After last year's Richard II, BBC4 again takes its cameras and interactive technology to London's Globe to film Shakespeare's tale of love, morality and the law. The theatre's artistic director Mark Rylance also takes the play's leading role as Vincentio, the Duke of Vienna.
BBCi: written commentary available via the red button on the handset
Drama: Measure for Measure Live from the Globe 7.00pm BBC4
Following last year's production of Richard II, here's another Shakespeare play performed live at the Globe Theatre, which re-creates the look and feel of the theatres in the Bard's own era. The Globe's artistic director Mark Rylance stars as Vincentio, the Duke of Vienna, who hands over power to his puritanical deputy, Angelo (Liam Brennan). Under Angelo's new regime, a crackdown on vice threatens to drag in innocent young lovers. Before long, not just virtue but justice itself is under threat when the new ruler tries to take advantage of the virtuous Isabella, played by Sophie Thompson.
With its complex themes and plotting, Measure for Measure is one of Shakespeare's more obscure plays, but with this cast and setting, the production promises to be a real event. (Geoff Ellis)
