Understand Shakespeare, beat-for-beat.

For students: Read original and modern verse side by side, then deepen with character profiles, theme analysis, and key quotes from each play hub.

For teachers: Unlock comprehension in class without losing the rhythm — every play includes plot summaries, scene analyses, and ready-to-use study questions.

For actors and performers: Scan, breathe, and find the beat exactly as Shakespeare wrote it — the matching verse preserves every iambic structure.

Yes — for GCSEs, A-levels, AP, IB, and any close-reading exam where understanding Shakespeare's text matters. Each play includes scene-by-scene summaries, character profiles, theme analysis, and key quotes with study prompts. The line-by-line layout makes it easy to revise specific passages, and the matching verse helps you remember the rhythm of quotes you'll need to recall under pressure.

Every original line is preserved exactly as Shakespeare wrote it. The retelling sits beside each line in matching verse — the same number of beats, the same iambic rhythm, the same dramatic shape. Nothing is paraphrased loosely; every line earns its place. The result is a parallel reading: Shakespeare's words on top, plain modern English beneath, both moving to the same heartbeat.

Most modern versions of Shakespeare are prose paraphrases — useful for understanding the meaning, but the poetry is lost. Shakespeare Retold is the only line-by-line retelling written in matching iambic verse, so the rhythm of the original is preserved beside its modern translation. You don't have to choose between meaning and music. You get both.

Yes, every published play is free to read on this site, supported by ads. If you'd prefer an uninterrupted experience, you can subscribe to remove ads. And if you'd like a permanent, beautifully designed copy on your shelf, the books are available in print and eBook from major retailers. Three ways to read, all giving you the same matching verse.

Every line of the retelling has been meticulously written by James Anthony, working through Shakespeare's plays line by line to find modern verse that matches each original beat.

The supporting study materials — character profiles, themes, scene analyses, imagery — are AI-assisted under his editorial direction, designed to make Shakespeare Retold a comprehensive learning resource alongside his self-crafted retellings.

Read more about James Anthony here.