Performance audiobooks

The Oresteia - Abridged

By: Aeschylus

Narrated by: a full cast

Length: 3 hours 38 minutes

Abridged: Yes

The only complete trilogy to survive from ancient Greek theater is presented here in this sound recording of all three plays: Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and The Eumenides.In the Oresteia, Aeschylus dramatizes the myth of the curse on the royal house of Argos. Action begins when King Agamemnon returns victorious from the Trojan War but is... Read more

Sherlock Holmes Theatre - Abridged

By: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, William Gillette & Yuri...

Narrated by: Martin Jarvis, Kristoffer Tabori & a full cast

Length: 4 hours 37 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Blackstone is pleased to present the first ever audio recordings of the only two Holmes plays written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. This specially commissioned production by the Hollywood Theater of the Ear is a unique, must-have audio for all Sherlockians.In Sherlock Holmes, Professor Moriarity, the Napoleon of crime, plots with would-be... Read more

Seven Classic Plays - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare, Alexandre Dumas, George Be...

Narrated by: Yuri Rasovsky, a full cast, John Glover, Nichol...

Length: 11 hours 41 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Blackstone Audio is proud to present seven great plays in a collection that illustrates the development of European drama from ancient times to the threshold of the modern theater: Medea by Euripides, The Tempest by Shakespeare, The Imaginary Invalid by Molière, Camille by Dumas, An Enemy of the People by Ibsen, Arms and the Man by Shaw, and... Read more

Love's Labour's Lost - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Ian Richardson & Full Cast

Length: 2 hours 29 minutes

Abridged: Yes

This new edition of Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost presents a highly readable text of the play based on the first quarto of 1598. A thorough but concise critical commentary and a comprehensive introduction illuminate the significant elements of the play, its remarkable use of language, and its performance history. Read more

Henry the Fourth - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Harry Andrews & Pamela Brown

Length: 2 hours 38 minutes

Abridged: Yes

This updated edition offers a strongly theatrical perspective on the origins of Shakespeare's The First Part of King Henry IV and the history of its interpretation. The introduction clarifies the play's surprising, de-centred dramatic structure, questioning the dominant assumption that the drama focuses on the education of Prince Hal. It calls... Read more

Titus Andronicus - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare

Narrated by: Full Cast

Length: 2 hours 22 minutes

Abridged: Yes

"When will this fearful slumber have an end?"
Titus Andronicus: The Complete Play in Five Acts
A Shakespeare Recording Society ProductionTitus Andronicus is William Shakespeare's harrowing vision of unending vengeance. After defeating the Goths in battle, Titus Andronicus returns to Rome only to be cold-bloodedly deceived and barbarically... Read more

Antony and Cleopatra - Abridged

By: Pierre Arthur Laure, William Shakespeare, Tom W...

Narrated by: a full cast

Length: 3 hours 22 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Mark Antony, one of the three rulers of the Roman world, has become the thrall of the fascinating Cleopatra.Affairs of state call Mark Antony to Rome, but the attractions of the queen of Egypt prove impossible to resist. From one of history’s greatest love stories Shakespeare builds this magnificent tragedy of the clash between love and... Read more

Anna in the Tropics

By: Nilo Cruz

Narrated by: Alma Martinez, Jonathan Nichols, Winston Rocha,...

Length: 1 hour 48 minutes

Abridged: No

This poignant and poetic Pulitzer Prize winning play captures 1929 Florida at a time when cigars are still rolled by hand and "lectors" are employed to educate and entertain the workers. The arrival of a new lector is a cause for celebration. But when he reads aloud from "Anna Karenina", he unwittingly becomes a catalyst in the lives of his avid... Read more

All’s Well That Ends Well - Abridged

By: Pierre Arthur Laure, William Shakespeare, Tom W...

Narrated by: a full cast

Length: 2 hours 36 minutes

Abridged: Yes

The young and virtuous physician’s daughter Helena desperately loves Count Bertram, but he regards her as beneath his notice.When Helena cures the king of France of a mortal illness, he rewards her with Bertram’s hand, but before their marriage can be consummated, the count flees. To win her husband back again, Helena forms a daring and... Read more

Richard III - Abridged

By: Pierre Arthur Laure, Tom Wheelwright, E.A. Cope...

Narrated by: a full cast

Length: 3 hours 33 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Brilliantly manipulative and entirely amoral, the hero-villain Richard is one of Shakespeare's greatest roles.The Yorkists have emerged victorious from the civil wars and Edward IV wears the English crown. But Edward's misshapen brother Richard harbors kingly ambitions and will stop at nothing to achieve the throne. In a fatal battle on Bosworth... Read more

Timon of Athens - Abridged

By: Pierre Arthur Laure, Tom Wheelwright, William S...

Narrated by: Alan Howard, a full cast, Norman Rodway & Damia...

Length: 2 hours 18 minutes

Abridged: Yes

This controversial play follows the declining fortunes of a man of extravagant contradictions.The fabulously rich Timon believes all his friends to be as open-hearted and generous as himself. When his wealth suddenly evaporates, however, he discovers the truth and his altruism turns to a bitter hatred of mankind. Stirred up by the cynical... Read more

Murder in the Casbah and Other Mysteries - Abridged

By: Anthony Boucher & Denis Green

Narrated by: Basil Rathbone & Nigel Bruce

Length: 6 hours 35 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Welcome to the Golden Age of Radio and the best in classic mystery.
From 1939-1946 Americans gathered around their radio to listen to The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes -- featuring Basil Rathbone as the high-strung crime solver and Nigel Bruce as his phlegmatic assistant, Dr. Watson.
Witty, fast-paced and always surprising, these great... Read more

Private Lives

By: Noel Coward

Narrated by: Rosalind Ayres, Marnie Mosiman, Ian Ogilvy, Beg...

Length: 1 hour 12 minutes

Abridged: No

The lights of a yacht on the French Riviera are reflected in the water and in the eyes of four hilariously mismatched lovers. Private Lives shimmers with wit, romance, desire and bittersweet truth.

An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance featuring Rosalind Ayres, Marnie Mosiman, Ian Ogilvy, Begonya Piazza and Kristoffer Tabori. Read more

Fresh Air: The Best of Stage and Screen

By: Terry Gross

Length: 3 hours 32 minutes

Abridged: No

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, the award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues, is one of public radio's most popular programs. Each week, nearly 4.5 million people listen to the show's intimate conversations, broadcast nationwide on more than 450 National Public Radio (NPR) stations and in Europe on the World Radio... Read more

King Lear - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare, Tom Wheelwright, E.A. Cope...

Narrated by: Trevor Peacock, Clive Merrison, a full cast, Sa...

Length: 3 hours 8 minutes

Abridged: Yes

This shattering drama of isolation and loss is one of the greatest tragedies in world literature.King Lear of Britain has three daughters: the hard-hearted Goneril and Regan, and the good and gentle Cordelia. He determines to divide his kingdom between them, giving the largest share to she who can say she loves him the best. Lear’s tragic lack... Read more

As You Like It - Abridged

By: E.A. Copen, Pierre Arthur Laure, William Shakes...

Narrated by: a full cast

Length: 2 hours 27 minutes

Abridged: Yes

This pastoral is one of Shakespeare’s best-loved comedies, due to its delightful heroine, the wise, witty, and virtuous Rosalind, who complicates her love life by disguising herself as a young man.ACT IScene 1. Orlando, the youngest son of Sir Rowland de Boys, has been kept “rustically at home” by his older brother, Oliver; he has been denied... Read more

Henry VI, Part 3 - Abridged

By: William Shakespeare, Tom Wheelwright, E.A. Cope...

Narrated by: a full cast

Length: 2 hours 55 minutes

Abridged: Yes

The monstrous power of one of Shakespeare's most memorable characters, Richard Plantagenet, emerges in Henry VI, Part 3, a portent of things to come.The Yorkists have been temporarily victorious and the Duke of York has assumed the throne, but the Lancastrians, led by Queen Margaret, counter-attack. As the fortunes of war shift, both the... Read more

The Tempest - Abridged

By: Tom Wheelwright, E.A. Copen, William Shakespear...

Narrated by: Jennifer Ehle, Adrian Lester & a full cast

Length: 2 hours 11 minutes

Abridged: Yes

This haunting drama of vengeance and forgiveness crowns the group of tragicomic romances that Shakespeare composed at the end of his career. Sometimes read as his farewell to the stage, the play contains some of Shakespeare's most lyrical verse.Prospero, wise Duke of Milan, has been deposed by Antonio, his wicked brother, and exiled with his... Read more

Local Man Moves to the City

By: Garrison Keillor

Length: 1 hour 16 minutes

Abridged: No

"New York is a hard place to visit, but a pretty good place to live," says Garrison Keillor, and on this humorous and insightful audio collection he explains why. This Grammy Award-nominated collection comprises 10 monologues in which Keillor reflects on New York City life through the eyes of a transplanted Minnesotan. These stories are among... Read more

Ein Hungerkünstler

By: Franz Kafka

Narrated by: Klaus Schreiber

Length: 26 minutes

Abridged: No

Der Hungerkünstler hungert auf Jahrmärkten für Schaulustige: er nimmt über Wochen hinweg nur etwas Wasser zu sich. Dieser unmenschliche Kampf gegen den Hunger, gegen sich selbst wird vom Protagonisten meisterlich beherrscht und vom Zirkusdirektor schaurig in Szene gesetzt. Irgendwann interessiert sich kaum jemand mehr für diese Kunst, doch der... Read more

Alan Bennett

By: Alan Bennett

Narrated by: Alan Bennett

Length: 1 hour 42 minutes

Abridged: No

The humorous and moving tale of Miss Shepherd, an eccentric old lady who, by a bizarre series of twists and turns, lived in the author’s garden for many years. Alan Bennett reads his own acclaimed work, recently adapted as a West End smash hit starring Maggie Smith as the eccentric old lady. Read more

Victoria Wood

By: Victoria Wood

Narrated by: Victoria Wood

Length: 2 hours 12 minutes

Abridged: No

A selection of classic moments from Victoria Wood’s award-winning BBC TV programme. Here it is - the first collection of assembled highlights from Victoria Wood’s award-winning BBC television show 'Victoria Wood - As Seen on TV'. This release spills forth the likes of Julie Walters, Patricia Routledge, Celia Imrie, Duncan Preston and Susie... Read more

Why Bother?

By: Chris Morris & Peter Cook

Narrated by: Chris Morris & Peter Cook

Length: 49 minutes

Abridged: No

1994 saw one of Peter Cook's most acclaimed performances since his 1960s' heyday. Chris Morris' surreal and inventive questions brought out the very best of eccentric aristocrat Sir Arthur Streeb-Greebling - a character whom Cook had carried with him through 'Beyond the Fringe' and 'Not Only... But Also...' to his latter years. These five... Read more

Paul Temple Intervenes

By: Francis Durbridge

Narrated by: Bernadette Hodgson, Carl Bernard & Full Cast

Length: 2 hours 24 minutes

Abridged: No

From 1938 to 1969 the fictional crime novelist and detective Paul Temple, together with his Fleet Street journalist wife Steve, solved case after case in one of BBC radio's most popular series. They inhabited a sophisticated world of chilled cocktails and fast cars, where the women were chic and the men wore cravats - a world where Sir Graham... Read more