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Postcards from Shakespeare by Allison Williams play script cover

Postcards from Shakespeare

by Allison Williams

Shakespeare has writer’s block. Nothing inspires him. The best he can come up with is “Now is the winter of our irritation!”

He pleads to the one person who can help him – Queen Elizabeth the First. Queen Lizzy, who could be a writer herself if she weren’t so busy crushing the Welsh, sends Shakespeare around the world in 30 minutes. Denmark! Venice! Egypt!

Join his whirlwind tour as he desperately searches for material. Star-crossed lovers! Surprise death! Shipwrecks! Something’s rotten in the state of Denmark…

Comedy Shakespeare

Recommended for High Schools and Middle Schools

At a Glance

Running Time
About 35 minutes
Approximate; excludes intermissions and scene changes
Cast
15 Characters
6 M4 F5 Any Gender
Set
Simple Set
Length
37 pages
Production Tips
Read production tips for this play
Free Excerpt

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Performance Royalty Fees

Royalty fees apply to all performances whether or not admission is charged. Any performance in front of an audience (e.g. an invited dress rehearsal) is considered a performance for royalty purposes.

Exemption details for scenes and monologues for competition.

15 Characters

6 M, 4 F, 5 Any Gender

Characters in this play are currently identified as male or female. Directors are welcome to assign any gender (binary or non-binary) to any character and modify pronouns accordingly.

William (Shakespeare) [M] 34 lines
The Bard, himself; One monologue
(Queen) Elizabeth [F] 43 lines
Long may she reign; One monologue
Messenger [M] 6 lines
Carries messages, as messengers do.
Richard III
Richard III [M] 5 lines
Hamlet:
Hamlet [M] 16 lines
Ghost [M] 1 line
Laertes [M] 4 lines
Horatio [M] 2 lines
Gertrude [F] 5 lines
Claudius [M] 4 lines
Ophelia [F] 1 line
1st Player [M] 3 lines
Player King [M] 1 line
Polonius [M] 3 lines
Antony and Cleopatra:
Antony [M] 3 lines
Brutus [M] 1 line
Lucius [M] 1 line
Lepidus [M] 1 line
Cleopatra [F] 7 lines
Servant [M] 1 line
The Merchant of Venice:
Antonio [M] 5 lines
Shylock [M] 7 lines
Portia [F] 5 lines
Bassanio [M] 2 lines
Nerissa [F] 1 line
Measure for Measure:
Angelo [M] 7 lines
Claudio [M] 3 lines
Girlfriend of Claudio [F] 0 lines
Isabella [F] 4 lines
Romeo and Juliet:
Romeo [M] 5 lines
Juliet [F] 4 lines
Mercutio [M] 2 lines
Much Ado About Nothing:
Beatrice [F] 4 lines
Benedick [M] 5 lines
Troilus and Cressida:
Troilus [M] 2 lines
Cressida [F] 2 lines
The Taming of the Shrew:
Katherine [F] 3 lines
Petruchio [M] 3 lines
Twelfth Night:
Viola [F] 2 lines
The Tempest:
Miranda [F] 4 lines
Ariel [F] 1 line
A Winter’s Tale:
Antigonus [M] 8 lines
Pericles:
Marina [F] 1 line
Two Gentlemen of Verona:
Julia [F] 1 line
Launce [M] 5 lines
One monologue
Othello:
Othello [M] 2 lines
Desdemona [F] 1 line
Julius Caesar:
Marc Antony [M] 7 lines
One monologue
Julius Caesar [M] 1 line
Brutus [M] 1 line
Macbeth:
Macbeth [M] 0 lines
Birnam Wood (played by Soldiers) [M] 0 lines
Cymbeline:
Imogen [F] 1 line
Pisanio [M] 1 line
Henry VIII:
Henry VIII [M] 2 lines
Henry IV pts 1&2:
Lead Soldier [M] 3 lines
Richard II:
Richard II [M] 1 line
Timon of Athens:
Timon [M] 1 line
Coriolanus:
Martius [M] 1 line
Titus Andronicus:
Titus [M] 1 line
A Midsummer Night’s Dream:
Puck [M] 6 lines
Helena [F] 1 line
Demetrius [M] 1 line
Hermia [F] 1 line
Lysander [M] 1 line
Bottom [M] 0 lines
Oberon [M] 1 line
Mechanicals [A] 0 lines

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