The Lady of Shalott on DVD

"Down she came and found a boat
Beneath a willow left afloat,
And around about the prow she wrote
The Lady of Shalott."

This poem is very familiar to all of us who are keen to King Arthur's tales. It was written byAlfred, Lord Tennyson, who is probably the most famous poet of the Victorian age, the first ever poet to become a lord and the first to amass a considerable fortune by his writing. His poetry defines the private and public concerns of the 19^th century.

A few years ago it was turned into the lyrics of a wonderful song composed and performed by Loreena Mc Kennitt

(live performance by McKennitt at the Juno Awards, short version)..

Thanks to Julie Bismarck and her wonderful "Celtic Lady" blog... I got acquainted of this Film and that it's sales are now in support for a woman who is an amazing cornerstone of the modern Pre-Raphaelite community, Stephanie Piña, creator of LizzieSiddal.com and Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood.com. Stephanie's husband was recently in a terrible accident, and unfortunately is self-employed with no insurance.

Buy the Lady of Shalott DVD for a special cause!

Funds to help support Stephanie and her family can be sent to her Paypal address: stephaniepina@lizziesiddal.com

Also, for the next few weeks, 50% of the proceeds toward purchase of the DVD from the amazing WAG Screen production of The Lady of Shalott will go toward helping Stephanie's family.

For those of you who don't know the poem, here is a synopsis by Julie Bismarck:
"The Lady of Shalott lives in an island castle in a river which flows to Camelot, but little is known about her by the local farmers. She has been cursed, and so she must constantly weave a magic web without looking directly out at the world. Instead, she looks into a mirror which reflects the busy road and the people of Camelot which pass by her island. One day, "bold Sir Lancelot" rides past, and is seen by the lady. She stops weaving and looks out her window toward Camelot, bringing about the curse. She leaves her tower, finds a boat upon which she writes her name, and floats down the river to Camelot. She dies before arriving at the palace. Among the knights and ladies who see her is Lancelot, who thinks she is lovely:

"But Lancelot mused a little space

He said, "She has a lovely face;

God in his mercy lend her grace,

The Lady of Shalott."

About the film

As part of the celebrations a major exhibition of Pre-Raphaelite art, including some of Waterhouse’s works, will be shown at The Collection, Lincoln from May. They are working very closely with the Waterhouse paintings of the Lady of Shalott and have gone to great lengths to replicate her clothes, her boat and, currently, her loom. To find out more visit their web site at: www.theladyofshalott.co.uk The film will also be shown at the Collection from May 2009.WAG Screen is a not-for-profit organisation closely related to WAG Washingborough Archaeology Group).

Inspiration for the visual imagery came from the many Pre-Raphaelite paintings that the poem inspired, but most especially the paintings of the artist John William Waterhouse. We also filmed the reading of the poem by Tennyson to an after dinner audience at Christmas 1856. These are now all available on DVD:

• The Lady of Shalott dramatisation (14 minutes)
• Tennyson reading The Lady of Shalott (9 minutes)
• Conversation between Ben Poole (Tennyson) and Grace Timmins (Tennyson Research Centre) (16 minutes)
• Dante Ferrara – La Donna di Shalott, music video (4 minutes)Buy the Lady of Shalott DVD for a special cause!
  

You can buy of copy of the film from their online shop

The character

Victoria Rigby is the Lady of Shalott. And she depicts the Lady of Shalott as if she were alive! ...she is a stunner...and a great discovery by the film makers, who have done a great resemblance with the Waterhouse's famous painting, no doubt of it !

There are three teasers on YouTube:
Lady of Shalott, teaser 1
Lady of Shalott, teaser 2
Lady of Shalott, teaser 3

More Lady of Shalott posts @ Pre-Raphaelite Sisterhood:The Lady of Shalott: A look at the Lady of Shalott and how different artists have portrayed her

Video
The Lady of Shalott: An Animated Experience