Go to the following site: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shakespeare. This site is focused on the question Shakespeare's validity as an author. Read through the arguments concerning the playwright and take a position as to which candidate you favor. How does this argument impact our understanding of Shakespeare's plays?
Go to the following site: http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa110497.htm?terms=greek+tragedy. This site is a branch off of the ancient history section of about.com. On this particular page, you will discover a lot of information about Aeschylus and his trilogy of tragedy, The House of Atreus. Use the hyperlinks in the article to explore the story of the script as well as the information on Greek tragedy as a whole. How does this type of story speak to a modern audience? Relate what you read in the essays and script to Wilson's comments on the nature and subject of tragedy.
Visit www.google.com. Enter the term melodrama and do a search. What type of hits do you get? Visit some of the theater sites that are available to you. What do the images suggest about the way melodrama is perceived and/or presented in the United States? Look at the types of shows being presented by these companies. Are there any similarities? What does this imply about the value of melodrama in theater?
