Ben Crystal

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Ben Crystal (born 1977 in Ascot (Berkshire) ) is an English stage and film actor , theater producer and writer . He is considered a Shakespeare expert who has made a contribution above all to the original pronunciation of his works.

life and work

Ben Crystal is the son of speech therapist Hilary and linguist David Crystal . He has three siblings and grew up first in the southern English city of Wokingham and then in the northern Welsh city of Holyhead . From 1995 he studied English language and linguistics at Lancaster University , from 1998 he trained as an actor . He then dealt intensively with the expressive methods of the Théâtre de Complicité and the Frantic Assembly , worked with Annabel Arden , Simon McBurney and Monika Pagneux .

In 1999, he and his father began working on the book Shakespeare's Words: A Glossary and Language Companion , which was published in 2002. At the same time, he has made stage, film and television appearances, including a guest role on the BBC series Holby City , for which he had to learn British Sign Language . Nine more books followed in quick succession, most of them dedicated to his idol Shakespeare, including the first, which he wrote alone: Shakespeare on Toast - Getting a Taste for the Bard from 2008. He has been working with the Londoner for many years since 2006 Globe Theater , where his father initiated the first performance of a Shakespeare play in original pronunciation in 2004.

Ben Crystal's theatrical productions of Simon Stephens ' One Minute (2008) and Robin French 's Gilbert is Dead (2009) have garnered critical acclaim. In 2010 he played Edgar in a Daniel Winder production by King Lear at Shakespeare in Styria and founded Passion in Practice , his own Shakespeare troupe, which is dedicated to performances in original pronunciation. Crystal's troupe like to play by candlelight and have also invented a new format with the 24-hour productions: Staging of Shakespeare plays in picturesque places, which are rehearsed and performed within 24 hours. He strives not only in terms of pronunciation, but also in terms of working conditions to bring them closer to Shakespeare's time. In 2011 he played Hamlet in the first original pronunciation in 400 years at the Nevada Repertoire Company in Reno .

Shakespeare in its original pronunciation was also the subject of his first CD, released by the British Library in 2012 , their best-selling CD to date. Since the publication of Shakespeare on Toast: Getting a Taste for the Bard , Ben Crystal has been invited to numerous lectures and workshops, including the Hay Festival of Literature and Arts , the Edinburgh International Book Festival , the Oxford Literary Festival , and Dartington's Ways With Words Festival and the Cheltenham Literature Festival . In 2014, Crystal and his troupe received one of the Owle Schreame Awards , especially for their efforts to ensure original pronunciation during their performances. In 2015 the group performed with Pericles in Stockholm , invited by Daniel Harding and his Interplay Orchestra.

Book publications

With David Crystal

  • Shakespeare's Words: A Glossary and Language Companion , Penguin 2002
  • The Shakespeare Miscellany , Penguin 2005
  • Oxford Illustrated Shakespeare Dictionary , Macmillan 2014
  • You say potato. A Book about Accents , OUP 2015

With Adam Russ

  • Sorry I'm British , An Insider's Romp Through Britain from A to Z, illustrated by Ed McLachlan , Oneworld 2011

Solo publications

  • Shakespeare on Toast , Getting a Taste for the Bard, Icon 2008
  • Springboard Shakespeare: Hamlet , Arden Shakespeare / Bloomsbury 2013
  • Springboard Shakespeare: King Lear , Arden Shakespeare / Bloomsbury 2013
  • Springboard Shakespeare: Macbeth , Arden Shakespeare / Bloomsbury 2013
  • Springboard Shakespeare: A Midsummer Night's Dream , Arden Shakespeare / Bloomsbury 2013

Stage roles (selection)

Filmography (selection)

Movie

watch TV

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Steven Poole: Shakespeare On Toast review , The Guardian . January 31, 2009. 
  2. ↑ Loxton, Howard The Owle Schreame Awards for Innovation in Classical Theater: Passion in Practice , "British Theater Guide", September 19, 2014
  3. ↑ The Pericles Project- Part III | Shakespeare in Stockholm , accessed March 23, 2015

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Crystal, Ben
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English stage and film actor, theater producer and writer
DATE OF BIRTH 1977
PLACE OF BIRTH Ascot (Berkshire)