Shakespeare

Antony and Cleopatra is one of William Shakespeare's finest plays: a tragedy, obvious, given the subjest matter
The play charts the relationship between Cleopatra and Mark Antony from the time of the Sicilian revolt to Cleopatra's eventual suicide (enter the Asp) during the Final War of the Roman Republic. So, next time you are playing the Cleopatra II Slot, just remember that it's theme is pretty high brow!

Antony and Cleopatra, by Lawrence Alma-Tadema.

Octavius Caesar is the baddie, the future emperor of Rome. The tragedy takes place between carefree Alexandria and the ordered Rome.

Mark Antony is a Roman general and one of the three (triumvirs) who rule Rome following  the assassination of Cleopatra's former other half and father of her children, the one, the only Julius Caesar.
The play also stars, among others, the other triumvirs Octavian and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt an Sextus Pompey – Son of the late Pompey the Great.

Mark Antony is neglecting his soldierly duties after being mesmerised by Egypt's Queen, Cleopatra. Octavian calls Antony back to Rome from Alexandria. Cleopatra begs him not to go, but he eventually leaves to fulfill his duty.
Back in Rome, a general suggest a political marriage: that Antony should marry Octavian's younger sister, Octavia, in order to forge a bond between the two men. Antony's 2nd in command Enobarbus, though, relaises that Octavia can never satisfy him after Cleopatra. He describes Cleopatra thus:

"Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale / Her infinite variety: other women cloy / The appetites they feed, but she makes hungry / Where most she satisfies."

A soothsayer predicts that Antony will lose if he ever tries to fight Octavian.

In Egypt, Cleopatra learns of Antony's marriage and flies into a fury (hell hath no fury like a woman scorned etc) She is placated by the news that Octavia is plain: short, low-browed, moon-faced girl and is on a constant bad hair day.
The triumvirs hatch a plan with Sextus Pompey, and offer him a deal. He can keep Sicily and Sardinia, but he must help them fight the pirates and send them tributes. Sextus agrees. They get drunk on Sextus's ship, (Octavius leaves early and sober from the fiesta). Menas whispers in Sextus' ear that he should kill the three triumvirs and become Emperor  of Rome, but he refuses.

Octavian and Lepidus later break their truce with Sextus and wage war against him. Antony is furious that they have reneged on their deal.
Antony heads back to Alexandria, and crowns Cleopatra and himself as rulers of Egypt and the eastern third of the Roman Empire (Antony's share). He accuses Octavian of diddling him out of his fair share of Sextus's lands, and is furious that Lepidus, whom Octavian has put in gaol, is out of the picture. Octavian is on a power grab- he agrees to the first demand from Mark Antony, but he is not a happy bunny.

Antony prepares to fight Octavian. Enobarbus advises Antony to fight on land, where he has the advantage, instead of by sea, where the navy of Octavius has the upper hand. Antony refuses, since Octavian has laid down the gauntlet to fight at sea.

Cleopatra pledges her ships to help Antony. However, during the Battle of Actium off the western coast of Greece, Cleopatra flees with her ships, and Antony follows her, leaving his forces to their fate.
Ashamed of what he has done for the love of of a woman, Antony reproaches her for making him into a coward.

Octavian sends a meggage to Cleopatra to hand over Anntony and come to his side. Antony promises to fight another battle for her, this time on land.

The night before the battle, Antony's army see strange omens, which they believe to be Hercules leaving Antony to his fate. Enobarbus, Antony's long-serving lieutenant, defects to Octavian. Rather than destroying Enobarbus's possesions, which he did not take with him when he deserted, Antony sends them to Enobarbus who subsequently dies ashamed and broken.
Antony loses the battle as his army  desert en masse and he denounces Cleopatra:
"This foul Egyptian hath betrayed me."
He promises to kill her for the treachery. So, Cleopatra decides that the only way to win back his heart is to send  a mesaage that she killed herself, dying with his name on her lips. That way, she hopes he will rush back where she can win his heart again.

Her plan backfires: rather than running back in remorse to mourn  the "dead" Cleopatra, Antony decides to kill himself. He only succeeds in wounding himself with his sword, when he learns that Cleopatra is still alive. He is carried to her and dies in her arms.

Octavian tries to get Cleopatra to surrender. She refuses. After being tricked by the Romans, Cleopatra kills herself using the poison of an asp, a deadly Egyptian snake. Her maids, Iras and Charmian, also kill themselves (at this point the plot starts to look like it's benn hatched up by Quentin Tarantino).

Octavian is free to become the first Roman Emperor, but he feels pangs of sympathy for them:
"She shall be buried by her Antony. / No grave upon the earth shall clip in it / A pair so famous..."

He insists the pair are awarded a public military funeral.