William Shakespeare is perhaps one of the most influential playwrights and thespians throughout history. While there is no definitive birth date, it is believed he was born around April 23, 1564, in Stratford Upon Avon to an influential glove maker and the daughter of a successful farmer. At the age of 18, a few years after leaving his schooling, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway in late 1582; the couple would have three children together. Unfortunately, “from 1585 until 1592, very little is known about Shakespeare. These are generally referred to as 'The Lost Years” (Royal Shakespeare Company). Shakespeare appears in London where he held the roles of actor, playwright, and businessman with the formation of Lord Chamberlain's Men in 1594, later named the King’s Men; this prominent acting troupe performed at the Globe Theater, built by brothers Cuthbert and Richard Burbage, beginning in 1599. Due to the Bubonic Plague outbreak in London in 1593, theaters were forced to close, and Shakespeare moved into poetry writing. Sources state no definitive order as to when he wrote his masterpieces, but some are assumed to be written within specific time periods: A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream and Romeo and Juliet from late 1580s-mid 1590s, Julius Caesar between 1596-1600, and Twelfth Night between 1600-1607. Lee Hall’s Shakespeare in Love takes place in 1593 London during the writing and premiere of Romeo and Juliet. It is important to note that Shakespeare is one of the only writers to jump between genres in the Elizabethan era of theater.
Queen Elizabeth and Theatre
During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the monarchy placed restrictions on theatre and censored content. The passing of Poor Laws and the 1572 Act for the Punishment of Vagabondes “required acting companies to seek the patronage of a noble in order for them to continue performing without fear of disruption.” (McLaughlin 25). Queen Elizabeth typically denied any content to be performed or publicized that was critical of the monarchy or that was overly religious; however, she was a great supporter of Shakespeare and often attended his performances. Shakespeare consistently included references to herself and her rule, and his historical works became a source of national pride and identity. Despite the mentioned restrictions, Queen Elizabeth was a great supporter of theatre and founded her own acting troupe, The Queen’s Men, in 1583; in troops such as this one, only men were allowed to perform. Most theater companies operated under a shareholder system in which shareholders received a higher payment than those performing; this pay additionally varied per city as the troupe traveled (The Shakespeare Globe Trust).
Women in Theatre
During Elizabethan England, women were prohibited from performing on the stage as it was seen as indecent, and women were taught to be inferior to men and to serve them and their interests as their “belongings.” Women were confined to maintaining the house, childbirth, and being committed to their marriages, while men held the prestigious positions in medicine, law, and politics. The actors’ profession held a diminished reputation and was objected by the Orthodox Christian faith, but the “all male companies were deemed as socially legitimate because they did not threaten gender hierarchy” (Garcia). Men dressed in female attire to play the female roles, despite the sumptuary laws of the time (laws attempting to stop people dressing up as something they were not).
