Review by Choice Review
Hotaling (music, University of Central Florida) has produced a listing of approximately 600 operas or musical stage works based on Shakespeare's plays. Originally designed as an update to the list compiled by Winton Dean (in Shakespeare in Music, ed. by P. Hartnoll, CH, May'65), the present volume gives a wealth of information about each title: the musical composer; the title (in the language in which the work was written or first performed); the librettist; the status of the work as being for the musical stage and based on Shakespeare, as well as the source of the evidence for that status; a description of the work, e.g., the number of acts, the date of the premiere, the publisher of the first full score or vocal score consulted, etc. Hotaling also indicates the sources that verify the opera's basis or argue against it. Comments of various kinds, lists of characters, etc., are included as available or appropriate. Indexes to the main listing are arranged by title, city of first performance, date of premiere, librettist, and title of Shakespeare's play. Two further listings give the call number for items located in the Library of Congress or the British Library. Until the publication of Brian Gooch's forthcoming "A Shakespeare Music Catalogue," this is the most comprehensive work on the topic and should be considered for purchase in large public libraries as well as all academic libraries. -L. Smith, University of Western Ontario
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
