HENRY V

Finally someone has spattered a little mud on Shakespeare’s revered hero of Agincourt and given us a more balanced picture of the king and the man. Drawing from both French and English chronicles for support, Seward portrays a Henry who was cruel, tyrannical, and narrowly religious, albeit a masterful soldier and tactician. Bob Hanrott’s reading, however, is less than masterful. While generally adequate to the task, it is somewhat choppy and out of breath, unfortunately muting a little of the humor and satiric thrust of Seward’s informative text. P.E.F. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 00]