The Tempest written by William Shakespeare translated into Scots by William Hershaw.
The Voices O The Abbey Waas written by William Hershaw.
The Tempest by William Shakespeare, translated into Scots by William Hershaw.
Prize-winning poet William Hershaw has written a compelling Scots language version of William Shakespeare's last play The Tempest. It is set in Scotland during a regency period where powerful nobles form alliances to win power. Prospero, the book obsessed Earl of Fife, is usurped by his treacherous brother Antonio who has made a pact with the Duke of Argylle. Prospero and his young daughter Miranda are cast adrift and left for dead in the North Sea but they find refuge on a remote enchanted island. Here Prospero perfects his sorcerer's powers to such an extent that twelve years later he is able to summon a storm that shipwrecks his enemies and leaves them at his mercy. From this choice between revenge and reconciliation a wonderful love story grows ...
William Hershaw's play will fascinate anyone who is interested in Shakespeare, Scots language or simply who loves a good story well told. It is a play that will go down particularly well in the classroom at Higher and National 5 level where the range of characters (including the reluctant coal miner Caliban and the freedom seeking spirit Ariel) and range of engaging themes make it a text that will tick many teacher's boxes. Hershaw's presentation of the Scots language is readable and accessible.
Included with William Hershaw's Tempest is The Voices O The Abbey Waas, a play set in haunted Dunfermline Abbey where the troubled consciences of Andrew Carnegie and a mine explosion survivor from Valleyfield colliery are brought together in the afterlife by the medieval poet Robert Henryson to settle their differences.
About the Author:
William Hershaw is a poet, musician and songwriter. He is Principal Teacher of English at Beath High School, Cowdenbeath. His works in Scots and English include Fower Brigs Tae A Kinrik published by Aberdeen University Press and The Cowdenbeath Man published by the Scottish Cultural Press. He has also written two textbooks on the teaching of Scots Language in the Secondary school published by Learning Teaching Scotland. He wrote A Mass In Scots For Saint Andrae's Day.
In 2005 he won the Callum MacDonald Memorial Award and in 2011 he was awarded the McCash Prize for Scots Poetry by Glasgow University/The Herald. In 2007 he collaborated with sculptor David Annand, writing the poem God The Miner which is inscribed on the statue The Prop as part of the Lochgelly Regeneration Project.
Recently he has co-edited the Literary Magazine Fras and published HappyLand, a selection of new poems with an CD of readings and music. In November 2012 Cage Load Of Men - The Joe Corrie Project by The Bowhill Players was released. Funded by Fife Council, Willie Hershaw has written the musical settings for the poems of the legendary Fife poet and playwright. Tammy Norrie published by Gracenote Publications in 2014 is his first novel.
