1. William Shakespeare: the Man, the Myth, and the Legend
Placing Shakespeare in Context

2. A Bit of History… William Shakespeare Born (baptized) April 26th, 1564
In Stratford, England
“Stratford-upon-Avon”
Small market town in Warwickshire, England
Died April 23rd, 1616

3. A Bit of History… English Renaissance Queen Elizabeth King James 1st
Early 16th to late 17th centuries
Queen Elizabeth
1558 – 1603
King James 1st
1603 – 1625
Commercial Theater in England
1567 – 1642
The Theatre
First structure for “the playing of plays”
The Globe
Built in 1599, burned to the ground in 1613
“The house that Shakespeare built”

4. Before and After… Let’s take a tour of The Globe
Before the Renaissance
Medieval Dramas (highly religious)
Morality plays
Mystery plays
Performed in wagons
During and After the Renaissance
Plays were performed at universities
Later performed in playhouses
The Theatre, The Globe, ETC…
Let’s take a tour of The Globe

5. The Man, the Industry, the Hollywood Icon, the Cultural Touchstone
We know who he is…don’t we?
The Industry and Hollywood Icon
Think about our Pop Culture exercise
The Cultural Touchstone
Molding Shakespeare to fit any genre
Music
Movies
ETC…

6. What do you think? Something to ponder… Anxiety of influence
Do writers after Shakespeare become derivative of him?
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“The German Shakespeare”
Has Shakespeare said it all?
What do you think?

7. Did Shakespeare Exist? Stratfordian vs. Anti-Stratfordian
Christopher Marlowe
Some argue that Shakespeare was a “front” for Marlowe, among others
Controversy of Authorship
Was it a combination of forces and his pure talent?
Was he a “front man” for the writing?
Seven signatures of Shakespeare
Mention his education, his appearance in London, had intimate knowledge of “The Court”…too many coincidences?

8. Did Shakespeare Exist?
Was Shakespeare a “genius” and are his works universal?
Or was he at the right place at the right time?

9. Performances, Playhouses, and the Players
What about the theater is different?
You are in control of the perspective
You look where you want to look
Every performance is different
Audience vs. Spectator
Audio- EAR
Spectacle- EYE
“Let’s go hear a play”
Combo of EYE and EAR to create meaning
People were good listeners because most were illiterate

10. Performances, Playhouses, and the Players
Patronage
Funding, important for livelihood
Outside Amphitheaters vs. Indoor Playhouses
Universities had the indoor playhouses
Amphitheaters were for the “people”
Actors were called players
They were “playing”
Fun, pretend, ILLUSION, fiction, escape
The Lord Chamberlain’s Men and King’s Men
Playwrights were called poets
Shakespeare is a poet