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The Winter's Tale

By William Shakespeare - Stage play

Stage playStageACT I, Scene 2

Roles

  • Leontes
  • Camillo

About this piece

Leontes tries to convince his friend Camillo that his wife is cheating on him

Summary

Leontes is the king of Sicily. His childhood friend King Polixenes is visiting him from Bohemia. Polixenes is about to go back home and Leontes begs him to stay. Polixenes doesn't change his mind until Hermione, Leonte's wife, persuades him otherwise. Leontes is convinced that his wife is cheating on him with Polixenes. When the two leave to go for a walk, Leontes delivers a monologue to the audience, expressing his frustrations that his wife is cheating on him. Then Camillo, a nobleman, approaches the king. In this scene Leontes tries to persuade him that his wife Hermione is cheating on him with Polixenes. Camillo argues that he is just imagining but Leontes won't budge. He orders him to act as a cupbearer to Polixenes and eventually poison him.

Tone

Having an argumentPersuading somebody

Use cases

classrehearsal
View on Actorama

Library metadata only. SceneFiend never includes script text here - pick up the published version to rehearse.

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