioned why back in 2022. I will sum up again the lessons we must learn from Caesar's murder: 1)even the most powerful man in the world is vulnerable, especially when he made himself enemies, however subservient they may appear to be. 2)we must be wary of the power vacuum created after a coup d'état. Or whenever a tyrant, or a dictator dies or fall from power. I am well aware that these are not cheerful thoughts, but the lessons of history seldom are.

Remembering the Ides of March (and why)

 Today is the 15th of March, day of the Ides of March, the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar. I commemorate it every year on this blog, sometimes humorously, sometimes not. This year, I want to place this commemoration in a special light. I think the Ides of March taught us two very important lessons: 1)even the most powerful man in the world is vulnerable, if he made himself enough enemies and 2)we must be wary about the power vacuum created in the aftermaths of a coup d'état. Caesar's enemies succeeded murdering him, but it was Caesar's heirs that took power eventually. Nowadays, with the rather volatile situation we are living, I think we need to keep this in mind. So yes. Beware the Ides of March all right.

Why You Should Beware the Ides of March

Well, today is the Ides of March, the day of the assassination of Julius Caesar. I alwayscommemorate it on this blog and this is no exception.We should all beware the Ides of March and here's why:

Ancient Ring from Ancient Rome

Yesterday was the anniversary of the assasination of Julius Caesar, the coup d'état that changed Ancient Rome forever and slowly turned it from a republic to an empire. I love history and have developed a keen interest in this particular time period. So anyway, the Facebook page of the British Museum shared this picture. This is what the Museum says about it: "This ring is thought to have been worn by one of Caesar’s supporters after his death, showing allegiance to Octavian and Mark Antony rather than Brutus and Cassius, who led the assassination. It is made of iron – considered lucky by the Romans – and shows a portrait of Caesar." I have little more to add, except that I find it fascinating and I was truly in awe when I saw it. I wish I could visit the British Museum, or Rome. Not anytime soon unfortunately.

"Beware the Ides of March" (especially this year)

I commemorate it every year and nearly missed it this time, but I managed to remember it and it is important that I remember. Today is the Ides of March, the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar. On this day, in spite of various warnings, Julius Caesar went to a crowded place and look where it got him. This year more than ever, beware the Ides of March.

Question existentielle (342)

Juste parce que ça s'en vient, une question existentielle sur le mois et sur l'histoire:

-Doit-on encore se méfier des Ides de Mars?

Je dirais oui, mais je suis curieux de vos réponses...

100 years of Leonard Bernstein

Google Doodle told me and I am glad I have been made aware of it: today is Leonard Bernstein's 100th birthday. Well, he would be 100 if he was alive. He is of course the composer of West Side Story. I know his career was far wider than merely creating this musical, which I consider almost an opera, but for me, he will always be the composer of West Side Story, the only musical I truly consider great. It's the only one I truly love. Not so much for the lyrics than for the music. Without it, it would be just another attempt to modernize Romeo and Juliet. Anyway, I thought I would share one song here to celebrate Bernstein.

O Mistress Mine...

It is Sunday evening, the weekend is ending, which always makes me a bit melancholic. What about you? Anyway, to embrace the melancholy, I thought to share a song written by William Shakespeare for his Twelfth Night. It is O Mistress mine where are you roaming?. Sung here in the 1996 movie adaptation by Ben Kingsley. Okay, so it has nothing to do with weekends or Sundays, but it is very sweet and full of longing and it fits melancholic Sunday nights perfectly.

Now is the summer of our discontent

Allow me to paraphrase Shakespeare on such trivial a topic, but this is exactly how I and many of us feel. Like in many other parts of the globe, the UK have had for the last week or so very hot and very dry weather. It is in fact scorching hot. Maybe not as bad as June 2017, at least the evenings cool down a little bit sometimes (but only sometimes) but far too hot and apparently the heatwave should go on for two more weeks at least. The worst might be yet to come. I am really dreading it. Last month, I had wished for summer to stay like it was. My wish has not been granted. I did well to quote Shakespeare: this is tragic irony. Now is the summer of our discontent...

The Ides of March... on the stage!

Today is the 15th of March, the Ides of March, also known as the day Julius Caesar was murdered. It is an anniversary I commemorate every year on this blog. The date and the name is also famous because of the famous line "Beware the Ides of March" from Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. Which I have neither read nor watched in its entirety yet. I could have the chance to see it no later than this month, as the National Theatre has the play in production and will broadcast it live on the 22nd of March. It is a fitting time of year to show the play. And a fitting time in British life as well, due to current events, which I don't intend to dwell on for now. It seems that we must indeed beware the Ides of March.

"Let's hear the tale of Mad King Macbeth..."

There are some interesting things happening this week in Manchester for the theatre lover like myself, and those who love Shakespeare especially.The Anthony Burgess Foundation is hosting a retelling of Macbeth by the Cream-Faced Loons Company. I don't know the Loons, but I know the Foundation and this should be extremely interesting. For the visitors and the residents, you can find the calendar here. Their workshop is already sold out (now that's something I would love to attend). Unfortunately I cannot be there, not on such short notice, but here is the teaser:

Witches, witchcraft and a good deed

Tonight's countdown to Halloween post is again about witches and witchcraft. This picture was taken from The Book of the Year 1980something. Back before the internet, it was how I learned a lot of things about the world and folklore: through this yearly review. There was always a section about myths, legends, folklore and other stuff, which fascinated me. This image was taken from that section, it represents the three witches from The Scottish Play, with a bit of artistic license: the black cat and huge mushrooms often associated with these characters. I asked my dad to send me pictures of these images for Halloween, not knowing how I would use them. I just find them really gorgeous and atmospheric.

Well, the inspiration for this post and the excuse to share this gorgeous picture came yesterday. We received the visit of little Wolfie's uncle (my wife's brother), aunt (his wife), but not his cousin 9their daughter/our niece). Cousin, who is now a teenager of 17 years, was busy writing an essay on... witchcraft and witches through the ages and culture. Once of these things that should be for undergrads, not teenagers. Well, as my brother-in-law was lamenting that he was desperate to find a book for her with first-hand accounts, The Penguin Book of Witches, I merely...took the book off our bookshelves. He was flabbergasted, saying he had looked for it everywhere and that he was getting desperate. He said: "I am an atheist, but this nothing short of a miracle." I answered: "Actually, I made a deal with the Devil to get my hand on it." Which is not true, but a new great unknown line all the same. In fact, I bought it to complete my list of Halloween books, planning to read it next year. I am glad I did not make it part of this year's Halloween reads, because now it is in the hands of our niece. This was my good deed of the day.

"Kiss me Kate"

I thought I would blog about William Shakespeare tonight, because it will be his birthday this month and just because it's always a fascinating subject. A few months ago, I found on YouTube a scene from The Taming of the Shrew I have been wanting to share. Now, it is a fascinating play, maybe a tragedy disguised as a farce and one of the most morally ambiguous in history, but it is also very funny. I find this take on it pure fun anyway, and a great piece of virtuosity. Fun fact: the role of Petruchio is played by Marc Singer. I just cannot believe he could be such good actor. And Katherina is played by Fredi Olster, whom I don't know at all. Anyway, this is a very physical take on the story, the proof that Shakespeare's words are very much alive and kicking. Here the characters wrestle, literally, jump, fight, shout... It is a violent comedy, after all. And when the kiss comes, you feel its strength. Whether or not it was earned, this is up to debate.

"Beware the Ides of March!"

I mention it every year because I think it deserves to be commemorated: we are the Ides of March, the day Julius Caesar was assassinated. But the famous quote is of course of Shakespeare. I thought I would share the quote dramatized by some great actors, then I remembered that it was also uttered by Lisa in The Simpsons. In Homer the Great, if you are curious. And I thought it was a funny way to use the line and to commemorate the day. So here it is. Homer's reply is also priceless.

Roméo et Juliette au TNM

J'ai appris hier dans La Presse que le TNM allait présenter Roméo et Juliette, mise en scène de Serge Denoncourt. Le titre du reportage donnait le ton: Roméo et Juliette: l'amour au temps du fascisme. La pièce a été montée jusqu'à plus soif, mais l'idée de la situer à la fin des années trente en Italie et de lui (re)donner une dimension politique au lieu de la réduire à une histoire d'amour adolescente qui finit mal, je trouve ça très intelligent. Je vis au pays du Barde et je suis chanceux côté productions théâtrales, pourtant je lis ça et je me dis que j'aimerais bien voir l'interprétation du TNM (qui fait toujours d'excellentes productions). Alors pour les chanceux qui sont à Montréal, allez la voir.