The opening lines of Henry V have a seductive charm. Using the humble voice of the narrator, the playwright cajoles the audience to suspend disbelief. It's a bit much to ask, he admits, but might we transform "this unworthy scaffold" of the stage into the "vasty fields of France? or may we cram/Within this wooden O the very casques/That did affright the air at Agincourt?" For nearly four centuries, audiences have readily joined in this theatrical pretense. After all, who can refuse Shakespeare a favor?
When those famous lines were spoken last week at the opening of a new London production...
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