Dear Listener,

Is there an island in your mind? A place where you envision starting a new life? How many times have you tried to answer that classic conversation starter: “If you were stranded on a deserted island, what (book / food / friend / thing) would you want to have with you?”

The Play On Podcast series THE TEMPEST envisions such a scenario: Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, is forced by his enemies to sea in a rickety boat. Fortunately, he has the company of his only child, Miranda, along with his most prized books. Stranded on a “deserted island” for twelve years, he manages through the magic he learns from his books to harness the powers and peoples that exist there, bending them to his will until the day finally comes when he can confront his enemies.

At the time Shakespeare wrote THE TEMPEST, Great Britain was colonizing the place we now know as North America. We can only imagine how such a place must have seemed to the foreigners who were sent there as some sort of punishment, or to start a new life. No doubt, Shakespeare and his contemporaries were hearing incredible stories about this “new land” and were asking the types of questions the character Gonzalo poses when stepping onto Prospero’s island: “If I were king here, what would I do?” Gonzalo imagines governing in such a way that all inhabitants would be equal and everyone would have everything they need, in abundance. Sebastian and Antonio, meanwhile, conspire to take power by brute force.

But was Prospero’s island really deserted? What about those who were already there before he arrived? Shakespeare, perhaps the greatest humanist in Western history, shows acute awareness and sensitivity toward this truth in his renderings of the characters Ariel and Caliban, native to the island, who so poignantly crave freedom from Prospero’s often cruel and manipulative rule.

I recently brought my two sons to the island of Puerto Rico to visit their maternal grandparents. Together, we walked in the rainforest of El Yunque and on the beaches of Culebra where, even though we know full well the history of subjugation on that island, it was easy to imagine we were the only inhabitants. “Save the King!” I heard my youngest son shout as the tide encroached on his sand castle. “I think the King is going to have to find another place to rule,” I joked, only to realize that may soon be the reality for countless inhabitants of coastal communities on a warming planet…

The metaphor of an island where we can live as we choose is so essentially human, it’s no wonder THE TEMPEST has survived time and tide for centuries. As you listen to this series, I hope you’ll enjoy imagining yourself in the reality of every character. Maybe you’ll find new answers to the old questions: What would you do if you could start over? Would you succumb to the temptations of power and vengeance? Would you delve into spirituality? How would you govern? How would you live? Who would you serve? What or who would you want to have with you? What if you suddenly had to flee from your home? Where would you go? Where in your mind do you find your island of tranquility?

If I had to take one book with me to a deserted island, I know what it would be: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. And as we launch THE TEMPEST—our tenth series to date—on the heels of Tracy Young’s magnificent production of THE WINTERS TALE—our most downloaded series to date—I know one thing for sure: If I had to take one podcast series with me, it would be the Play On Podcasts!

Enjoy. And remember, “We are such stuff as Dreams are made on”.