In each volume of the Shakespeare on Stage series, a leading actor takes us behind the scenes, recreating in detail a memorable performance in one of Shakespeare's major roles. They discuss their character, working through the play scene by scene, with refreshing candour and in forensic detail. The result is a masterclass on playing the role, invaluable for other actors and directors, as well as students of Shakespeare - and fascinating for audiences of the play. In this volume, Judi Dench discusses playing Juliet in Franco Zeffirelli's Old Vic production of Romeo and Juliet when she was just twenty-three. This interview, together with the others in the series (with actors such as Jude Law, Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart), is also available in the collection Shakespeare on Stage: Thirteen Leading Actors on Thirteen Key Roles by Julian Curry, with a foreword by Trevor Nunn. 'absorbing and original... Curry's actors are often thinking and talking as that other professional performer, Shakespeare himself, might have done' TLS
