{"product_id":"piece-of-work","title":"Piece of Work","description":"\u003cp\u003eSimon Russell Beale is one of Britain's most recognisable and well-loved actors. He has played many roles on stage, film, television and radio - ranging from Winston Churchill to Stalin, George Smiley to King Arthur. But ever since his appearance at school as a glamorous Desdemona, complete with false eyelashes that rendered him half-blind, he has been captivated by Shakespeare. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eA Piece of Work\u003c\/i\u003e, Russell Beale tries to get under the skin of the playwright and find out what interested him. Was Shakespeare an instinctive 'conservative' or, rather, gently subversive? How collaborative was he? Did he add a line to \u003ci\u003eHamlet\u003c\/i\u003e in order to accommodate his ageing and increasingly chubby principal actor, Richard Burbage? Did he suffer from insomnia and experience sexual jealousy? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRussell Beale describes what it is to approach and live with some of Shakespeare's most famous characters. Some of the actor's inspiration comes from surprising sources. Watching \u003ci\u003eCoronation Street\u003c\/i\u003e gave him an idea for how Richard III might react on hearing of the death of the two Princes in the Tower; a visit to elderly patients in a local hospital gave him insights into King Lear's descent into madness; and the memory of childhood family holidays led him to a spectacular plunge into an ornamental pool in \u003ci\u003eMuch Ado About Nothing\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFunny and touching about his family, Russell Beale also writes fascinatingly about some of the supremely creative people he counts as his friends - including Sam Mendes, Nick Hytner, Stephen Sondheim and Lauren Bacall. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eA Piece of Work\u003c\/i\u003e is a brilliant account of an actor's life and work - and his relationship with our foremost dramatist.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Oxfordbookstore","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44787026591923,"sku":"9780316725323","price":1599.0,"currency_code":"INR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0718\/4164\/4723\/files\/blk_imp_17477334559780316725323.jpg?v=1762813033","url":"https:\/\/oxfordbookstore.com\/products\/piece-of-work","provider":"Oxfordbookstore ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}