"Let your indulgence set me free."

Much like when I disguised myself as an instructor to woo Bianca and create a chance to show her my true self, Shakespeare adopted the guise of Prospero to show his audience the nature of his craft. As the play progressed, we watched Prospero deftly maneuver behind the scenes, guiding all of the characters on the mystical island through myriad paths to converge and bring fruition to his plans. This display is a crafty representation of the master playwright at work. In his final address the the audience, the old wizard becomes more Shakespeare than Prospero. He beseeches the onlookers, "release me from my bands/With the help of your good hands." It is, of course, not Prospero who seeks the audience's approval to leave the stage. Shakespeare has worked long and hard, crafting colorful characters like myself and my contemporaries in "The Taming of the Shrew," and all the memorable people of "Macbeth," "Titus Andronicus," "The Merchant of Venice," and the supernatural denizens of the island in "The Tempest." Prospero acts as Shakespeare's representative on the stage, bowing out in his place, and accepting the applause for a lifetime of entertainment.