{"product_id":"1451300-1938-shakespeare","title":"1451300 1938 Shakespeare.  Orson Welles.  Everybody's Shakespeare.  Signed.","description":"10072.\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOrson Welles.  Everybody's Shakespeare.  1938.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated, Edited and Signed by Welles.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eWELLES, Orson and Roger HILL. Everybody's Shakespeare: Three Plays Edited for Reading and Arranged for Staging (Twelfth Night, The Merchant of Venice, Julius Caesar). 61, 64, 64 pp. Profusely illustrated by Orson Welles throughout. 8vo., bound in original publisher's cloth. Preserved in a new half morocco folding box. Woodstock, Ill: The Todd Press, 1938.   First Book form editions? Twelfth Night signed by Welles. These three Shakespeare plays were first published separately by the Todd School in 1934 when Welles was nineteen years old. The subsequent publishing history is murky, but from the copyright date of 1938 this version would appear to be the first time the plays were issued in book form.   Orson Welles played Brutus in Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, which had its Broadway premiere on November 11, 1937, produced at the Mercury Theatre, an independent repertory theatre company founded in New York City by Welles and producer John Houseman. Joining Welles in the cast were John Holland as Caesar and Joseph Cotton as Publius. The production, set in contemporary Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany, was hailed as \"groundbreaking,\" and received high critical acclaim. Its 157 performances remain the longest-running Broadway production of Julius Caesar.  The co-author\/editor to Everybody's Shakespeare was Roger Hill, Welles headmaster at the Todd School, an independent preparatory school located in Woodstock, Illinois. Hill's Todd school was a progressive institution providing students including Orson Welles with a creative environment that emphasized practical experience over traditional academics. Hill nurtured Welles' nascent theatrical talents, as well as serving as a second father and then a lifelong friend. In addition co-writing the introduction and editing Shakespeare's plays with Hill, Welles illustrated all three plays with dozens of line drawings for the production design and the costumes.  These remarkable publications offer not only an early indication of Welles' theatrical genius, but also represents a remarkable window onto the many talents of his unprecedented career in the world of theater, radio and film. Previeous owner inscriptiosn on each volumes preliminaries, some light pencil marginalia throughout.\u003c\/div\u003e\nVery Good","brand":"1938","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033788883117,"sku":"10072","price":2200.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10072.jpg?v=1636224952","url":"https:\/\/www.nrarities.com\/products\/1451300-1938-shakespeare","provider":"The Gillespie Collection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}