Narrated By Stacy Keach, Richard Dreyfuss, Ed Begley, and others
Overall
(106)
Performance
(34)
Story
(32)
In the rigid theocracy of Salem, Massachusetts, rumors that women are practicing witchcraft galvanize the town. In the ruthlessness of the prosecutors and the eagerness of neighbor to testify against neighbor, The Crucible mirrors the anti-Communist hysteria in the 1950s.
Narrated By James Marsters, Charles Busch, Emily Bergl, and others
Overall
(146)
Performance
(70)
Story
(71)
This final play from the pen of Oscar Wilde is a stylish send-up of Victorian courtship and manners, complete with assumed names, mistaken lovers, and a lost handbag. Jack and Algernon are best friends, both wooing ladies who think their names are Ernest, "that name which inspires absolute confidence." Wilde's effervescent wit, scathing social satire, and high farce make this one of the most cherished plays in the English language.
Narrated By James Marsters, Joanne Whalley, Josh Cooke, and others
Overall
(21)
Performance
(21)
Story
(21)
Infamously known as the cursed Scottish play, Macbeth is perhaps Shakespeare’s darkest tragedy. When General Macbeth is foretold by three witches that he will one day be King of Scotland, Lady Macbeth convinces him to get rid of anyone who could stand in his way – including committing regicide. As Macbeth ascends to the throne through bloody murder, he becomes a tyrant consumed by fear and paranoia.
Paul says:
"Horrible performance of a wonderful play"
Narrated By Dan Castellaneta, Hector Elizondo, Armin Shimerman
Overall
(31)
Performance
(15)
Story
(15)
Over the course of a steamy and tense afternoon, 12 jurors deliberate the fate of a 19-year-old boy alleged to have murdered his own father. A seemingly open and shut case turns complicated, igniting passions and hidden prejudices.
Narrated By James Marsters, Jacqueline Bisset, Alfred Molina, and others
Overall
(13)
Performance
(11)
Story
(10)
Four classic comedies from one of the wittiest playwrights in Western literature: Lady Windermere’s Fan, A Woman of No Importance, An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest, all featuring star-studded casts with the likes of Jacqueline Bisset, Miriam Margolyes, James Marsters, Alfred Molina, Roger Rees, Yeardley Smith, Eric Stoltz, and many more. Also includes a chilling dramatization of Wilde’s sole novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray.
Narrated By Kate Burton, Miriam Margolyes, Kevin Theis, and others
Overall
(20)
Performance
(6)
Story
(5)
Jane Austen's classic romantic comedy is the sparkling tale of the Bennets, a family blessed with five daughters and a mother desperate to marry them off. The tempestuous pairing of the witty, independent Elizabeth and her arrogant but honorable suitor Mr. Darcy sets the standard for all great couples of stage and screen. Although many have tried, few literary romances have matched the wit and gentile satire of Austen's Pride and Prejudice.
Narrated By Kate Burton, Mark Capri, Jennifer Dundas, and others
Overall
(26)
Performance
(14)
Story
(14)
Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia merges science with human concerns and ideals, examining the universe’s influence in our everyday lives and ultimate fates through relationship between past and present, order and disorder and the certainty of knowledge. Set in an English country house in the year 1809-1812 and 1989, the play examines the lives of two modern scholars and the house's current residents with the lives of those who lived there 180 years earlier.
Narrated By Shirley Knight, Anne Heche, JoBeth Williams, and others
Overall
(11)
Performance
(9)
Story
(9)
Eight of George Bernard Shaw's most memorable plays in one splendid collection: Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Arms and the Man, Candida, The Devil’s Disciple, Major Barbara, The Doctor’s Dilemma, Misalliance, and Pygmalion.
Narrated By Calista Flockhart, Tony Abatemarco, Tim Dekay, and others
Overall
(0)
Performance
(0)
Story
(0)
A new recording of Henrik Ibsen’s masterpiece, starring Calista Flockhart. 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.
In Neat, writer/performer Charlayne Woodard shares her memories of growing up black in America in the '60s and '70s. The play focuses around the life of Woodard's Aunt Beneatha, Neat, who was mistakenly fed camphor oil as a baby, resulting in permanent brain damage. Stories of family and of time spent with Neat are weaved together with touching results.
Narrated By Dan Castellaneta, Nathan Lane, Richard Dreyfuss, and others
Overall
(21)
Performance
(17)
Story
(17)
Ten essential plays by Neil Simon, one of the world’s most celebrated, translated, and widely performed playwrights, including Barefoot in the Park, The Odd Couple, Plaza Suite, Brighton Beach Memoirs, and more.
This acclaimed World War II psychological court room drama was the sensation of 1954. The play portrays a mutiny of naval officers aboard the U.S.S. Caine. Their suspicions concerning their captain's sanity lead to their rebellion and a subsequent court-martial.
Narrated By Shirley Knight, Jeffrey Donovan, Emily Bergl, and others
Overall
(34)
Performance
(8)
Story
(8)
Based on the epic novel by Nobel Laureate John Steinbeck. Set during the Great Depression, tells the powerful story of the Joad family’s trek from the dust bowl of Oklahoma to the promise of a new life in California. But what they find threatens to rip apart their lives, and sever the ties that bind them together.
The Best Man crackles with the smart lines and situations inherent to the work of Gore Vidal. The political intrigues rampant in Vidal's 1960 setting are strangely similar to the political intrigues of the present day. This darkly satirical drama finds two presidential contenders seeking the endorsement of an aging ex-president and explores how personal agendas can change the course of a nation's destiny.
Narrated By John de Lancie, Meagan Fay, Jerry Hardin, and others
Overall
(30)
Performance
(21)
Story
(22)
Join actors from Star Trek and Star Trek: The Next Generation as they recreate this classic radio thriller. The breathless pace and convincing details make it clear why the 1938 broadcast of an "eyewitness report" of an invasion from Mars caused a nationwide panic.
Narrated By Edward Asner, Arye Gross, John Kapelos, and others
Overall
(8)
Performance
(1)
Story
(0)
Director David Fishelson transforms Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov and The Idiot into spellbinding drama that illuminates both titanic novels. In The Brothers Karamazov, the passionate brothers spring to life, led by their roué of a father ¿ who entertains himself by drinking, womanizing, and pitting his three sons against each other. The men have plenty to fight over, including the alluring Grushenka.
Narrated By Julie Harris, James Farentino, Arye Gross, and others
Overall
(21)
Performance
(9)
Story
(8)
World War II is over and a family, mourning a son missing in action, plants a memorial tree and tries to go on with their lives. A storm blows down the tree and a devastating family secret is uprooted, setting the characters on a terrifying journey towards truth.
Lisa says:
"HAD TO READ FOR ENGLISH LIT ... SO GLAD I DID!"
A tender love story, a serpentine villainess, a glittering setting in London society, and a showering of Wildean witticism are only a few of the reasons why this play has enjoyed hugely successful revivals in London, in New York, and on the silver screen. This 1895 drama is eerily prescient, as it examines the plight of a promising politician, desperate to hide a secret in his past. With empathy and wit, Oscar Wilde explores the pitfalls of holding public figures to higher standards than the rest of us.
Narrated By Leonard Nimoy, Gates McFadden, a full cast
Overall
(75)
Performance
(15)
Story
(15)
Join actors from television's Star Trek - including Leonard Nimoy, Brent Spiner, and Gates McFadden - as they recreate this classic radio thriller. The breathless pace and convincing details make it clear why the 1938 broadcast caused a nationwide panic. You may panic too...
Nick says:
"Not the Mercury Theater, but still fun"
