RSC at UM
Introduction | About the RSC | The History Cycle | The Plays: Synopses | Whose times, Whose History? | Resources
Shakespeare's History Cycle
At first glance, Shakespeare’s history cycle containing 1, 2, 3 Henry VI
and Richard III seems overwhelming and incomprehensible. After
all, the plays have a seeming endless number of characters embroiled in
the baffling intricacies of England’s history. The plays cover the period
known as 
The
Wars of the Roses, a series of dynastic civil wars that preceded the relatively
stable government of the Tudors. But great art transcends the era in which
it was created, providing lessons for all time, and the world Shakespeare
creates for us—full of opportunism and betrayal, passion and power, and
the making and breaking of alliances—could not be more relevant today.
The three parts of Henry VI were successful when they were first staged in the 1590s, when Shakespeare was about 25. The reigning monarch, Elizabeth I, was aging and had no children, and thus no heir to the throne. The political relevance of the plays was clear to audiences concerned about the possibility of another fight for the crown and the prospect of civil war.
A playwright, and not a historian, Shakespeare shaped his source material to politically astute artistic ends and was not always faithful to the facts of history. His cycle is tailored to legitimize Elizabeth I’s reign by showing how her grandfather, Henry VII, ended the civil war and united competing claims to the throne. In making the plays compelling drama with a message that would please his queen, Shakespeare takes certain liberties, particularly with characterization. For example, he omits any reference to Henry VI’s mental illness and he paints Richard III such a villain that an entire organization has formed to defend the real King Richard’s reputation.
However, the plays are fascinating when one looks at them as dramatic portraiture. We see Queen Margaret develop from a young, sensual queen to a fearsome leader of armies. We see Richard III evolve from the loyal son of an ambitious father to the villain everyone loves to hate. And perhaps the most complex and sympathetic portrait in these plays is Shakespeare’s creation of Henry VI. While some dismiss Henry as a weak king, this narrow view only applies if one believes that the manipulation of power is what makes a ruler truly successful. Henry longs for peace in a time of war, wishes he was a subject and not a king, and disinherits his own son in an attempt to stop a civil war. He continually tries to make his chaotic world conform to his Christian ideals and pleads with his noblemen to subscribe to these ideals—love thy neighbor as thyself, the meek will inherit the earth. His urgings fall on deaf ears, and might crushes right. However, if one stands back and looks at the entire cycle of the four plays, Henry VI’s altruistic ideals eventually do defeat the selfish power of Richard III. It is as though Henry’s kind and moral soul ultimately overpowers Richard, who does not have pity or love for anyone, except for himself. Henry VI may begin the cycle as a leader with a naive purity, but he grows into a tragic presence whose great depth of understanding permeates the plays even after his death.
Shakespeare deploys his wonderful array of complex characters to ask equally complicated questions. The cycle poses many problems for the audience to reconcile: the conflicts between kingship and kinship, public and private lives, morality and power. The results make for thrilling theater. The main obstacle to seeing these plays is their length and interconnectedness. Unlike other Shakespeare histories, such as Henry V or Richard II, this cycle is virtually nonsensical unless staged together. Sarah Esdaile, RSC Associate Director for all four plays, speaks to the necessity of seeing the cycle in its entirety: “There is a kind of soap opera, cliffhanger element at the end of each play, which I think is really helpful in terms of making one come back to see what happens next.”
Staging all three parts of Henry VI can easily last more than twelve hours, and Richard III is one of Shakespeare’s longest plays. To undertake such a production is overwhelming and requires such a wealth of resources that the most practiced of theater companies tend to avoid producing them in their entirety. Some theaters have attempted to condense the three Henry VI plays and make them a prelude for a full production of Richard III, as was notably done by Edmund Kean in 1817. The idea of presenting the three Henry VI plays together over successive nights was first realized in 1906 and successful presentations have been mounted throughout the last century: Terry Hands’ 1977 production for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the 1996 New York Shakespeare Festival production, and the Washington DC Shakespeare Theater production, also in 1996. But rarely has any theater company attempted to perform the complete tetralogy: all three Henry VI plays and Richard III with the same group of actors.
The Royal Shakespeare Company will perform this cycle in three places: Stratford-upon-Avon and London in England, and Ann Arbor, Michigan. They bring to us a company of 30 actors, who together play over 100 roles; the most able costumers, set designers, and fight directors; and a deep understanding of the text and its theatrical possibilities. They will be met in Ann Arbor by an audience passionate enough to embrace this unique theatrical project. Together, the University of Michigan and the University Musical Society have created a residency, outlined in this booklet, that complements the performances, with educational offerings ensuring that audience members may maximize contact with the company and deepen their understanding of the plays.