A tragedy of doomed love between an Egyptian queen and a ruler of Rome, William Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra is edited by Emrys Jones with an introduction by Rene Weis in Penguin Shakespeare.
'Eternity was in our lips and eyes,
Bliss in our brows' bent'
A battle-hardened soldier, Antony is one of the three leaders of the Roman world. But he is also a man in the grip of an all-consuming passion for Cleopatra, the exotic and tempestuous queen of Egypt. And when their life of pleasure together is threatened by the encroaching politics of Rome, the conflict between love and duty has devastating consequences.
This book contains a general introduction to Shakespeare's life and Elizabethan theatre, a separate introduction to Antony and Cleopatra, a chronology, suggestions for further reading, an essay discussing performance options on both stage and screen, and a commentary.
If you enjoyed Antony and Cleopatra, you might like Coriolanus, also available in Penguin Shakespeare.
'A kind of perfection, a sort of magic'
Patrick Stewart