Mark Twain's 'Is Shakespeare Dead?'

Mark Twain's hilarious (1909) debunking of the myth that William Shakespeare wrote the works of Shakespeare, adapted as a monologue for the stage by Keir Cutler, PhD. Performed across Canada and the US since 2002.

"Cutler humorously distills Twain's thesis that Shakespeare didn't actually write the great works attributed to him. It's a compelling argument . . . to great comic effect. . . . Cutler gives a strong and entertaining performance!" From the Orlando Sentinel review in 2014.

"Everyone will leave convinced the English-speaking world's greatest playwright is a hoax ... witty and compelling show." From the Winnipeg Free Press review 2003.

Listing the handful of established facts of Shakespeare's life, Twain ridicules the fantasy that a largely uneducated youth could have wandered into London and, with virtually none of the necessary skills, become the greatest author in English literature.

Keir Cutler adapted Twain's "Is Shakespeare Dead?" because he feels people should at least be aware of the case that can be made against Shakespeare from Stratford. Keir does not support the candidacy of any alternative author to the man from Stratford.

What is ignored by people in general, and academics in particular, is the breadth of Shakespeare's knowledge of law, philosophy, classical literature, ancient and modern history, mathematics, music, medicine, art, astronomy, military and naval terminology, English, French and Italian court life, and especially his comprehension of multiple languages. Shakespeare added hundreds of new words to the English language: all these words culled from other languages, both ancient and modern. And Shakespeare did all this without leaving a single trace of his skill? Nothing? No play, no poem, no letter in his own hand? And no mention of any writing is his long and detailed will?

Clearly there is a Shakespeare Authorship Question that can not be ignored.