
Seven Classic Plays
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed

Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $17.16
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
full cast
About this listen
These are not mere readings. Rather, they are full performances using all the resources of audio to full advantage. Just as stage plays are "opened up" when adapted to film, so these selections create greater intimacy. "Staginess" is avoided, lively theatrics enhanced, while the substance of the works remains intact. For instance, in Arms and the Man, audio makes possible the judicious integration of the author's witty scene settings, written for the published version of the play, with the play itself. This is the play that established Shaw's reputation as one of the greatest wits of the London drama scene.
Music accounts for another noteworthy aspect of these productions. The Imaginary Invalid employs the score that Marc-Antoine Charpentier composed for Moliere's own premiere. It is conducted by Steven Ovitsky, artistic director of the Milwaukee Symphony.
The Tempest, composed by Shakespeare as a multi-sensory theater experience, features music on Elizabethan instruments still extant from Shakespeare's own production, resulting in lyrical textual passages, overflowing with exotic images, tantalizing sounds, and a palpable lushness.
(P)2002 Blackstone AudiobooksListeners also enjoyed...
-
Anton Chekhov: 6 Full-Cast BBC Radio Productions
- The Seagull, The Cherry Orchard, Uncle Vanya, Wild Honey & More
- By: Anton Chekhov
- Narrated by: Ian McKellen, Judi Dench, Helena Bonham-Carter, and others
- Length: 12 hrs and 28 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A master of Russian realism, Anton Chekhov is renowned for his meticulously observed plays and short stories exploring the human condition, in all its joys and sorrows. Included here are six of his best-known dramas, as well as Michael Frayn's adaptation of Wild Honey, drawn from an early, untitled Chekhov play; and one documentary exploring Chekhov's life and work.
By: Anton Chekhov
-
Henrik Ibsen
- Nine Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramatisations
- By: Henrik Ibsen
- Narrated by: David Threlfall, Full Cast, Harriet Walters, and others
- Length: 16 hrs and 15 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Often described as ‘the father of realism’, Henrik Ibsen was a pioneer of modernist drama. He influenced playwrights as diverse as George Bernard Shaw and Oscar Wilde, and is the most frequently performed dramatist in the world after Shakespeare. Included in this collection are adaptations of his tragicomic masterpiece The Wild Duck, his complex and compelling play Rosmersholm, the epic drama Brand and the tragedy John Gabriel Borkman.
-
-
A Doll’s House Alone is Worth the Credit
- By Jeffrey Epstein on 12-15-21
By: Henrik Ibsen
-
Romeo and Juliet: The Fully Dramatized Audio Edition
- By: William Shakespeare
- Narrated by: full cast
- Length: 2 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare creates a tragic world in which two young people fall in love. It is not simply that their families disapprove; the Montagues and the Capulets are engaged in a blood feud. This play, set in an extraordinary world, has become the quintessential story of young love. This new full-cast recording - based on the most respected edition of Shakespeare's classic - expertly produced by the Folger Theatre, is perfect for students, teachers, and the everyday listener.
-
-
Great Dramatization!
- By Karen Mitchell Smith on 04-26-16
-
Shakespeare: The Comedies: Featuring All 13 of William Shakespeare’s Comedic Plays
- Featuring All 13 of William Shakespeare’s Comedic Plays
- By: William Shakespeare
- Narrated by: Derek Jacobi, Ian McKellen, Roy Dotrice, and others
- Length: 37 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Young love, bawdiness and exuberance are played out in these comedies that continue to make us laugh and cheer. Performed by an incredible array of the 20th century’s greatest actors, Marlowe alumni including Ian McKellen, Diana Rigg, Derek Jacobi and Prunella Scales can be heard in these recordings.
-
-
Very great value
- By J. Roche on 12-29-20
-
A Doll House
- By: Henrik Ibsen
- Narrated by: Calista Flockhart, Tony Abatemarco, Tim Dekay, and others
- Length: 2 hrs and 10 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nora Helmer has everything a young housewife could want: Beautiful children, an adoring husband, and a bright future. But when a carelessly buried secret rises from the past, Nora’s well-calibrated domestic ideal starts to crumble. Ibsen’s play is as fresh today as it was when it first stormed the stages of 19th-century Europe.
-
-
A classic, but new to me
- By Calliope on 05-02-15
By: Henrik Ibsen
-
Tennessee Williams: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
- A Streetcar Named Desire, A Glass Menagerie, Spring Storm and More
- By: Tennessee Williams
- Narrated by: Anne-Marie Duff, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Celia Imrie, and others
- Length: 11 hrs and 59 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tennessee Williams is one of the three most important American dramatists of the 20th century, alongside Arthur Miller and Eugene O'Neill. Acclaimed for their lyrical language, dark themes and vivid portrayal of the American South, his works have spawned several Oscar-winning films and been translated and performed worldwide. Collected here are some of the best, beginning with the play that launched Williams' career: The Glass Menagerie.
-
Anton Chekhov: 6 Full-Cast BBC Radio Productions
- The Seagull, The Cherry Orchard, Uncle Vanya, Wild Honey & More
- By: Anton Chekhov
- Narrated by: Ian McKellen, Judi Dench, Helena Bonham-Carter, and others
- Length: 12 hrs and 28 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A master of Russian realism, Anton Chekhov is renowned for his meticulously observed plays and short stories exploring the human condition, in all its joys and sorrows. Included here are six of his best-known dramas, as well as Michael Frayn's adaptation of Wild Honey, drawn from an early, untitled Chekhov play; and one documentary exploring Chekhov's life and work.
By: Anton Chekhov
-
Henrik Ibsen
- Nine Full-Cast BBC Radio Dramatisations
- By: Henrik Ibsen
- Narrated by: David Threlfall, Full Cast, Harriet Walters, and others
- Length: 16 hrs and 15 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Often described as ‘the father of realism’, Henrik Ibsen was a pioneer of modernist drama. He influenced playwrights as diverse as George Bernard Shaw and Oscar Wilde, and is the most frequently performed dramatist in the world after Shakespeare. Included in this collection are adaptations of his tragicomic masterpiece The Wild Duck, his complex and compelling play Rosmersholm, the epic drama Brand and the tragedy John Gabriel Borkman.
-
-
A Doll’s House Alone is Worth the Credit
- By Jeffrey Epstein on 12-15-21
By: Henrik Ibsen
-
Romeo and Juliet: The Fully Dramatized Audio Edition
- By: William Shakespeare
- Narrated by: full cast
- Length: 2 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare creates a tragic world in which two young people fall in love. It is not simply that their families disapprove; the Montagues and the Capulets are engaged in a blood feud. This play, set in an extraordinary world, has become the quintessential story of young love. This new full-cast recording - based on the most respected edition of Shakespeare's classic - expertly produced by the Folger Theatre, is perfect for students, teachers, and the everyday listener.
-
-
Great Dramatization!
- By Karen Mitchell Smith on 04-26-16
-
Shakespeare: The Comedies: Featuring All 13 of William Shakespeare’s Comedic Plays
- Featuring All 13 of William Shakespeare’s Comedic Plays
- By: William Shakespeare
- Narrated by: Derek Jacobi, Ian McKellen, Roy Dotrice, and others
- Length: 37 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Young love, bawdiness and exuberance are played out in these comedies that continue to make us laugh and cheer. Performed by an incredible array of the 20th century’s greatest actors, Marlowe alumni including Ian McKellen, Diana Rigg, Derek Jacobi and Prunella Scales can be heard in these recordings.
-
-
Very great value
- By J. Roche on 12-29-20
-
A Doll House
- By: Henrik Ibsen
- Narrated by: Calista Flockhart, Tony Abatemarco, Tim Dekay, and others
- Length: 2 hrs and 10 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nora Helmer has everything a young housewife could want: Beautiful children, an adoring husband, and a bright future. But when a carelessly buried secret rises from the past, Nora’s well-calibrated domestic ideal starts to crumble. Ibsen’s play is as fresh today as it was when it first stormed the stages of 19th-century Europe.
-
-
A classic, but new to me
- By Calliope on 05-02-15
By: Henrik Ibsen
-
Tennessee Williams: A BBC Radio Drama Collection
- A Streetcar Named Desire, A Glass Menagerie, Spring Storm and More
- By: Tennessee Williams
- Narrated by: Anne-Marie Duff, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Celia Imrie, and others
- Length: 11 hrs and 59 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tennessee Williams is one of the three most important American dramatists of the 20th century, alongside Arthur Miller and Eugene O'Neill. Acclaimed for their lyrical language, dark themes and vivid portrayal of the American South, his works have spawned several Oscar-winning films and been translated and performed worldwide. Collected here are some of the best, beginning with the play that launched Williams' career: The Glass Menagerie.
Critic reviews
"Director Yuri Rasovsky and his cast convey with sensitivity the many dimensions of these people... A beautifully paced performance." (AudioFile)
Well Done Plays
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
read, listen, be inspired, dream, write, share!
mesmerising!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Would you listen to Seven Classic Plays again? Why?
Yes , it was great, good performed and the variety of uthorsWhat was one of the most memorable moments of Seven Classic Plays?
The Enemy of People .Uncle Vanya. The TempestHave you listened to any of Full Cast’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
no, it's the first, now I'm listening to another but I cant compare it nowWas there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
In Uncle Vanya when he refers to cut down trees to burn, it is a very present theme because of the COP21 in FranceAny additional comments?
a nice company to have a walk and enjoy good playsgreat production
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Not Great Audible Theater
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Drama queen!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
As to the rest: The Ibsen is weak and the Shaw is boring. The productions were produced in 1985. Perhaps 20 years of a renewed interest in audio literature require more sophisticated productions or, perhaps, these productions, produced under the auspices of the Hollywood Theater of the Ear, are simply the product of a consistently bad director.
Badly Done Plays
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
No index to say where each play begins or ends.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.