Antony and Cleopatra Act Five – “The breaking of so great a thing should make a greater crack.”

Antony and Cleopatra Act Five – “The breaking of so great a thing should make a greater crack.”

Act Five shows Cleopatra to be one of the most complex of Shakespeare’s woman. If Antony dominates Acts One to Four, the end of the play belongs to Cleopatra. The play, however, starts with Caesar sending a demand to Antony to surrender. When Dolabella leaves to deliver the message, one of Antony’s men, comes in bearing Antony’s sword bringing the news that Antony had died. Antony shows genuine remorse at the loss of Antony and declares that all should mourn his death:

“O Antony!

I have follow'd thee to this; but we do lance

Diseases in our bodies: I must perforce

Have shown to thee such a declining day,

Or look on thine; we could not stall together

In the whole world: but yet let me lament,

With tears as sovereign as the blood of hearts,

That thou, my brother, my competitor

In top of all design, my mate in empire,

Friend and companion in the front of war,

The arm of mine own body, and the heart

Where mine his thoughts did kindle,--that our stars,

Unreconciliable, should divide

Our equalness to this. Hear me, good friends--

But I will tell you at some meeter season…”

A message comes from Cleopatra to ask what Caesar will do with her. Caesar says that he will treat her well, bring her no shame and take her Rome where she will have a triumph. He sends meesages to her and Proculeius and others to make sure that Cleopatra does not kill herself.

When Proculeius comes to Cleopatra, he is trusted because Antony in life had said that Proculeius was a good man. Cleopatra says that she hopes that Caesar will allow her son to rule Egypt after she leaves. Cleopatra takes out a dagger to commit suicide but Proculeius takes her knife away from her. Cleopatra declaims:

“Sir, I will eat no meat, I'll not drink, sir;

If idle talk will once be necessary,

I'll not sleep neither: this mortal house I'll ruin,

Do Caesar what he can. Know, sir, that I

Will not wait pinion'd at your master's court;

Nor once be chastised with the sober eye

Of dull Octavia. Shall they hoist me up

And show me to the shouting varletry

Of censuring Rome? Rather a ditch in Egypt

Be gentle grave unto me! rather on Nilus' mud

Lay me stark naked, and let the water-flies

Blow me into abhorring! rather make

My country's high pyramides my gibbet,

And hang me up in chains!”

Dolabella then enters and takes care of the ‘suicide watch’ of Cleopatra, Cleopatra is able to get Dolabella to reveal that Caesar does indeed plan to display her as a war prize. Enter Caesar, who says that he will treat Cleopatra and her children well to which Cleopatra responds by giving Caesar a scroll which she says bequeaths her many great riches over to Caesar. Seleucus, Cleopatra’s treasurer seems suitably cautious to confirm and says that he would “…rather seal my lips, than, to my peril, speak that which is not.”

Cleopatra says that Seleucus is ungracious and not too be trusted. Caesar exits and Cleopatra tells her maids that Caesar is not to be trusted and when Dolabella also exits Cleopatra reveals that she will kill herself. She asks to be brought her best attire:

“Now, Charmian!

Show me, my women, like a queen: go fetch

My best attires: I am again for Cydnus,

To meet Mark Antony: sirrah Iras, go.

Now, noble Charmian, we'll dispatch indeed;

And, when thou hast done this chare, I'll give thee leave

To play till doomsday.”

Cleopatra then asks for a clown to bring in a basket of figs which has poisonous snakes in it so that she can embrace death. She bids her maids farewell and kisses them. Cleopatra’s death is the most moving and strange performance of any of Shakespeare’s characters. With Cleopatra adorned in her most magnificent costume, placed in the setting of her monument and then Cleopatra is given deadly asps as her props. She then lifts the asps like babies to her breast:

“Give me my robe, put on my crown; I have

Immortal longings in me: now no more

The juice of Egypt's grape shall moist this lip:

Yare, yare, good Iras; quick. Methinks I hear

Antony call; I see him rouse himself

To praise my noble act; I hear him mock

The luck of Caesar, which the gods give men

To excuse their after wrath: husband, I come:

Now to that name my courage prove my title!

I am fire and air; my other elements

I give to baser life. So; have you done?

Come then, and take the last warmth of my lips.

Farewell, kind Charmian; Iras, long farewell.

Kisses them. IRAS falls and dies

Have I the aspic in my lips? Dost fall?

If thou and nature can so gently part,

The stroke of death is as a lover's pinch,

Which hurts, and is desired. Dost thou lie still?

If thus thou vanishest, thou tell'st the world

It is not worth leave-taking…

This proves me base:

If she first meet the curled Antony,

He'll make demand of her, and spend that kiss

Which is my heaven to have. Come, thou

mortal wretch,

To an asp, which she applies to her breast

With thy sharp teeth this knot intrinsicate

Of life at once untie: poor venomous fool

Be angry, and dispatch. O, couldst thou speak,

That I might hear thee call great Caesar ass

Unpolicied…

Peace, peace!

Dost thou not see my baby at my breast,

That sucks the nurse asleep…

As sweet as balm, as soft as air, as gentle,--

O Antony!--Nay, I will take thee too.

Applying another asp to her arm

What should I stay -

(Cleopatra Dies)

Caesar’s  guards enter to find Cleopatra dead. Then Charmian picks up an asp applies it to herself and also dies. Dolabella and Caesar enter. When it is suggested to Caesar that Cleopatra probably died by poisonous asps, he agrees and commands that she be buried with Mark Antony:

“Most probable

That so she died; for her physician tells me

She hath pursued conclusions infinite

Of easy ways to die. Take up her bed;

And bear her women from the monument:

She shall be buried by her Antony:

No grave upon the earth shall clip in it

A pair so famous. High events as these

Strike those that make them; and their story is

No less in pity than his glory which

Brought them to be lamented. Our army shall

In solemn show attend this funeral;

And then to Rome. Come, Dolabella, see

High order in this great solemnity.”

There have been many incredible performances of this play over the years. The original 1606/07 performance at Blackfriars Theatre or The Globe probably starred Richard Burbage. Later in the 17th Century Thomas Betterton and Elizabeth barry performed in the roles. In the 18th Century, David Garrick apparently did an excellent production in 1759 at Drury Lane. John Philip Kemble's 1813 production was noteworthy and William Charles Macready did a superb production also at Drury Lane in 1833. Samuel Phelps' 1859 production is described as rich while Chatterton's 1873 Drury Lane production seemed huge and sumptuous. The Harcourt Williams production at the Old Vic in 1930 with John Gielgud as Antony, Dorothy Green as Cleopatra and Ralph Richardson as Enobarbus is considered by many the best production. 

A number of people ranked Vivien Leigh's performances as Cleopatra amongst the greatest. She played the role many times including with her husband Laurence Olivier as Antony (1950-52) and again with the great Australian actor Peter Finch as Antony in the early 1950's. Vanessa Redgrave's 1973 performance in Tony Richardson's production was superb and there is footage of this production. She played it 13 years later for Theatr Clwyd. Many people believe that Peter Hall's 1987 production at the national Theatre in London with Judi Dench as Cleopatra and Anthony Hopkins as Antony was one of the best modern productions. Another great production and interpretation of 'Antony and Cleopatra' was Peter Zadek's Brechtian interpretation done in German in 1994 starring Gert Voss as Antony and Eva Mattes as Cleopatra which featured Voss in an Arab headers and Mattes at one point in a pith-helmet.

Shakespeare returns to France in the comedy 'All's Well That Ends Well'.