Titus Andronicus facts for kids
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Titus Andronicus is a sad play, also known as a tragedy, written by William Shakespeare. People think he wrote it between 1588 and 1593. It is often believed to be Shakespeare's very first tragedy.
The story is about Titus, a brave general in the Roman army. He brings Tamora, the Queen of the Goths, to Rome as a prisoner. The new Roman emperor, Saturninus, then decides to marry Tamora. From her new powerful position, Tamora promises to get revenge on Titus because he killed her son during the war. Titus and his family fight back, which starts a long series of revenge acts between them.
Titus Andronicus was very popular when it first came out. However, by the late 1600s, people didn't like it as much. During the Victorian era (in the 1800s), many people strongly disliked it because it was so violent. Its reputation started to get better in the mid-1900s. Still, it remains one of Shakespeare's plays that is not as highly praised as his others.
Contents
Meet the Characters
- Titus Andronicus – a famous Roman general
- Lucius – Titus's oldest son who is still alive
- Quintus – Titus's son
- Martius – Titus's son
- Mutius – Titus's son
- Young Lucius – Lucius's son and Titus's grandson
- Lavinia – Titus's daughter
- Marcus Andronicus – Titus's brother and a leader for the people of Rome
- Publius – Marcus's son
- Saturninus – The son of the old Emperor of Rome; he later becomes Emperor himself
- Bassianus – Saturninus's brother; he is in love with Lavinia
- Sempronius, Caius and Valentine – Titus's relatives
- Æmilius – a Roman noble
- Tamora – Queen of the Goths; she later becomes the Empress of Rome
- Demetrius – Tamora's son
- Chiron – Tamora's son
- Alarbus – Tamora's son (he doesn't speak in the play)
- Aaron – a Moor; he is in a romantic relationship with Tamora
- Nurse
- Clown
- Messenger
- Roman Captain
- First Goth
- Second Goth
- Senators, Tribunes, Soldiers, Common people, Goths and others
Where the Story Takes Place
The story of Titus Andronicus is made up. It is not based on real history, unlike some of Shakespeare's other Roman plays. For example, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, and Coriolanus are all about real historical events and people.
Even the time period for Titus might not be a real historical time. A prose (story) version of the play says the events happen "in the time of Theodosius". He was a Roman emperor who ruled from 379 to 395 AD.
How the Play Has Been Changed and Performed
Over the years, Titus Andronicus has been changed and performed in many different ways.
Stage Plays
The first known changes to the play happened in the late 1500s.
The earliest known English version of the play was performed in 1678. Edward Ravenscroft changed it for the stage at Drury Lane. This changed play was very popular and was performed many times over the next few decades.
In 1839, Nathaniel Bannister wrote and directed his own version of the play in Philadelphia. He promised the audience that he had removed anything "calculated to offend the ear." This means he took out the parts that were too shocking or violent. People at the time said he did a good job of keeping the play's exciting parts without the horrors.
A very successful version of the play in Britain started in 1850. It was written by Ira Aldridge and C. A. Somerset. Aldridge continued to perform this version, and it was very popular. Many reviewers at the time thought this changed version was much better than Shakespeare's original play.
In 1957, the Old Vic theatre performed a much shorter version of the play. It was only ninety minutes long and was shown with another play.
In 2012, a unique version called Titus 2.0 was performed at Shakespeare's Globe theatre. It was directed by Tang Shu-wing and performed entirely in Cantonese, a Chinese language. This production had originally been staged in Hong Kong in 2009 and received excellent reviews.
Musical Versions
Titus Andronicus: The Musical! was a musical comedy version of the play. It was performed several times in Denver, Colorado, between 2002 and 2007.
Another musical comedy, Tragedy! A Musical Comedy, was performed in New York in 2007.
Film Versions
In 1999, Julie Taymor directed a film adaptation called Titus. It starred famous actors like Anthony Hopkins as Titus and Jessica Lange as Tamora.
Another film, William Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, was released straight to video in 2000. It was made with a small budget and set in a modern business world. The Goths in this film were shown as people from the contemporary Goth subculture.
In 2017, Titus Andronicus was made into an Indian film called The Hungry. It was set in modern New Delhi, India, and starred Indian actors.
Television Versions
In 1985, the BBC made a version of the play for their BBC Television Shakespeare series. This episode was highly praised and received very good reviews.
Radio Versions
The play has not been performed on radio very often. Some short parts were broadcast on BBC radio in 1923. Later, longer radio versions were aired in 1953 and 1973.
Images for kids
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Gravelot illustration of Aaron cutting off Titus's hand in Act 3, Scene 1; engraved by Gerard Van der Gucht (1740)
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Title page of the second quarto (1600)
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Title page of the third quarto (1611)
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Thomas Kirk illustration of Aaron protecting his son from Chiron and Demetrius in Act 4, Scene 2; engraved by J. Hogg (1799)
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Illustration of Aaron protecting his son from Chiron and Demetrius in Act 4, Scene 2; from Joseph Graves' Dramatic tales founded on Shakespeare's plays (1840)
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Jean-Michel Moreau illustration of Lucius telling his father the tribunes have left, from Act 3, Scene 1; engraved by N. le Mire (1785)
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Edward Smith illustration of Lavinia pleading with Tamora for mercy from Act 2, Scene 3 (1841)
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Philip James de Loutherbourg illustration of Quintus trying to help Martius from the hole in Act 2, Scene 3; engraved by 'Hall' (1785)
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See also
In Spanish: Tito Andrónico para niños
