1. Shakespeare’s Life and Times

2. Born 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon
DOB: April 23, 1564
His exact place of birth is unknown because his father owned several properties at the time.
Parents: John and Mary Shakespeare
**No one knows exactly when and where he was born

3. Shakespeare’s School
It is said that he most likely attended the Stratford grammar school
The school is still standing – it is only blocks away from the house Shakespeare was supposedly born.
During 1553, the school’s name was changed to the King’s New School of Stratford-upon-Avon.

4. Shakespeare’s Education
Elizabethan grammar schools
Latin was the primary language of learning.
Latin composition and the study of Latin authors like Seneca, Cicero, Ovid, Virgil, and Horace would have been the focus
likely had some lessons in English

5. Married Anne Hathaway in 1582
Marriage was hurried and a bit “irregular”—Anne may have been pregnant.
(Their daughter, Susanna, was born only 6 months after the wedding.)
They also had twins, Hamlet and Judith, in 1585.

6. Lost years?
Between 1585 and 1592, we know little of Shakespeare’s life.
It is said that he spent this time perfecting his craft.
In 1592, he surfaces in London as an actor and playwright. He is 28 years old.

7. Playwright and Poet
10 tragedies—including Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, and Romeo and Juliet
13 comedies—including Midsummer Night’s Dream, Twelfth Night, The Merchant of Venice
10 histories—including Henry V, Richard II, Henry VIII
4 romances—Winter’s Tale, The Tempest, Cymbeline, Pericles
He wrote a group of 154 sonnets
As well as several narrative poems:
The Rape of Lucrece—1594
Venus and Adonis—1593
The Phoenix and the Turtle
A Lover’s Complaint

8. Shakespeare as an Actor
Tradition holds that he performed the Ghost in Hamlet and the French King in Henry V.

9. The Plague
Between 1592 and 1594, the theatres in London were closed because of an
outbreak of the plague.

10. Shakespeare’s Return When they reopened, we find Shakespeare
a member of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men,
but we do not know how
he got there.
Queen Elizabeth I

11. King’s Men
In 1603, under King James I, Shakespeare’s company came under the patronage of the new King, and thereafter was known as the King’s Men
They were the premiere acting company of the day
Female roles were played by young boys/men

12. Shakespeare’s plays were performed:
At the Globe
At the “Private” theatres like the Blackfriars
At court

13. The Globe
Shakespeare’s company built their own theatre in 1599 outside of the London district
The theatres were placed outside the jurisdiction of the city so they could avoid censorship.
They were also located to attract visitors, travelers, and certain sorts of clientele.

15. Public Theatres
The Globe, the Swan, the Rose, and the Theatre were “public,” outdoor theatres.
They were round or hexagonal, with a stage that thrust out into the center with seating and standing room all around.
Plays took place in the daytime: no electricity / open roofs

16. Examples:

20. Shakespeare’s Retirement and Death
Shakespeare left London and retired from the stage sometime around
He was probably still collaborating with younger playwrights, such as John Fletcher, who replaced him as the leading playwright for the King’s Men.

21. Shakespeare died on his birthday, April 23, in 1616
"Good Friends, for Jesus' sake forbear,
To dig the bones enclosed here!
Blest be the man that spares these stones,
And curst be he that moves my bones."