Audiobook · read by volunteers
King Lear
William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
Read by Kristin LeMoine, John Gonzalez, Denny Sayers (d. 2015), Kristin Hughes (1974-2021), Kirsten Ferreri, JemmaBlythe, Rosalind Wills, Cori Samuel, David Barnes, Ezwa · 5 chapters · 3 h 23
About the book
An aged king decides to retire, and to divide his kingdom among his three daughters according to how much each says she loves him. Two of them answer with flowery speeches. The youngest, Cordelia, refuses to flatter, and is cast out. It is a decision that will bring ruin to the king, his family and his land.
As Lear descends into rage and confusion, the play follows him out onto a storm-lashed heath, where he meets a fool, a disguised nobleman and a madman, and learns how little power he truly has. A second plot, about the Earl of Gloucester and his two sons, mirrors the first and deepens its cruelty.
King Lear is often counted among the greatest of Shakespeare’s tragedies, and some call it the greatest play ever written. This recording presents it in five acts, with a cast of LibriVox volunteers, in about three and a half hours. A powerful, harrowing and unforgettable drama for listeners ready to be moved.
Introduction
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) probably wrote King Lear around 1605 or 1606, and the play was performed at the court of King James I in December 1606. It was first printed in a quarto edition in 1608 and then in the First Folio of 1623, the posthumous collection of his plays. The two versions differ in many passages, and modern editors often combine them or choose between them.
The story of a king and his three daughters is much older than Shakespeare. It drew on earlier chronicles and plays, and Shakespeare added the subplot of Gloucester and his sons. He also gave the tale a tragic ending that was later softened in some stage adaptations, which from the late seventeenth century gave it a happier close for a long time. The original ending was restored on the stage in the nineteenth century. Today the play is considered one of the high points of the English theatre, with questions of authority, family loyalty, justice and suffering at its heart.
King Lear has been performed constantly for four hundred years and adapted for film, opera and the novel. Its language, ranging from plain to wild, makes it a rewarding play to hear, since so much of its force is in speech.
This recording is divided into five parts, one for each act, and lasts a little more than three hours. It is read by a cast of LibriVox volunteers. For those new to Shakespeare’s tragedies, it is a major experience, and for those who know it well, a chance to hear the text anew.
Public domain
William Shakespeare died in 1616: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text