How could the bird commonly called the Mute Swan be associated with the poet and playwright who voiced so many ideas and gave us a speech for every occasion? Whether in England’s Stratford or Canada’s, nesting pairs of swans are found preening and sailing near the shores of the River Avon. The Shakespeare Festival Theatre in Stratford, Ontario juts out majestically from the grassy slope above the lake, and every visit to the town includes the requisite stroll along the water’s edge. The ungainly and oddly proportioned birds share the path with their human admirers and then slip into the water where their graceful forms make a reverse silhouette against the dark water.