William Shakespeare

Who is this guy?! Born: April 23, 1564, England Died: April 23, 1616, England Family: Dad was tanner and glover, later ‘Mayor’ of Stratford. Mom came from a good family. Shakespeare had 5 siblings and two others that died in infancy

Background No record of education BUT clearly he was knowledgeable and went to school somewhere Married Anne Hathaway in late November 1582 (he was 18, she was 26) First child, Susanna, born May 23, 1583 Twins Hamnet and Judith born February 1585 Shakespeare lived and worked in London for many years

Shakespeare is AWESOME!! BUT WHY!?! Very talented artist who not only wrote but also acted He wrote poetry (e.g. his famous sonnets) His works are filled with wonderful allusions (references to previous works), symbols, alliteration, assonance, metaphors and beautiful descriptive language (imagery) Romance, tragedy, comedy and history stories that are still used today-relevant situations

The Globe Theatre All theatres closed because of the plague in 1592-1593 They re-opened with vengeance in 1594, Shakespeare dominated! Built in London, 1599 Located in the ‘Red Light District’ of town- away from authorities

The Globe No roof and no lighting so performances earlier in day- weather permitting! 2-3,000 capacity not much background scenery or props so language was important to let audience know what was happening Stage was broken down into a few areas including side stages, a loft and trap doors Audience members ranged from drunken low lifes to the more prestigious high class

The Globe Burned down in 1613 Re-built in 1614 and torn down in 1642 by new regime in power in England re-built and used as a tourist attraction

Theatre Life What a show!!! Black flag-tragedy, white flag- comedy, red Flag- history. Every day but Sunday Workers from other theatres would come to watch and steal ideas and entire plays! No copyright! People were drunk and loud and would yell and respond to actors! Major audience involvement! No female actors, boys played women Often no time to learn lines! Facilities or lack thereof…. Yuck! Throwing things, box office, immoral activities!

Still Relevant!? Still read in schools Plays still very popular Plays made into major motion pictures

Macbeth Set in Scotland Written for King James I (formerly of Scotland, then of England) Queen of Denmark (James’s sister) was visiting Many of the characters are ancestors of King James I.

The source of the play is Raphael Holinshed’s “Chronicles of England, The Scottish Play is based loosely on an episode from history, the death of King Duncan at the hands of his kinsman Macbeth. The source of the play is Raphael Holinshed’s “Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland” (1577).

King Duncan of Scotland Murdered by cousin Macbeth Honest and good Malcolm & Donalbain Sons of the King Malcolm is the eldest son Macbeth Duncan’s most courageous general Ambition to become king corrupts him causing him to murder Duncan The Characters

Banquo Lady Macbeth Macduff General and Macbeth’s best friend Suspects Macbeth in Duncan’s murder An actual ancestor of King James I Lady Macbeth As ambitious as her husband A dark force behind his evil deeds Macduff Scottish general, suspects Macbeth of murdering the king Macbeth has his family murdered Swears vengeance

So what really happens? Good guy goes bad Good guy wants power Married to an evil, ambitious woman She wants power Kills people- LOTS of people Gets power Gets paranoid (a.k.a. goes crazy) Ticks off a lot of people Wants more power! Kill! Kill! Gets what he deserves in the end

The Curse!

The Scottish Play It is believed to be bad luck to even squeak the word ‘Macbeth’ in a theatre Legend has it you will lose all your friends involved in the production--horribly

Best Line! “Life’s but a walking shadow; a poor player, That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And is heard of no more: it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.” - Act V; s.5