TIME'S FOOL

Devoted Shakespeare fans may not appreciate this portrait of the Bard as an old man falsely accused and wrongly imprisoned for a crime he did not commit. He struggles to solve the mystery of who is out to ruin him and why. The fate of the young boy who could confirm that arson took place, as well as the dismal circumstances and unbearably sad appearance of the Bard's Dark Lady of the Sonnets, renders this a depressing listen. Tony Jay's beautiful reading and sensitive interpretation of the story, however, do much to compensate for the woeful plot as he conveys the dreary reality of London's criminal underbelly of the time. L.C. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/ JUL 06]