The Reinvention of King Lear Every night within the global theater community, there is a good chance that somewhere on a stage there is at least one production of a Shakespearean play, and whether Hamlet set in Nazi Germany (Eine Klein Hamlet) or The Tempest reworked as children's theater (The Island of Anyplace), this production is, more often than not, a new interpretation of the ancient text. While the average audience may never have heard of modern masters like Albee, Beckett, or Chekov, regardless of their station in life or how far removed we are from the Elizabethan era, they have heard of William Shakespeare. Furthermore, there are theater professionals who dedicate their entire careers to the representation or direction of his works. Still others make careers out of teaching or writing about the famous playwright. All this, of course, is well known. Some consider Shakespeare the yardstick by which all other theater is measured. We know this, and I absolutely do not want to be labeled a visionary for making such a statement. It's obvious, but because of this sheer epidemic fanaticism, Shakespeare's works have been, and are, a key center of invention and debate since the poet himself wrote them in the seventeenth century. Perhaps of all Shakespeare's masterpieces The tragedy of King Lear has received the most scholarly debate and the boldest interpretation, often to the point of complete reinvention, in the entire history of the theatre. The tragedy was first performed in 1605 or late 1606 depending on who is talking. The first printed version of the work appears in the famous First Quarto of 1608. This story is in direct conflict with...... half of the sheet ......d. Although, admittedly, it is doubtful that they will ever find a comprehensive answer. Works cited and consulted Artaud, Antonin. The theater and its double. Grove Press Inc. New York. 1958 Billington, Michael. Gielgud: His greatest triumphs. "The age." May 24, 2000. Brook, Peter. The empty space. First Touchstone Edition. Simon and Schuster Inc. 1996.Noguchi, Isamu. Isamu Noguchi On dance. "Lyrics by Isamu Noguchi." Partee, Dr. Morriss Henry. Improved Shakespeare. University of Utah English Department Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of King Lear. Jay L. Halio. Ed. The new Cambridge Shakespeare. Cambridge University Press. New York. 1992.Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of King Lear. "Sheet of 1623." Internet Editions Shakespeare.Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of King Lear. "Quarter of 1608." Shakespeare editions on the Internet.