Twelfth Night ~ William Shakespeare

Twelfth Night may not be the first Shakespeare play I was introduced to, but it is the first one I ever studied. Since then, I’ve studied it a couple of times and to be honest, I only read it this time because I am going to be studying it once again, but as I’m not studying it until the second half of the year, I think I can say it was for pleasure.

I like reading Shakespeare, but sometimes it does get a little much. Twelfth Night is an easy read, for Shakespeare, and knowing the story pretty well made it all the easier. 

If you are not familiar with it, Twelfth Night tells the story of Viola, who finds herself washed up in Illyria after a shipwreck which has killed her brother. Viola then disguises herself as a man and gets a job as a servant to the local Duke. Her main job is trying to woo an uninterested Olivia on behalf of the Duke. Olivia, however, falls in love with Viola’s disguise.

It’s a lighthearted comedy that features a cruel, but hilarious, prank against an uptight servant and mistaken identity. It’s not a very long play and has a few songs sung by the jester, which are a little difficult to read as you don’t know the tune. 

I would absolutely love to see this on stage, especially the scene where Malvolio enters wearing the yellow, cross-gartered stockings and ridiculous smile. I think that scene would be hilarious to watch, especially with the bewilderment of the other characters.

Overall, I quite enjoyed reading Twelfth Night, it’s not my favourite Shakespeare play (that title goes to Macbeth) but it’s easily a four star read for me. 

C🌙