The Duchess of Malfi


Read by LibriVox Volunteers

(4.2 stars; 22 reviews)

John Webster's bloody Jacobean tragedy exposes the decadence of the Italian court. The virtuous Duchess of Malfi, a young widow, secretly marries her steward Antonio, and is subsequently persecuted by her brothers: the sexually obsessed and eventually mad Ferdinand, and the corrupt Cardinal. (Summary by Elizabeth Klett).

Characters:

Narrator/Stage Directions & Castruccio -- BellonaTimes
Delio -- Andy Minter
Antonio -- Martin Geeson
Bosola -- David Nicol
Cardinal, 2nd Servant, 2nd Officer, Executioner -- jonesy
Ferdinand -- mb
Silvio -- Lars Rolander
Roderigo -- David Muncaster
Grisolan -- Miriam Esther Goldman
Cariola -- Arielle Lipshaw
Duchess, Cardinal's Servant, 3rd Officer -- Elizabeth Klett
Old Lady -- storm
1st Servant, 1st Officer, Servant -- Daniel Hutton
Julia -- Bereni
4th Officer, 4th Madman, Malatesti -- Mark F. Smith
Pescara -- Kim Stich
1st Pilgrim, 1st Madman -- Lucy Perry
2nd Pilgrim, 2nd Madman-- Barry Eads
2nd Madman, Doctor -- hefyd
(2 hr 58 min)

Chapters

Introduction 4:24 Read by Bellona Times
Act 1 31:07 Read by LibriVox Volunteers
Act 2 29:33 Read by LibriVox Volunteers
Act 3 40:06 Read by LibriVox Volunteers
Act 4 32:31 Read by LibriVox Volunteers
Act 5 41:08 Read by LibriVox Volunteers

Reviews

Excellent Dramatization of a Classic Play


(5 stars)

Listened to this to review for a class, and had forgotten what an amazing play it is. The readers do an excellent job making each character distinct and memorable, particularly the main actors, who all do an excellent job. Highly recommended.


(5 stars)

Enjoyed this multiple-reader version very much. Thank you to the players. Shame that Ferdinand’s voice is much lower in volume than the other readers.


(2.5 stars)

The readers do a good job, but listening is marred by large differences in sound level between different actors.

Well worth a listen


(4 stars)

Definitely one of the strong LibriVox recorded plays - very enjoyable.