This paper revisits the familiar territory of Shakespeare’s use of Montaigne but from an unfamiliar angle: the playwright’s apparent ‘translation’ of several passages from the _Essais_ into stage business and scenic effects, notably in _Hamlet_, _The Winter’s Tale_ and _The Tempest_. In this respect, as in others, Florio tends to emerge as a mediator. Certain of the first English translator’s interpretations and elaborations, even occasionally his typographical highlighting (in the original edition), amount to ‘hints’ that the playwright seems to have taken up to invent onstage action or deepen its thematic resonance. At the same time, the dramatic qualities of the original are further highlighted by way of a realised potential for mise en scène. The process of translation is thereby confirmed as a double one -- first to Florio's page, then to Shakespeare's stage--and extended to the dramatic medium as such.