Twelfth Night

Written by William Shakespeare

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic prose and verse read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly remastered stories are now available to download for the first time.

‘If music be the food of love, play on;
Give me excess of it, that, surfeiting,
The appetite may sicken, and so die.’

A comedic romance of mistaken identity, Twelfth Night begins with a shipwreck, splitting up Viola and her twin brother, Sebastian. Alone in a strange land, Viola disguises herself as a male servant, Cesario, in order to work for the Duke Orsino. Orsino is in love with Lady Olivia, but it is Cesario that Olivia falls for. A farcical tale of misplaced love, confusion, gender-swapping and aspiration, Twelfth Night remains one of Shakespeare’s best-loved and inventive comedies.

All of the Shakespeare plays within the ARGO Classics catalogue are performed by the Marlowe Dramatic Society and Professional Players. The Marlowe was founded in 1907 with a mission to focus on effective delivery of verse, respect the integrity of texts, and rescue neglected plays by Shakespeare’s contemporaries and the less performed plays of Shakespeare himself. The Marlowe has performed annually at Cambridge Arts Theatre since its opening in 1936 and continues to produce some of the finest actors of their generations.

Thurston Dart, Professor of Music at London University and a Fellow of Jesus College Cambridge, directed the music for this production.

The full cast includes: Derek Godfrey; Patrick Garland; Peter Orr; John Barton; Ian Lang; Tony Whitehead; Patrick Wymark; Robert Eddison; Tony Church; David Coombes; Peter Pears; Jill Balco; Dorothy Tutin; Prunella Scales.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Release date: Nov 26, 2020
• ISBN: 9780008443214

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare (1564–1616) is arguably the most famous playwright to ever live. Born in England, he attended grammar school but did not study at a university. In the 1590s, Shakespeare worked as partner and performer at the London-based acting company, the King’s Men. His earliest plays were Henry VI and Richard III, both based on the historical figures. During his career, Shakespeare produced nearly 40 plays that reached multiple countries and cultures. Some of his most notable titles include Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet and Julius Caesar. His acclaimed catalog earned him the title of the world’s greatest dramatist.

Reviews for Twelfth Night

[kathyschenck · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Fabulous! Even an eighth grader can read (with a little guidance) and enjoy!

[amerynth · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The introduction says Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" is one of his most performed plays, which is funny since I've never heard of it being performed locally (and have seen many others.)It wouldn't surprise me though, as the play is pretty entertaining and uses the often-employed Shakespearean disguise fairly well. The story follows Viola and Sebastian, siblings who are in a shipwreck and each believes the other has died. Meanwhile, the beautiful Olivia is fending off a crew of courting men and antics ensue.Overall, the story is fairly amusing and moves along at a nice pace.

[clarisao-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I´ve re-read it countless times..My favourite from Shakespeare.

[fufuakaspeechless_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love this play. Shakespeare's comedies are very enjoyable.

[kchung_kaching · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Easily my favorite Shakespeare play.

[redg18_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Honestly, I am not all that into reading plays. However, I am so into gender-bender that I had to read 12th night. The whole idea of a girl dressing up as a boy and fooling everyone is so interesting to me. The thing that put me off from this book was the fact that the emotions that the characters were feeling were not as evident just from reading this play. I mean, it was like saying "I feel that I love you". It is not as moving as if the author had described what the feeling is. For some reason, I loved Julius Cesar, Othello, and sort of liked "As you like it". So maybe I am just not into this story that much.

[girl_detective · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The text of the play is mostly a delight, though there are a few toothsome things to mull over after the play is done. Its end of multiple marriages is seemingly tidy, but a few characters are left out in the cold, including Antonio, whose love for Sebastian may be the truest and most steadfast love in the play.

[coach_of_alva · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Shakespeare's last great romantic comedy combines the wit of the other great comedies with some rather mean-spirited slapstick more reminiscent of his very first comedies. The first is provided largely by the male-impersonating heroine who finds herself, as an intermediary between lovers, becoming the true object of affection from both lovers. The slapstick is provided by Sir Toby Belch, a small-scale Falstaff, and his idiot friends, who make life miserable for a major domo whose Puritanism does not protect him from vanity and desire. I loved it, despite the bullying.

[mgeorge2755 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Quite possibly my favorite play by Shakespeare! Fun story! 

[martinbodek · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Madcap was 't adventure
And pleasure finest to read.
Whilst mirthy with the wordplay.
Brought forth as Feste's mead.
Three's Company-esque
Was allst confusion.
Which what happened
By staged amusion.
Verily, I enjoyed it, by and by.
What readeth me next, wondereth I?

[tiffanyak_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is definitely a classic Shakespearean comedy, complete with disguises, intrigue, love, humor, and a lot of fun. In all honesty, I am not generally a big fan of comedies, but this is definitely an example of an exception. As to the edition itself, I found it to be greatly helpful in understanding the action in the play. It has a layout which places each page of the play opposite a page of notes, definitions, explanations, and other things needed to understand that page more thoroughly. While I didn't always need it, I was certainly glad to have it whenever I ran into a turn of language that was unfamiliar, and I definitely appreciated the scene-by-scene summaries. Really, if you want to or need to read Shakespeare, an edition such as this is really the way to go, especially until you get more accustomed to it.

[aliceanna-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Though my text stated that that was his comic masterpiece, I liked As You Like It much better. The only saving grace, for me, was the clown. He saved the best lines of wit and wisdom for that character. I suppose by this point, I am getting a bit put off by all the mistaken identity stuff. Perhaps the Bard was growing weary of the device as well.

[bryndahlquis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This has always been one of my favorite Shakespeare plays, and it probably always will be. It's just as fun to read the second time, with plenty of humor and lovely lines. Feste, of course, is my favorite.I feel like I could go into a long analysis of it, but... I read it for my English class, and no doubt we're going to dissect it and talk about all the underlying themes. Personally, I say you should just read it and enjoy it and then go see it performed.

[trilliams · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

So there's this girl that's a guy that works for a guy that she loves as a girl but has to send his love to a girl as a guy and that girl loves the girl as a guy but really she's a girl that looks like a guy and this is why Shakespeare's comedies are just weird.

[clif_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I listened to this play a year ago and forgot to add to my Library Thing list. So the plot isn't fresh in my mind. I do remember that the plot is quite complicated with numerous mistaken identities, disguises and switching of roles. The plot is so convoluted that I recommend drafting a chart to keep track of the characters and their multiple identities. There is a mean joke played on a Puritan character in the play which was probably funny to 16th Century theater audiences. However, I fou...more I listened to this play a year ago and forgot to add to my Goodreads list. So the plot isn't fresh in my mind. I do remember that the plot is quite complicated with numerous mistaken identities, disguises and switching of roles. The plot is so convoluted that I recommend drafting a chart to keep track of the characters and their multiple identities. There is a mean joke played on a Puritan character in the play which was probably funny to 16th Century theater audiences. However, I found it to be cruel and not very funny. Read in December, 2007

[larryking1-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I once told a Shakespeare buff that I never thought his comedies were all of that funny; forgive me, but my ear for Elizabethan English is weak and I miss the word play and puns, for example. And, when reading the text, any of its slapstick dimensions are lost. Luckily for me, I have discovered that by SEEING the comedy, and THEN reading it afterwards, the 'mind's eye' (to quote Horatio in Hamlet) brings all of it to life. There, my advice for the day. And, remember, say what you want, Will's winsome way with words wins!

[othemts · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My favorite Shakespearean comedy (partially because I portrayed Sir Toby in a high school production) with the perfect mix of witty dialogue, physical humor and characterization.

[erickibler · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I reread the play as I'll be appearing in it this summer as Sir Toby Belch. Ah, what fun!

Shakespeare fact: most directors these days cut Shakespeare's plays down to a reasonable two hours for performance. That will be the case for the production I'm in. I'll miss the double-talk conversations between Sir Toby and the Clown, and some of the "mistaken identity" humor involving male/female twins Sebastian and Viola. Although I can see why the director removed this stuff. In the former case, the invented references to phony experts like "Qeuebus" (God, would I have loved saying "Qeuebus"!) would have been indistinguishable from other archaic references, thereby causing confusion to the average theater goer. In the latter case, the humorous situations are often repetitive.


Cutting Shakespeare is nothing new. David Garrick, an actor and director who was a friend of Samuel Johnson, used to do it routinely in the 18th century.

[mrslee_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Shipwrecked siblings, love-struck Dukes and Duchesses, silly servants and misplaced affections. I enjoyed this very much. No one does confusion of identity as well as Shakespeare, and when it's one of his comedies, there is always a happy ending.

[jmcgarry2011 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thought this was a great edition. They have the text on the right side, and the explanation of obscure terms on the left side. I just saw this play done at the Great River Shakespeare Festival in Winona, MN. It's amazing how closely they followed the text. I didn't need to read it to understand everything, but reading did help explain some things.

[bookconcierge · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Audio performed by Stella Gonet, Gerard Murphy and a full cast

Viola and her twin brother, Sebastian, are separated during a shipwreck. When she arrives on the shores of Illyria, she presumes Sebastian is dead. The ship’s captain helps her disguise herself as a man, and she enters the service of Duke Orsino, with whom she falls in love. Orsino, however, loves the Countess Olivia, who has foresworn any suitors while she mourns the death of her father and brother. Orsino begs Cesario (Viola in disguise) to plead his case with Olivia, but Olivia instead falls in love with Cesario. And so the fun begins.

I love Shakespeare, and I confess to liking his comedies more than the tragedies or historical dramas. I find it particularly delightful to watch the various mistaken identities, convoluted twists and turns in plot, purposeful obfuscations or pranks, and dawning realizations unfold before my eyes. The scenarios are outlandish and ridiculous to a modern audience, but are still fun and delightful in their execution.

BUT … I dislike reading plays. I much prefer to see them performed. When I’m reading – especially Shakespeare – I find that I lose the sense of action and can more easily get bogged down in unfamiliar terms or phrases. Listening to this audio performance was a happy compromise. I’ve seen this play on stage and could easily picture the scenarios and shenanigans while listening to this very talented cast audio performance.

I did also have a text version to supplement the audio experience, and the particular edition I had (Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-953609-2) includes a long introduction outlining the history of this work, copious footnotes in the play defining terms, an appendix with the music, and an extensive index. It is an edition I would definitely recommend to someone who is studying this play.

[ncgraham_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

My relationship with the Bard’s works began when, at the tender age of six, I went to a Shakespeare in the Park performance of Much Ado About Nothing and had the time of my life. Since then, it’s been up and down at times with me and Will, as I’ve been alternately befuddled, entranced, delighted, disturbed, and moved by his handiwork. It was only last year, however, that I really began reading his plays in earnest—up until then, my exposure had been limited solely to films and live performances. I've been taking them slowly, picking up a play as the inclination strikes, and not following any particular order.Despite the fact that it is critically regarded as one of Shakespeare's best and most advanced comedies, I have to say that so far Twelfth Night is my least favorite of the lot. I’m hoping it’s not because it was assigned for a class, when all the others I picked up of my own volition. Either way, I found I couldn’t connect to any of these characters, neither when I read the play nor when I watched the 1996 Trevor Nunn film (and let me tell you, if Helena Bonham Carter can’t make me feel for Olivia, no one can). They made for an interesting group to observe— not the uninvolved, almost scientific word. There is no Puck or Rosalind or Beatrice or Shylock to give this comedy some sort of heart or animating spirit. Viola and Feste come closest, simply because they are vehicles for some of Shakespeare's best poetry and wordplay—but even then, the language is more interesting than its bearers. Indeed, I would say this play is most interesting when looked at mostly for how it uses language and what it has to say about it.The critics are right in commending Twelfth Night for its clever wordplay and complex social vision, but to my mind Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream are far more entertaining, and The Merchant of Venice deeper.

[hippielunatic · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

There is brilliance in this play, as there is in all of Shakespeare's work... but...Well, this one doesn't live up to the others, at least not in the reading of the script. I could not attach myself to any of the characters, and while I often have to reread the words and the footnotes to gain any understanding of the plot, this one felt hollow to me, even after I could grasp what was going on.The brilliance comes in much of the twisting of words and understandings of phrases. Shakespeare was a wordsmith, there is no doubt about that.... but most of the time, I feel like he was also incredibly connected to his characters, his audience, his stories. This one felt flimsy to me.

[john257hopper · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have read this play after seeing it performed at The Globe on Friday. It's funny and relies on comic tropes such as characters dressing up as the opposite sex, dressing in comedic yellow cross-gartered stockings for effect, and formation of love triangles. The Clown role is probably my favourite character. It's light and insubstantial and often doesn't make a whole lot of sense (e.g. the whole Malvolio sub-plot); indeed at one point Fabian says with ironic self-reference "If this were played upon a stage now, I could condemn it as an improbable fiction".

[birdie.newborn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A rightfully popular Shakespeare play, this one has resourcefulness, the audience is in on the fun, yet it works well.

[jwhenderson_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

If music be the food of love, play on;Give me excess of it, that, surfeiting,The appetite may sicken, and so die.That strain again! it had a dying fall:O, it came o'er my ear like the sweet sound,That breathes upon a bank of violets,Stealing and giving odour! Enough; no more:'Tis not so sweet now as it was before.O spirit of love! how quick and fresh art thou,That, notwithstanding thy capacityReceiveth as the sea, nought enters there,Of what validity and pitch soe'er,But falls into abatement and low price,Even in a minute: so full of shapes is fancyThat it alone is high fantastical.Act 1, 1.1-15Every major character in Twelfth Night experiences some form of desire or love. Duke Orsino is in love with Olivia. Viola falls in love with Orsino, while disguised as his pageboy, Cesario. Olivia falls in love with Cesario. This love triangle is only resolved when Olivia falls in love with Viola's twin brother, Sebastian, and, at the last minute, Orsino decides that he actually loves Viola. Twelfth Night derives much of its comic force by satirizing these lovers. In the lines that open the play (above), Shakespeare pokes fun at Orsino's flowery love poetry, making it clear that Orsino is more in love with being in love than with his supposed beloveds. At the same time, by showing the details of the intricate rules that govern how nobles engage in courtship, Shakespeare examines how characters play the "game" of love. Viola (as Cesario) has the following lines in Act 1, scene 5:Make me a willow cabin at your gateAnd call upon my soul within the house;Write loyal cantons of contemned loveAnd sing them loud even in the dead of night;Halloo your name to the reverberate hillsAnd make the babbling gossip of the airCry out 'Olivia!' O, You should not restBetween the elements of air and earthBut you should pity me. (251-259)Twelfth Night further mocks the main characters' romantic ideas about love through the escapades of the servants. Malvolio's idiotic behavior, which he believes will win Olivia's heart, serves to underline Orsino's own only-slightly-less silly romantic ideas. Meanwhile, Sir Andrew Aguecheek, Sir Toby Belch, and Maria, are always cracking crass double entendres that make it clear that while the nobles may spout flowery poetry about romantic love, that love is at least partly motivated by desire and sex. Shakespeare further makes fun of romantic love by showing how the devotion that connects siblings (Viola and Sebastian) and servants to masters (Antonio to Sebastian and Maria to Olivia) actually prove more constant than any of the romantic bonds in the play.But there is more than love and desire in this amazing comedy. At the opening when Viola is shipwrecked in Illyria she bemoans that she cannot join her lost twin brother Sebastian in Elysium. Illyria is not Elysium however it reminds those familiar with As You Like It of the Arcadian forest of Arden. In both plays the setting is otherworldly--a place apart from the rest of civilization.There is also melancholy, for several characters in Twelfth Night suffer from some version of love-melancholy. Orsino exhibits many symptoms of the disease (including lethargy, inactivity, and interest in music and poetry). Dressed up as Cesario, Viola describes herself as dying of melancholy, because she is unable to act on her love for Orsino. Olivia also describes Malvolio as melancholy and blames it on his narcissism. It is this melancholy that represents the painful side of love.Perhaps more central to this play in particular are the themes of deception, disguise, and performance. With these themes Twelfth Night raises questions about the nature of gender and sexual identity. That Viola has disguised herself as a man, and that her disguise fools Olivia into falling in love with her, is genuinely funny. On a more serious note, however, Viola's transformation into Cesario, and Olivia's impossible love for him/her, also imply that, maybe, distinctions between male/female and heterosexual/homosexual are not as absolutely firm as you might think. When you recall that the players in Shakespeare's Globe were all men and boys these issues become both more humorous and serious at the same time. You may get a more vivid idea of this theme by viewing clips of the recent all-male production of Twelfth Night starring Mark Rylance.*This play rivals As You Like It for the title of the best of Shakespeare's comedies. While I prefer the former, there are complexities of love and desire mixed with questions of sexual identity that make this comedy a fine way to experience and enjoy Shakespeare.

[anduril85 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I read this book with my girlfriend and it was ok but not one of my most liked books ever. At times it's a little hard to understand if you don't have the spark notes or some other translation like it, but if you like plays and have never read it I recommend it to you, for everyone else you.

[therebelprince · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm rarely let down by an Arden edition, but this one is almost the exception. No, that's being too cruel, but...

As always, the quality of the text, the depth of the notes, the discussion of editorial issues, and the bibliography are immaculate. You couldn't ask for a greater scholarly resource and overall "cheat sheet" to one of the Bard's works. At the same time, the introduction is a rare letdown for this series. Overall, the Ardens inhabit an awkward gray area between scholarly pursuits - reading in to every line, letter, and semi-colon - and general accessibility. Inevitably when examining a work at this level of detail, academia will rear its ugly head. At the same time, the Arden editors have wisely made each introduction an overall analysis, leaving the more scholarly notes for the bibliography. After all, this kind of opaque discussion is more the purview of scholarly articles and papers rather than published editions of the play. The massive bibliographies are vital, and they lead those of us with scholarly minds down that path. Unfortunately, this work is dry and hermeneutic from page one. (This might seem like a silly complaint, but when these introductions clock in at 150 dense pages, it's important they work well.)

So, I can't complain about the high standard of the text, but unfortunately I'll be seeking out alternative "Twelfth Night" editions for an overview.

[emcarso1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What can one really say negative about Shakespeare? Any of his writings are simply a classic. However, this would not be my favourite of his works, it's simply a bit too ridiculous for my personal taste - I know Shakespeare's audience would have loved it. Boy loves Girl, another Girl (2) is stranded and decides to cross-dress to be near Boy, Boy sends Girl 2 to persuade Girl 1 of his love who in turn falls in love with cross-dressing Girl 2. Then Girl 2's twin brother shows up and causes chaos and in the end Boy 2 ends up with Girl 1 and Boy 1 with cross-dressing Girl 2, not questioning her cross-dressing for a second

[julesjones_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

BBC Radio 3 full cast production, first broadcast in 1998, and presented on 2 CDs. I bought this one because of the Blake's 7 interest, as Josette Simon plays Olivia. While it's an enjoyable performance, I would have been hard put to it to follow what was going on without previous knowledge of the plot from seeing the play on stage. Fortunately there's a good synopsis booklet included in the box.