Born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564 1 st school in Stratford All boys Latin Graduated and probably worked for his father as a glover Married Anne Hathaway, or perhaps Agnes Hathwey, or even Anne Whateley, spellings were hardly consistent in the 1500’s. Either way he was only 18 while she was 26. (Go Billy) They had lived together before they were married and she was pregnant during their wedding. This was not considered so much of a scandal at the time. She gave birth to twins: Judith and Hamnet.
Hamnet died at age 11. Tragedy for the family. Shakespeare left the family for London He became an actor first (realized he wasn’t all that great) and then became a writer. (which he rocked at.) His company was first named “Lord Chamberland’s Men” The company consisted of 15 men and….no women. Women weren’t allowed in the theatre. Lord Chamberland ran the royal household under Queen Elizabeth Toured with his company while in his 20’s
Now imagine, you’ve got a nickel. You decide to travel out of town to the other side of the Thames to find some good old fashion Saturday night entertainment. Now you’ve got bear-baiting (making dogs and bears fight to the death), prostitutes, or a play that you could attend. Shakespeare had to be a pretty darn good playwright to beat out gore filled bear-dog fights and prostitutes.
Chamberland provided entertainment for Queen Elizabeth who loved the arts and theater in particular. Shakespeare’s theatre, called “The Theater”, was taken apart and rebuilt on the other side of the Thames and renamed “The Globe”
The general consensus is that Shakespeare wrote 37 plays in his career, although half of a 38 th was written. (Two Noble Kinsmen) “Midsummer Night’s Dream” was written for a wedding event Eventually Billy Shakes returned to his family and retired. His daughter Judith then married Drinking, at Judith’s wedding, he caught a fever, and thus left this world.
Shakespeare passed away in 1616 and was buried under a church floor. Ten years later in 1626 a collection of his works was organized by “Kings Men” After the Restoration Period Shakespeare’s plays were revived. A great many Broadway shows, Blockbuster hits, and modern straight plays have been anchored in Shakespeare and his plotlines.