Shakespeare in the Theatre: Reduced Shakespeare Company

The first dedicated historical study of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, this book explores the troupe’s four major Shakespearean works over the past four decades.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company represent an American tale of how a small-scale, open-air troupe specialising in fast-paced, irreverent reductions of prominent topics have, since their formation in 1981, gradually expanded into a global theatre brand whose first play, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged), ran continuously for nine years in London’s West End and has been translated into thirty-eight languages.

Drawing on previously unexamined archival material, as well as author interviews with the company’s five key players and attendance at rehearsals and performances in America and Britain, this book stands as the first dedicated study of this other RSC, presenting a critical analysis of the company’s signature blend of audience interaction, metatheatre, parody, pop culture references, Shakespearean intertextuality and vaudevillian humour.

Each chapter is arranged to address a specific period within the RSC’s history of Shakespearean adaptation, offering a detailed exposition of their four major Shakespearean works over the past four decades. The book’s epilogue considers their influence and legacy, submits a blueprint for reduction and contextualises the company within the ecosystem of contemporary performance.