The Seven Ages of Man

Our program is based, loosely and with much poetico- musical licence, on the idea of the seven ages of man presented by Shakespeare in As You Like It. Spoken by the character Jacques, this famous passage is often described as a poem or monologue, but is in fact a response in dialogue with an un-named exiled Duke. The speech is a model of cynicism, fashioned by the playwright to suit the character of its speaker. The music chosen for our fantasia is wide- ranging in style, purpose and period, and is not intended as a commentary on Shakespeare’s words, which after all speak for themselves.

...All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players,

They have their exits and entrances,

And one man in his time plays many parts,

His acts being seven ages.