It’s almost the most wonderful time of the year! Spice up your holidays with these cheerful Shakespearean Christmas Carols!
Shakespearean Halloween Party IV
It’s that time of year again! Have you got your Shakespearean Halloween costume ready?
Here are some more costume ideas from past years:
Desdemona’s handkerchief… still my favorite…
Stick Figure Iconography: Rosalind
Shakespeare's tragic characters are usually easy to depict, as they have instruments of death and destruction to wave around. Comedic characters are usually a little trickier, like today's subject: Rosalind!
Am I wrong about Rosalind's hair? Almost all of the Rosalinds I have ever seen have been red-headed. (I should mention that I've so far never seen a non-white Rosalind... which is not to say that non-white Rosalinds can't also have red hair if they want to.....)
Shakespeare Quotes For Thanksgiving
It's Thanksgiving in America! Here are some handy Shakespeare quotes for you to use.
You can also check out my exposé of the (in)famous "thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks" quote.
This is the fifth Thanksgiving to pass me by since I started Good Tickle Brain, so once again I'd like to thank all of you for reading and supporting this little comic. It's been so much fun, and I look forward to thanking you on many more Thanksgivings to come.
A special shout-out, as always, to my supporters on Patreon, who have helped make it possible for me to work on Good Tickle Brain full time. I really appreciate all of your support. It makes a difference, believe me!
Of course, you know what Thanksgiving also means...
Black Friday at the Good Tickle Shoppe!
Just a reminder that starting tomorrow, November 24, at 12:00am EST, everything in the Good Tickle Shoppe will be 20% OFF if you use the incredibly imaginative discount code BLACKFRIDAY2017 at checkout! The code is good through 11:50pm EST on Monday, November 27.
All sizes of my Complete Works t-shirt (spotted at major Shakespeare theatres around the world) back in stock...
...and I have TWO new comic books! The first is the second edition of my Complete Works of Shakespeare in Three Panels Each comic book, with updated illustrations and text...
...and the second is my BRAND NEW collection of A Stick Figure Romeo and Juliet, featuring all my Romeo and Juliet scene-by-scene comics with exclusive additional commentary! It's at the printer right now, but will be in stock in time for Black Friday. Here's a sneek peek:
Plus, of course, my flowchart poster, Macbeth comic book, Complete Works tank top and various other t-shirts are also available.
So, to recap:
WHO: You!
WHAT: 20% off everything Black Friday sale!
WHERE: The Good Tickle Shoppe!
WHEN: Friday, November 24 through Monday, November 27!
WHY: Because you need holiday gifts and I need to sell this stuff!
HOW: Use the code BLACKFRIDAY2017 at checkout!
Jaques
It's the question on everyone's lips.... HOW DO YOU PRONOUNCE "JAQUES"?
Don't forget the poor second Jaques in As You Like It, the deus-ex-machina man himself, Jaques de Boys.
Upcoming Appearances
September 6: Stratford Festival Forum - Willy Shakes: Fanboy
WHO: Me! And also Anthony Del Col and Conor McCreery of the Kill Shakespeare comic book series.
WHAT: Panel discussion on Shakespeare in pop culture and graphic novels. Part of the Stratford Festival Forum series of events.
WHEN: Wednesday, September 6, 10:45am
WHERE: Chalmers Lounge, Avon Theatre, Stratford, Ontario.
WHY: Because they asked me!
HOW: Buy tickets at the Stratford Festival website.
Taking September "Off"
I've got a very busy September coming up, so instead of new comics I'm going to be posting some filler material taken from past social media posts and some of the bonus comics I share with my supporters on Patreon. It will hopefully (a) still be fun for all of you, and (b) allow me to take the time to get the rest of my year's tasks and projects in order without having a nervous breakdown. Thanks for understanding!
The Good Tickle Shoppe, with all its objectively awesome merchandise, will remain open for business, although orders placed between September 4 and September 11 won't ship until September 12.
REVIEW: "As You Like It" at the Stratford Festival
I've discovered that I'm pretty terrible at writing reviews because (a) I tend to like everything and (b) if I don't like something, I don't want to make anyone feel bad by saying so. Fortunately, I liked the Stratford Festival's latest production of As You Like It.
In case you've never seen As You Like It before, here's what happens in it.
No, it doesn't really make a lot of sense. No, you shouldn't worry about it. Just enjoy.
As You Like It is playing at the Stratford Festival until October 22. If you've ever wanted to be a tree in the forest of Arden, this is your big chance.
Guffaw and Order: Touchstone
On the opposite end of the clown spectrum from Dogberry (totally oblivious idiot) is Touchstone (brilliant, witty conversationalist). However, he often goes overboard, which can be just as incomprehensible...
Moral of the story: Don't get into an argument with Touchstone.
Tune in again next week, when we'll launch on another scene-by-scene adventure!
In case you missed it, Good Tickle Brain is now on Patreon! Help support my work creating stick figure Shakespeare comics and get fun rewards, like bonus comics and video drawing tutorials!
As Duke Frederick Likes It
Last Sunday I went to see the not-quite-live broadcast of the National Theatre's production of As You Like It, which reminded me how utterly contrived the ending is. No, it's not the four weddings and spontaneous appearance of Hymen, god of marriage. It's the way in which Shakespeare deals with the Big Bad Wolf of the play: Duke Frederick.
WELL, THAT DE-ESCALATED QUICKLY.
Granted, the endings to most of Shakespeare's comedies are contrived, but As You Like It is one of the worst offenders as far as I'm concerned. Even Cymbeline lays more groundwork to justify the final, ridiculous scene of revelations than As You Like It.
Which is not to say that I don't like it. I just find it consistently hilarious.
Good Tickle Brain at the Folger!
I am really thrilled to announce that I will be giving a FREE pre-show talk at the Folger Shakespeare Library on APRIL 29th! Join me at the Folger Theatre at 6:00pm as I talk about how I got involved in all this Shakespeare comic madness, reveal to you my deepest artistic secrets, and draw a brand new comic live on stage - with your help!
Good Tickle Brain merchandise will be available for purchase, and I will be hanging around after my talk to sign stuff! Plus, if you stick around until 8:00pm, you can see the world-famous Reduced Shakespeare Company perform William Shakespeare's Long Lost First Play (abridged). I saw a workshop production of this last summer at the Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival, and it's basically what would happen if you dumped all of Shakespeare's plays into a blender, added a hefty dose of pure silliness, and then turned it on. I highly recommend it. I can't tell you how excited I am about this.
I've been meaning to visit the Folger Library for ages (being both a Shakespeare geek and a library geek), so this is basically a dream come true for me. If you're in the Washington D.C. area, please stop by and say hello! For details on the event, as well as how to reserve your FREE tickets, visit the Folger website.