Tomorrow, and tomorrow -- Ian McKellen analyzes Macbeth speech (1979)

[@paultrevorbale2440]

I saw his Macbeth at Stratford live twice, with Judi Dench as Lady Macbeth. Easily the best I’ve ever seen. More than 50 years later I still remember it clearly. Magnificent!

[@em3831]

Oh, what an amazing duo! So cool you saw them both together and at Stratford of all places.

[@ItsukaShimotsuki]

Sobs in gen z.

[@mechanicalmonk2020]

​@@ItsukaShimotsukipeople are still putting on this show

[@ItsukaShimotsuki]

@@mechanicalmonk2020 But it's just not the same. There's acting, and then there's acting.

[@beachboy13600]

Is that the scottish play?

[@kweejibodali3078]

i have rarely ever seen such a perfect balanced confidence, yet with no arrogance. he is so caught up in his subject and he is accustomed to performing and is so accomplished, his discourse has none of that wavering over self consciousness of other people . he is so deliberate,yet flowing.

[@rhidiandavies1991]

I couldn't articulate it quite as eloquently as you did but this is exactly the feeling I had while watching this. I can't imagine having the ability to present and communicate so confidently and clearly on any topic.

[@nathanbellamy3308]

That dialogue was swimming in arrogance

[@ManuelCocco]

@@nathanbellamy3308 yeah, I'm still in awe by his craft and composure as a theatre lover. He is an amazing actor and he knows his Shakespeare; but as any actor, he needs to be a bit arrogant, egocentric and full of himself to be able to perform.

[@helenamcginty4920]

@@ManuelCocco actually years ago, as an amateur I found that acting well means you become that person. Therefore lose your ego. I was a very shy teen at the time and was told I was very good. I have read many good actors say they are shy as themselves. Whenever I have had to speak publicly, giving presentations as a student, friends comment on how confident I appear. Yet I even find going shopoing stressful and wearying. I was once persuaded to stand for the local.council. Now that is a job that needs ego. I couldn't even push my leaflets through letter boxes.

[@ManuelCocco]

@@helenamcginty4920 yes, most of the best actors I know are also very shy (and they transform when the set on stage). And you are right that to become somebody else you need to get rid of your ego first. But in their daily life, especially when they are successful, they still tend to be mostly full of themselves and quite egocentric (i.e. mainly interested about their profession, their colleagues, and especially themselves). True actors forget all of that on stage but in their daily life many are quite insecure and full of mannerisms.

[@michaelwilliams949]

My history/English/art teacher would teach me about Shakespeare similar to this. Her ability to interpret Shakespeare remains in my mind unrivalled. She died two year ago from cancer and this vid really took me back to those enchanted lessons. Much of my creative accomplishments I owe to her teaching me how to think academically.

[@wolfetom10]

As a high school English student 45 years ago, I had to learn this soliloquy. Rote memorization was always hard for me, and I struggled for more than a week. Then suddenly a light turned on, and I think I saw much deeper into what the words were all about. Once I understood it, learning it word for word was suddenly easy. I can still recite the entire thing today, word for word. If I had had Ian McKellen's analysis, instead of HS teacher's, it would not have taken me a week to figure out this passage. Even as an English Lit major in college, I don't think I ever heard a professor do such a superb job of explicating Shakespeare as McKellen did here.

[@haydenwalton2766]

truely - understanding the texts meaning (or your interpretation of them) unlocks it all

[@tqft]

10000% agree!

[@ellaco111er]

i think he can understand and express it so well as he is learning it from an actors perspective, and Shakespeare too was an actor

[@pottedferne]

Ohh my! I have never been able to memorize yet I can understand complex problems. ❤

[@theliterarytarot]

I just read Sir Patrick Stewart writing about Sir Ian’s advice to him before Patrick played in Macbeth (Ian having been the big hitter in this play for years) and Ian had just said “AND….it’s all about the and”. Then , only 10 minutes after putting my book down for the night to pick up my phone and check YT and have this pop up. The soliloquy reminds me of memorizing it in college getting my English degree, then the sparkle in both of these actors eyes when they act together. I absolutely love how they bring Shakespeare to life, and these insights here. It is as if Ian has looked right into Shakespeare’s mind and understood the very essence of what he created hundreds of years ago. And these are sentiments we all can connect with today.

[@kingerz]

He's not just a conjurer of cheap tricks.

[@baabaaer]

+kingerz Can he be a conjurer of expensive tricks?

[@damarh]

i hope he conjures some tricks this summer :) going to see him in july,

[@resurectiondelpantion9268]

Here's some wonderful trivia for you. This was addressed to the Royal Shakespeare company. Which John hurt was a member of at the time of this filming! John hurt did The voice of the original Bilbo baggins in the original Hobbit cartoons!! also the bald man you see in the background of this video, is Patrick Stewart

[@Ardsgaine]

@@resurectiondelpantion9268 No, I think that's David Suchet. Look at him closely around 8 minutes in when he turns sideways. Both were in the production, as well as the later series that was done in 1982. There's a segment in that one where the two debate their different takes on playing Shylock with Suchet being far more sympathetic to the character. It's a fascinating show.

[@alexanderhay-whitton4993]

@@damarh I saw him as Lear a couple of years ago. He had me bursting into tears before the end (and we're not talking a single dignified manly tear running down the cheek, either).

[@Crichjo32]

Sir Ian was just as eloquent and wise all those years ago, as he is today in his later years. Truly great actor and man.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@sixpooI]

that's not a compliment at all

[@waffle.23]

@@sixpooI how so?

[@sixpooI]

@@waffle.23 it means he didn't improve. he achieved a level of eloquence and wisdom "all those years ago" and merely remained at that level.

[@waffle.23]

@@sixpooI Im sure he has learned things since then. He was already 40 years old here though. The person above was just complimenting him unnecessary to turn it around as something negative.

[@christopherjohnson5748]

Many years ago I was an English major. In one of my classes our professor spent an hour breaking down this soliloquy. It contains layers upon layers of meaning and holds up under even the most intense scrutiny. To this day it remains, for me, the best piece of writing I have ever encountered.

[@holliswilliams8426]

What I really like about Shakespeare is that you can take just one single speech buried somewhere in a play and it is an amazing piece of writing, but there is a whole play of this, and then there are many, many works all of that quality. Definitely best writer of all time.

[@PabluchoViision]

@@holliswilliams8426 I have loved Shakespeare’s work my whole life, and stand in awe of it even more so now than when I was a boy just beginning to read him. And I suspect the case for him as greatest writer of all time is a very strong one. So I don’t mean to throw shade on what you’ve said, with the gentle reminder that “all time” is a very long time, and “greatest“ is an awfully high title. How many of us award it to Shakespeare without having read even obvious contenders/rivals like Dante, Cervantes, Molière, Milton, Tolstoy, Lope de Vega, Camōes etc., etc. (most of them writing in other languages, to boot) and therefore not really being qualified to make the judgment. It takes nothing away from Shakespeare’s greatness, to realize that the Shakespeare Adulation Machine is an extremely powerful one.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@chatsidefires]

Glad to hear some guy says Shakespeare holds up That carries a lot of weight with me. You know

[@CleverGirlAAH]

Did you watch the video or-- ?

[@catherineb5915]

why couldn't all English classes be like this? this is amazing!

[@danielaragusa]

Why can't all English classes be filled with attentive and appreciative students like these? :)

[@anthonypeterson428]

McKellen has intimately studied Shakespeare for most of his life. It takes decades of study to have this thorough an understanding of Shakespeare . McKellen is also brilliant... far more than almost all English teachers many of whom are very intelligent.

[@cal4547]

We just use it right in this Secound for our online English lesson Lul

[@dorkmax7073]

This is a pretty standard acting class

[@smaakjeks]

@A guy with a pony picture so he'll get called a fag And sometimes a 12 minute clip people specifically chose to watch on their own whim gets compared to sitting at school for hours per week, being forced to learn whether one feels like it or not.

[@samjones2693]

Simply amazing. In this 12min clip Sir Ian has shown everyone a window into his mastery of Macbeth, Shakespeare and treading the boards. He is so confident, self assured and abreast of all aspects of the task at hand. Also, to take nothing away or diminish what I/we have just watched but, every now and then, I thought I saw Jeremy Brett. The voice is unmistakable but he has that lean, rakish figure.

[@DawnDavidson]

Wow. That clip at the end. He didn’t sound as much like his older self during the lecture. But wow, the moment he was truly playing the part I suddenly heard and saw the man I’ve known through his portrayal of Gandalf and other roles. Chills. The power and conviction in his words. So riveting.

[@howlingwolf7280]

He speaks with such a brilliant, controlled and focused passion on a subject he loves and understands in his bones.

[@VoxFelis]

Sir Patrick in the back just admiring the craftsmanship.

[@egregiousmalady4287]

Shakespeare: “Whoah, didn’t think about it like that”

[@briansweeney5024]

I used to think the same as you, until I studied literature at college. The people who write these works, sometimes also write compendium pieces, which elucidate the audience as to their thought processes. If you think this is ''over-analysed'' - try Joyce! Whilst this is a subjective interpretation- Shakespeare did indeed mean most of the elements McKellan is picking up on! The imagery and use of literary devices alone, make it clear what Shakespeare is alluding to thematically. Using form and meter to convey meaning, is another one of Shakespeare's tricks - just check out his other works/sonnets. It (making tenuous connections) can't be a coincidence when it's seen hundreds of times in a writer's oeuvre. Reading too much into one piece would be indeed be crazy; yet he (Shakespeare) consistently wrote work which was a dense as this. Bill Shakespeare be the man yo!

[@egregiousmalady4287]

Brian Sweeney, Oh don’t get me wrong, I believe Mckellen’s analysis is completely valid. But thank you for the insight

[@ots1634]

@@briansweeney5024 you bore me, i think the OP knows this really and was simply being a one with his joke.

[@briansweeney5024]

@@ots1634 Oh no! I've bored you. That's the one thing I wasn't supposed to do. Life isn't worth living now. Goodbye cruel world!

[@ots1634]

@@briansweeney5024 lol x

[@IIVVBlues]

I love Shakespeare and never tire of hearing his words. It's a fondness that has ripened with age. My hearing has dimmed with the years so that live performance is muddied for me, but through recorded media and close captioning I can see what I was once able to hear. I have also found new and undiscovered pleasure in reading again these plays and allowing my mind to hear more keenly the words using my sight. It was 57 years ago that I first studied MacBeth. The language still entrances me.

[@gorge5412]

Great thought, Mr John. Thank you for sharing it.

[@theconsciousobserver6829]

n'ver do I tire, of him who inspired, of him, of him....of him. *loud applause *

[@carl_anderson9315]

Shakespeare is simply the GOAT. Cervantes was also a genius, and so was Poe.

[@lizannewhitlow1085]

@@carl_anderson9315 So was Nabokov. English was his third language.

[@lizannewhitlow1085]

John, turn off Newsmax. 🙏🏻

[@Atom.Storm.]

Holy crap. I'm a writer and I just learned more about presenting character in ten minutes than I have previously in twenty years.

[@oldfrend]

this is from a bbc Royal Shakespear Company master class special called Playing Shakespeare, all 9 parts free on youtube. fascinating watch, especially since patrick stewart and ben kingsley are also in it.

[@annebynon]

+oldfrend Thanks for that info.

[@MatthewHenderson1]

thank you so much

[@schleichface]

Thanks for the tip! When I get the time I plan to watch the whole series. It looks very promising.

[@barbarascutt792]

I watched this when it was first broadcast. It introduced me to amazing actors: Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Judith Dench, David Suette and Ben Kingsley.

[@mckavitt13]

@@barbarascutt792 When it was first broadcast. Don't need the -ed in the composed past.

[@ladams391]

It is truly amazing that Shakespeare wrote in such a way so that his work has reached across centuries of time and given me such a feeling of unease after seeing this performance. I don't mean to devalue Sir Ian McKellen's part in it, he clearly put in the time and effort and has the talent to give an amazing performance, but in his analysis he, himself, pays credit several times to Shakespeare's ability to convey so much meaning and deliver such vivid emotion through his work.

[@al201103]

This aspect, for me, is as fascinating as the quality of writing itself. The degree to which Shakespeare understood people, understood the human condition and its many nuanced facets. Particularly his understanding of depression, nihilism and existentialism but also love, loyalty, justice, morals. Long before psychology was codified it seems that Shakespeare had already peered deep into the human mind and peeled back so very many layers.

[@joliegarrett]

Brilliant! I love how you get to see his analysis come all together in performance at the end of this video. Sir Ian is one of our greatest living actors.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@MacrossMike]

My brother and I had the honor of meeting him back in 2005. We were on the piss, visiting all the local pubs in London Bridge. We saw him getting out of a taxi at London Bridge Station and ran up to him, he looked tired but I had to seize the moment and I made a request for an autograph for our mother. It was great the way he rolled eyes upwards and sighed in such a pantomime fashion before sighing my notepad!! Love the man.

[@PaulRoneClarke]

Bloody hell. I was not expecting that. The most wonderful thing I’ve seen for months on this here KZbin.

[@albertgainsworth]

This was great. The way he performed had me tearing up. I was awed by McKellen but even more by Shakespeare. What a mind he must have had.

[@silvinaprioris5207]

Yes ¡¡¡ both Shakespeare and Ian are geniouses

[@60secondpages]

He still has :)

[@Richard-hv5hh]

I wonder if Shakespeare wrote a single play! Clearly a lot of top rank Shakespearean actors such as Mark Rylance and Derek Jacobi have serious doubts. It's a really fascinating mystery.

[@SomeTypicalTourist]

Hes still alive as of Jan 2023

[@TheBFLrules]

18th earl of oxford*

[@nicolewu2650]

it's kinda interesting to think that among the 400k views, at least one of them is contributedby Michael Fassbender

[@manasmohapatra7847]

+Nicole Wu Haha. Came here from the Graham Norton show

[@sirmoros8951]

Which one?

[@manasmohapatra7847]

+Maximilian Tay check out the one with michael fassbender, james mccavoy and hugh jackman

[@brianperry9338]

Sir

[@Liface]

Also Sean Astin's daughter (see Empire Online interview)

[@Maestro_Charlie_Abraham]

This is the level of analysis I wanted when we all had to go through Macbeth in school

[@stepaushi]

Yeah, I wonder if teachers just read Wikipedia. Except for a select few, they probably have no idea what they're talking about.

[@coreygossman6243]

Macbeth would be a one year course at this pace.

[@channingbloom7125]

100

[@tequila_tibbs7938]

This is the level of analysis i got at my achool. Love macbeth, bur not ians reading. Polanskis macbeth is best

[@excelents]

0:16 Man directly behind Sir Ian's left shoulder (white shirt open jacket) is Sir. Patrick Stewart aka Captain Jean Luc Picard.

[@flynnhallman2552]

it's David Suchet

[@BadFluffy]

@@flynnhallman2552 no it's not. He said on Sir Ian's left shoulder so right of the screen to you. It's Stewart.

[@X-boomer]

I saw that production during its 1979 run in the Young Vic. Judy Dench played Lady Macbeth. John Woodvine played Banquo. Malcolm was played by Roger Rees, and Ross by Ian McDiarmid (more recently known as Emperor Palpatine in the Star Wars movies). It was my first ever visit to a live play in a proper theatre. And it was quite an unusual theatre. Small and intimate with the stage encircled by hard wooden benches. I was seated on those benches at the front right by the stage. During the “Banquo’s ghost” scene a small blob of spittle flew from McKellen’s lips as he spun around ranting and raving, and hit me in the face. It was an unforgettable experience, and to this day, the most enthralling presentation of the Scottish Play, live or recorded, that I have ever seen.

[@proawelsh]

love this memory thank you

[@ktrewin23]

We share the same experience. First professional Shakespeare, first theatrical experience beyond Peter Pan. A school trip to the Young Vic. It was life changing.

[@Argonaut121]

I studied Shakespeare in high school and university, have seen dozens of live productions, many films, read most of his plays and sonnets, and watched so many KZbin videos with varied interpretations of his speeches. Almost 65 years on I am still absolutely stunned by how extraordinary Shakespeare was. He truly has no equal.

[@acchaladka]

He does: Dante Alighieri, but you need to learn the Italian to understand how. That said, though I don't think it matters, I can't tell you who is better author.

[@ahmadhasan8355]

no equal maybe, but many betters.

[@ahmadhasan8355]

@@acchaladka Add Cervantes, Lope, Calderon - and this list excludes all the classics and Russian and whole of supreme eastern literature.

[@Argonaut121]

@@ahmadhasan8355 Like?

[@ahmadhasan8355]

@@Argonaut121 I've listed a few western writers who one may contend are better, or non-bardolators will accede them to be his equal. Here's just a few names from Eastern Literature who are definitively better (of course you do have to know the lang. and lit.) 2 names from Persian - Ferdousi and Rumi 2 names from Sanskrit - Valmiki and Vyasa there are a few more from each of these langs. and numerous others in other langs. but due to their relative lack of fame would be debatable. Shakespeare is just an English Dramatist, he can't be that great, it's a given.

[@nexttvmarketing]

I love that " was he putting the music into the piano or taking it out" brilliant...

[@Andy-lm2zp]

I am a piano player and I once said to a colleague that Sometimes I don't know whether I am playing the piano or it is playing me, he thought I was an idiot !

[@fdr100100]

He s doing both simultaneously you take the idea out of you mind and take the sound out of the piano the result is music

@Drinker_Of_ Milk your loss...

[@eugenemurray2940]

Michelangelo?? I was not carving... I was setting free 'The David' from that lump... Of marble...

[@daviddawson1718]

He played the piano, stop giving credit to inanimate objects

[@gabrieldecio858]

His and Judy Dench’s version of _Macbeth_ is the best one I have seen. I wish I had had this clip in my repertoire when I was teaching Shakespeare before retirement.

[@SteampunkGent]

Dench almost seducing MacBeth on his entry was - spectacular!

[@lolwhatyesme651]

This guy is a freaking genius, I've never heard such an in-depth analysis, someone give him a medal :0

[@hakonsoreide]

He already got a few: a CBE and a CH.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@canadagood]

@@hakonsoreide A gong or two.

[@whitneymilam3141]

He WAS knighted

[@ancientwell]

I saw Ian McKellen's one-man show "Acting Shakespeare" live back in the late 1980s and he did this analysis as part of the presentation.

[@linengray]

I also saw this show. I actually got to be one of the Henry V dead bodies on stage with him. So I can say I acted on the stage with Ian McKellen.

[@heshamhany8470]

@@linengray do you still perform or was it a one off?

[@linengray]

@@heshamhany8470 It was a one off. He selected people from the audience to join him on stage. He then did a scene with all of us playing dead. He even gave us a short lesson on how to die well.

[@heshamhany8470]

@@linengray that was awesome! But how do you die well? 😂

[@kristincooperholtz2997]

I saw him doing this at the nac in Ottawa so long ago. His romeo and Juliet balcony scene was also memorable. Truly comic.

[@bendigeidfranemmanueljones5694]

I saw him do that two nights ago. Ended with the house lights out. Still magic at 80.

[@soldierside365]

I saw his show as well last Saturday and oh my god it was beyond anything I’ve ever seen before. Very lucky to have seen him live.

[@travisjfranks]

The level of analysis is inspiring. What a phenomenal actor.

[@steerpike66]

Some of these classical actors speak more wisely and more volubly on the subject than any university professors. It just shows that you learn by doing, and by listening to practitioners. And Ian is one of the very greatest. He never ages because he always looked as handsome as a boy and as clever as a wise old man. He is cultivated and lordly but never snobbish and has hands like a ploughman's and an unmatched theatrical intellect.

[@wingsandash]

Wonderfully said.

[@edawg792]

Beautiful, you sound like a playwright yourself haha

[@Sophia.]

Chazbot That's not achieved just "by doing" - he has seriously studied it. The fact that serious study is more important to some actors than to some professors is SO no indication, let alone proof, that wisdom comes just from experience alone... I know, you didn't go that far, but I keep hearing that and am quite allergic by now to that line of argument. I have, by the way, been blessed with some truly great professors, so they are, or were there.

[@TheRazorKitten]

And yet studying IS "learning by doing". I'm sorry that such a statement gives you allergies, but what the heck do you think studying is? Don't put tone or meaning into someone's words online, you'll give yourself an apolexy ;)

[@TheRazorKitten]

*apoplexy

[@MarkArandjus]

Respect for how much these actors think about every detail of every line in pursuit of greatness.

[@ferrousallotrope]

That performance at the end really made everything else he said make sense. That blew me away

[@heelflipharriet1]

Happy Birthday, Sir Ian! Your talent is undeniable. This is brilliant ~

[@steerpike66]

This is the most terrifying Macbeth ever filmed. The claustrophobic sense of moral evil and icy damnation is palpable even on the old VHS tapes. The spittle hanging from his lips during the banquet scene, the frozen gestapo feel of the 'dogs' scene with the two murderers, and Dench's appalling shriek.

[@mrJohnDesiderio]

Chazbot Yes!!

[@jeffstone2136]

True. It's chilling.

[@ajnorthrop9121]

It reminds me of Beckett’s Not I. Like staring into hell and having this disembodied face gaze back while it struggles to understand how it got where it is.

[@jonathanmelia]

I was there. January 1978. Just turned ten years old. Also in the corner, hanging over the stage (unseen in the video), was a rusty metal sheet held by two ropes. You would see it swing and vibrate when there was thunder: a little “Brechtian” moment.

[@matthewchunk3689]

@@jonathanmelia It is interesting the images actors come up with. Ian sees a guy plodding along and a literal candle being snuffed. Others see the dusty death as the body resolving himself. It's a testament to Shakespeare or to our own creativity that equally valid images are drawn from Macbeth's speech.

[@littleglimmer2325]

This is the kind of television we had in the UK through the 60's and 70's. Many television plays were quality writing and acting; poor scenery and lighting didn't matter. It wasn't all sitcoms and secondhand US shows.

[@BeazleyStudios]

Sir Ian, absolutely wonderful...and his voice can capture your attention and keep it for as long as he want to.

[@Dinuial]

Good Gods above and below, that opening line! I have been saying for years that the biggest mistake people make with Shakespeare is sacrificing the meaning for the sake of the meter.

[@andrewtucker94]

Shakespeare can be so enjoyable when people cut to the heart of what's meant. I wonder if it so rarely sounds natural because so few actors really understand what he's trying to say

[@Lytton333]

Surely the trick is to have both. Otherwise it's a shrink's couch.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@Metoobie]

Sir McKellen, you never cease to impress me. Just in awe.

[@andyhaochizhang]

Shakespeare spelt "Tomorrow" in a conventional way to give us tomorrow in a conventional sense, and started with a capital T to give us tomorrow in an abstract sense.

[@0848786]

I like to call it an abstract, _conceptual_ sense.

[@TransoceanicOutreach]

When are you going to oil me up?

[@BruceHoult]

@@TransoceanicOutreach and strip you down? This isn't a revue skit.

[@reenarawat5537]

From the buttocks

[@adamrodaway9116]

I think he got a bit lost in the middle.

[@tgmolitor6215]

It's interesting to note the difference of delivering that soliloquy to an actress he is holding dead (Fassbender) and an actress he's looking at on a gurney dead (Stewart) versus a direct address to the audience (McKellen). The latter seems much more "theatrical" than the other two.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@troylee4196]

What about Denzel's if you saw it years after you wrote this?

[@pillettadoinswartsh4974]

Yes, "the sense." Finally someone gets it. Too often meaning gets lost in pentameter. It is especially important to convey Shakespeare's genius not only of language, but of wisdom. The Bard saw deeply, and expressed it eloquently. But it is the depth of his insight which is paramount. And "actor as playwright" reverberates Glenn Gould's understanding of pianist as composer. A work lives on through its RE-composing. Its RE-writing in performance. Bach himself was revitalized in 1955 by Gould's "Goldberg Variations."

[@ritwijmishra-writer6278]

True. Shakespeare was more than a restrained virtuoso, a formidable stylist. The substantive worth of his writings is quite as important to appreciate alongside a formalist approach to his writings.

[@pgehred1]

Such a great comment. I learned something. Thank you.

[@lizannewhitlow1085]

Piletta, what a marvelous name you have. I thought I had a good name! 🤭

[@holliswilliams8426]

I think it's simply because Shakespeare wrote poetry, and the plays are in verse, so people just see it as performance poetry, if that makes sense.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@lisastallingskeelor3328]

Mckellan could read his grocery list to me and I would be mesmerized. 💗💞🧡🖤💛🤍💖💔💕🤎💚💜💘❤️💝❣️

[@The80sBoy]

How absolutely amazing and so absorbing. Sir Ian grabs your attention and never lets go. One of the greatest actors - ever.

[@beverlyfletcher4458]

Superb and I was fortunate enough to see this production.

[@Miracle67]

I'm deeply thankful for documents like this: it means a lot to me to have a contact with such a great actor through his experienced Shakespeare on the stage. I really appreciate it like a present. Thank u, mate

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@DetailsAreSlim]

This is fabulous! And I love that Sir Patrick Stewart is sitting behind him listening as well.

[@cyrbuzz6615]

Magneto and Professor X in their youth.

[@theliterarytarot]

You should read Sir Patrick Stewart’s new book, he talks about this speech and about their friendship. They weren’t close until much later. Very absorbing!

[@j.p.8276]

Sir Ian Mckellen, a title well deserved. Can you imagine him doing rap, or hip hop? It is a pleasure just to listen to him talk. He does the language justice. I wish more people would follow his example.

[@derekk9202]

He would be great at that too

[@liquidswords9540]

If you know where to look, hip hop is a great addition to the canon of the english language culturally speaking, and a worthy extension of how we think of poetry today with the original performative aspect a prerequisite. Not all hip hop is created equal of course and some indeed is just for radio play which is in itself no evil, but there are a great deal of extremely talented wordsmiths that have put out very interesting bodies of work with their own distinct styles and even personal lexicons. For instance if you read the lyrics to Black Star’s Thieves In The Night (or better yet listen to it of course) they stand up in their own right. As far as music goes no current form comes close to hip hop’s complexity you’d probably have to go back to librettists for that.

[@SuperBlackguard]

thankyou Sir Ian for lighting up and revealing more of the depth and detail of Shakespeare, each line is a snapshot into infinity it sometimes seems

[@tyfighter18]

To put his in perspective, he was 40 here. He is 82 two week from today. So he was literally less than half of his current age in this video. All we have to decide is what to do with the time we are given.

[@fatihkan2601]

whenever I remember this guy I think the same thing and actually I just thought the idead of being an actor after my 35. And I'm thinking about it very seriously just because of this guy has achieved after his 70 years old.

[@fatihkan2601]

@@DayVid2.0 half in total. Because he's 82 now. He's not gonna live to 150.

[@tecaarantes]

Great comment!

[@Stettafire]

@@fatihkan2601 Not half in total, because he could live another year, in which case, it's now more than half

[@fatihkan2601]

@@Stettafire he could live to his 100. British people can live longer mostly. It's not the case. First commenter suggests like he's in his forties.

[@CB-ce6bk]

that man is far beyond great, his personality is so catching you cling onto his lips until he finished the last syllable😍😍 that's what Shakespeare is about, out of space performance😍

[@gkiiizy6068]

this dude is boring asfu are u high

[@robink.8532]

I have a feeling this guy’s gonna go places.

[@scottloar]

Spot on. More, he does know and can translate so; he makes it all intelligible, a thorough understanding, and this genius of Shakespeare is more thoroughly appreciated.

[@petercorbett3794]

I saw him doing this live, in the theatre, a one man show around the same time as this. It was as intense as watching him do the full play.

[@lytez95]

I studied Macbeth as a senior in high school and my English Teacher introduced us to Sir Ian's soliloquy and I've never forgotten it. Over 10 years later, it is still one of the most influencial pieces of acting I have ever scene. And to watch his analysis behind the performance now has made me appreciate it even more! I wish I could share this with my English Teacher to show that her impact on me has lasted so long! thank you for sharing this video!

[@kamuelalee]

McKellen really brings home the point with this workshop how intellectual the process of acting can be...especially Shakespeare. Love this video, thanks for posting.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@salfordguy69]

he's absolutely gorgeous, compelling, enigmatic and passionate!! Nothing changes!

[@owencraig7174]

Patrick Stewart is there in the background to the right.

[@sesfilmsllc]

He had hair?

[@Quotenwagnerianer]

@@sesfilmsllc If you call that hair. He has just about the same amount as he did 10 years later when he played Cpt. Picard. The difference here is that he has just grown out what little he has.

[@McKamikazeHighlander]

Along with David Suchet. Such talent

[@robb7968]

@@McKamikazeHighlander Both actually discussed the role of Shylock in Merchant of Venice. And the setting of that video was somewhat similar to this one.

[@thelittlepasty8360]

Stefan Sharak Have you not seen dune?

[@Thriller94]

Guy behind at 9:55 got his mind BLOWN.

[@virtualpigmaster]

And that guy is Trevor Nunn, who directed Mckellen in that production of Macbeth himself!

[@mikemillsted56]

That's Sir Trevor Nunn.

[@alixwatson5967]

🤦

[@annebynon]

This is brilliant. Would love to see some more master class footage from RSC archives.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@theliterarytarot]

Absolutely

[@SteampunkGent]

That looks like the Donmar (Warehouse) where I saw McKellen playing Macbeth with Dench as Lady MacBeth

[@marekschwarzmann1638]

can you imagine airing this gold, this extremely rare, educated and informative material in todays tv?

[@MattsProductionz]

Thumbs up if Michael Fassbender sent you here. He was on this video :)

[@stewiegriffin993]

What's the connection between this and Fassbender?

[@MattsProductionz]

Stewie Griffin You don't get it....

[@stewiegriffin993]

MattzProductionz Obviously. Well?

[@RMarsupial]

Stewie Griffin Fassbender is going to star in an upcoming Macbeth adaptation! (a film) Should be pretty cool.

[@nickromo6093]

Stewie Griffin my guess is because they both play magneto

[@shakespearemonologue]

Ian McKellen gives so many great tips in this excerpt - thanks for sharing.

[@BoninBrighton]

Phenomenal analysis. We saw Ian play King Lear a few years ago now…. on our 60th b’days. It felt ‘appropriate’….

[@josiahcmiller]

I’ve rewatched this like twenty times in the past five years

[@angelsdefendus]

That was amazing!! That is such a perfect example of nihilism, and Sir McKellan nailed it. Thank you for posting this.

[@keithdavis8461]

Absolutely brilliant. Love his point about all the minutiae being for the actor’s benefit. And then, the less mindful or savvy audience members can experience those better felt than told moments.

[@willyounts3308]

terrific reading thank you for uploading.

[@TrevorCopter]

I used to work at a theater bookstore and it tickles me that RSC still have the same font/logo to this day :)

[@star_blazer]

Thank you for making this available, Kris.

[@moleshaman3040]

His masterclass really reveals depths in the text that I hadn't suspected when I saw the play.

[@ruthieo54]

Sir Ian's interpretive discourse is absolutely illuminating. He shows me why actors have endlessly studied Shakespeare. He is so worthy of his craft! Bravo!

[@portaccio]

It is the most shattering experience of a young man's life when he awakens and quite reasonably says to himself, "I will never play The Dane."

[@portaccio]

And when that moment comes, ambition ceases.

[@TravelingGrandma]

Recommend in my feed, brilliant find! Thank you for sharing!

[@fazergazer]

Brilliant! It’s the context, really! To see into the mind of the actor visualizing the context of the words. Stream of consciousness sharing. In fact, as a pianist, I empathize with this essential context the performer must create to link the mind of the audience with the composer’s intent. The notes and the words have meaning only in this context.

[@JerrellXotiikClemmons]

This is great! kzbin.info/www/bejne/npPbpWicat5lbKs

[@tbirdscollection4138]

Ian I've really enjoyed watching you strut and fret across the stage

[@PeteJones81]

4 minutes in and this is already the best Shakespeare analysis I've ever heard. Note to self: actors understand Shakespeare much better than pretentious windbags like Harold Bloom #RIPSortOf

[@bclark3614]

This is a man who truly, deeply understands his craft and has an immense amount of respect for it!

[@TroyBlackford]

He gives us time in a concrete sense, but also in an abstract sense.

[@b00i00d]

This is _sooo good_ - the whole series in fact. Everytime I revisit it I am refreshed anew!

[@toddbalazic4884]

This is the most amazing discourse on both the art of acting and the art of Shakespeare that my sorry ears have heard in longer than my sorry heart wishes to admit. Thank you for posting this!!!

[@jeanniedonovan5682]

PURE GOLD. Thank you for sharing.

[@jean-lucpicard5510]

This was actually filmed in the Holodeck of the Stargazer when I was second in command.

[@jamesfoley6939]

This is a pleasure to watch in every way.

[@eamonnmorris5331]

"Syllable" ... the most striking word in the whole soliloquy ... after all, Time does not have 'syllables' ... only words do .... and yet what a genius use of the word "Syllable" by Shakespeare here! ... almost postmodern. Yet I don't think I have heard one Great Shakespearean Actor version, not even this one, that gives that word due consideration ....

[@herrklamm1454]

Good point.

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

You have a point! Thank you for making me think about the meaning of using syllable. Do you mind giving me your thoughts? I have my own idea but would love your perspective.

[@eamonnmorris5331]

@@BbGun-lw5vi It's intriguing, this thing about language ... "In the beginning there was the Word etc." Words are, in a sense, a proxy for 'reality'. But can words (i.e. syllables) be a proxy for Time itself? It's an interesting idea that this passage draws me back to! If so it is at the very least prescient of Shakespeare to bring it up ... especially when seen through the modern lens of 'Space-Time' On the other hand there is the notion of language as 'material' - the 'plasticene' out of which we construct reality. That is what I meant by "almost postmodern" On that level the "last syllable" quote is a lovely piece of material in itself, best enunciated with the full measure of scorn it deserves.

[@BbGun-lw5vi]

@@eamonnmorris5331 Thank you for sharing. You gave me a lot to think about. I hadn’t thought about “in the beginning there was the Word.” When I read your first comment I kept thinking of a few things. Like you, I thought about how we construct our reality through language. And how a novel is a bunch of chapters, made up of paragraphs, full of words that are made up of syllables. Since he says “recorded” time then it’s a history volume that is immensely huge with countless syllables and that last syllable is the last one spoken before the volume is closed. I love that the previous line before “syllable” is made up of only one syllable words except for petty. ‘Creeps in this petty pace from day to day” Anyway, thank you for sharing your thoughts with me.

[@daveluck5717]

How this doesnt have over a million views,, is beyond me. I have never indulged myself with Shakespeare, but this is significant !

[@ShotDownInFlames2]

Good analysis. I always thought there should be several pauses during the speech, as he did it.

[@indigoriviera]

Thank you so much for uploading, this was wonderful to watch.

[@johngammon963]

The most compelling lesson in Shakespeare I'm ever likely to see.

[@Maliceah]

What a fantastic analysis of MacBeth's speech! Fascinating.

[@danandmary11]

This is a play about time for sure. The three witches fulfilled a function similar to Christmas Past, Present, and Future when telling Macbeth he WAS Glamis, IS Cawdor, and WILL BE King. Also contrast Macbeth's resilient and hopeful patience in the very early lines of the play "Come what come may, Time and the hour runs through the roughest day" with this totally defeated, hopeless, and desperate view of the future. Brilliant!

[@andyadler]

@@duanecameronson Clearly this was wasted on you.

[@EMEReynolds]

Brilliant, his analytical perspective is something to be admired greatly.

[@jeremydaly8293]

4:45 watch Patrick Stewart break out in a smile, most likely in sheer appreciation of Ian's love and knowledge of Shakespeares verse

[@voidstarq]

1. Patrick Stewart!? Where? On the right. Hmm, it's so blurry, I can barely-- Holy crap, you're right! 2. Which makes this even more interesting: no mention of the tip that, in the story Stewart tells, McKellen gave him three decades later, when he was working on the 2010 film version: "The important word is *'AND'.* 🤯" (The emoji _is_ part of how he tells the story.) kzbin.info/www/bejne/bJDQcmermZ52rq8 This implies that it's an insight McKellen had somewhere in the intervening time, despite his analysis here seeming so complete. I wonder what he would have to say about it.

[@vardellsfolly5200]

Kris, thank you for this experience!

[@nikgibson2503]

"A fool is what?" Flying, hopefully

[@scrapbus9681]

Underrated

[@tqft]

I needed this quality of analysis during my school days….