1614500 1936 Association copy Shakespeare. EF-40

 

From the late actor's library, SIGNED with his ownership signature in blue ink on the front free endpaper of each volume.  [Together with:] M. R. Ridley. William Shakespeare: A Commentary. London: J. M. Dent & Sons, Ltd., [1936]. 12mo (in eights). Publisher's red cloth, spine and front board stamped in gilt.

 

FIRST EDITION. ALEC GUINNESS'S PERSONAL COPY, SIGNED AND DATED on the front free endpaper: "Alec Guinness / July 1936." In 1936, Guinness was likely preparing for a significant number of Shakespearean productions. From 1936-1937, he appeared in numerous Shakespearean productions put on by The Old Vic, including Love's Labour's Lost (1936), As You Like It (1936), Hamlet (1937), Twelfth Night (1937), and Henry V (1937). He also acted in the Queen's Theatre production of Richard II (1937). In 1939, Guinness portrayed the titular role in The Old Vic's production of Hamlet and later that same year, also portrayed Macbeth in Sheffield Playhouse's production and Romeo in the Perth Theatre's production of Romeo and Juliet.