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The Winter's Tale is a Shakespearean romance that highlights themes of jealousy, wrath, and of course, true love. 
 

The story starts with Leontes, the King of Sicilia who falsely believes that his wife is pregnant with his best friend's child and goes into a jealous rage. His intense anger-driven actions set an unexpected course for all involved (continue the journey here).

A Summary

A Summary -

with Finger Puppets!

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ACTIVITY:

Tell the Tale Yourself

Students tell the story to each other in a fun, succinct way.

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ACTIVITY:

Storyboarding

Create a visual summary with a storyboard of the play.

Meet the Characters

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FYI:

Pronunciation Guide

Helpful guide to those tricky Shakespearean names. 

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Played by Elijah Alexander

King of Sicilia and husband to Hermione, whom he suspects is having an affair with Polixenes.

Played by Elijah Alexander

Leontes

Played by Chris Hutchison

The King of Bohemia. He is a close childhood friend of Leontes.

Played by Chris Hutchison

Polixenes

Played by Elizabeth Bunch

Sicilian noblewoman. Loyal friend to Hermione. Defends Hermione from Leontes' accusations.

Played by Elizabeth Bunch

Paulina

Played by Margaret Ivey

Leontes and Hermione's abandoned daughter. Rescued and raised by shepherd in Bohemia.

Played by Margaret Ivey

Perdita

Played by Tiffany Rachelle Stewart

Queen of Sicilia. Pregnant with Perdita at the start of the play.

Played by Tiffany Rachelle Stewart

Hermione

Played by Juan Sebastián Cruz

Sicilian prince and Leontes and Hermione's son. This production is told from his perspective.

Played by Juan Sebastián Cruz

Mamillius

Played by Jay Sullivan

Polixenes' only son and heir. Grows up in Bohemia and falls in love with Perdita.

Played by Jay Sullivan

Florizel

Played by David Rainey

Old sheep-tender. Raises Leontes and Hermione's daughter Perdita in Bohemia.

Played by David Rainey

Shepherd

[Exit, pursued by a bear] is Shakespeare's most famous stage direction. We have no proof of how it was originally staged. Was it an actor in a bear costume? A real bear? No one knows. What we do know after 400 years: bears are timeless. 

Special Guest Star: The Bear

"For a multitude of very sensible reasons, real bears are now unlikely to be used in productions of The Winter’s Tale."

Listen to David Tennant's insight on the famous stage direction:
[Exit, pursued by a bear.]

Alley Theatre Winter's Tale
Alley Theatre Winter's Tale

Shakespeare usually borrowed his plots from older sources, and The Winter's Tale was no exception. Watch the video to learn more about Shakespeare's inspiration, Pandosto: The Triumph of Time.

The Tale as Old as Time

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