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Shakespeare on Stage
American Shakespeare Center, Love's Labour's Lost. To Jun. 15, 2013.
American Shakespeare Center, Return to the Forbidden Planet. To Dec. 1, 2013.
American Shakespeare Center, Twelfth Night. To Jun. 16, 2013.
American Shakespeare Center, The Duchess of Malfi. To Jun. 15, 2013.
Folger Shakespeare Library, Twelfth Night. To Jun. 9, 2013.
More Performances…
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Love's Labor's Lost (Quarto 1, 1598)

Author: William Shakespeare
Not Peer Reviewed

Holo. Sir Nathaniel, will you heare an extemporall Epy-
taph on the death of the Deare, and to humour the igno-
rault cald the Deare: the Princesse kild a Pricket.
Nath. Perge, good M. Holofernes perge, so it shall please
you to abrogate squirilitie.
Holo. I wil somthing affect the letter, for it argues facilitie.

1215The prayfull Princesse pearst and prickt
a prettie pleasing Pricket,
Some say a Sore, but not a sore,
till now made sore with shooting.
The Dogges did yell, put ell to Sore,
1220 then Sorell iumps from thicket:
Or Pricket-sore, or els Sorell,
the people fall a hooting.
If Sore be sore, then el to Sore,
makes fiftie sores o sorell:
1225Of one sore I an hundred make
by adding but one more l.
Nath. A rare talent.
Dull. If a talent be a claw, looke how he clawes him
with a talent.
1230Nath. This is a gyft that I haue simple: simple, a foolish
extrauagant spirit, full of formes, figures, shapes, obiectes,
Ideas, aprehentions, motions, reuolutions. These are begot in
the ventricle of Memorie, nourisht in the wombe of prima-
ter, and deliuered vpon the mellowing of occasion: But the
1235gyft is good in those whom it is acute, and I am thankfull
for it.
Holo. Sir, I prayse the L. for you, and so may my parishi-
oners, for their Sonnes are well tuterd by you, and their
Daughters profite very greatly vnder you: you are a good
1240member of the common wealth.
Nath. Me hercle, yf their Sonnes be ingenous, they shal
want no instruction: If their Daughters be capable, I will
put it to them. But Vir sapis qui pauca loquitur, a soule Femi-
nine saluteth vs.
E
Enter
A pleasant conceited Comedie: