Willy ShakesAn Introduction to William Shakespeare

& A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Willy Shakes- The Thespian Life

● Born into humble origins

● Established himself as an actor, then playwright and poet

● Married Anne Hathaway (no, not that one), and they had three children, 2 girls and a boy, but only the girls survived.

● Born and Died at Stratford-upon-Avon (1564-1616)

Willy Shakes- The Thespian Life

● Actor and shareholder in Lord Chamberlain’s Company (Later the King’s Men) by 1595.

● After 1599, a shareholder at the Globe Theatre.● Actor, playwright, and sometimes director.● Between 1590 and 1613, he wrote 38 plays (although,

for some, the authorship is still in doubt), some written with others (John Fletcher, for instance).

Willy Shakes- The Thespian Life

● Histories: (English history, like Marlowe’s Chronicle plays) such as Henry IV, V, VI, VIII, Richard II, Richard III

● Tragedies: Romeo and Juliet, Othello, Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth

● Comedies: Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Comedy of Errors

Willy Shakes- The Thespian Life

General characteristics of the plays:

1. Early point of attack

2. Several lines of action (subplots), independent at first, then

somehow merge together – unity in apparent diversity (King

Lear is a perfect example).

3. Large number and variety of incidents; mixing of tears and

laughter; gentle and violent passions

4. Time and space used freely – a sense of ongoing life behind

the scenes

Willy Shakes- The Thespian Life

General characteristics of the plays continued:

5. Large range and number of characters; 30 is common;

rich and poor, all individuals.

6. Varied language: elegant, ribald, witty, prosaic; all to

enhance character and action.

7. Subjects from many sources (mythology, history, legend,

fiction, plays) but reworked to become his own.

Willy Shakes- A Midsummer Night’s Dream

● Comedy driven by societal expectations of marriage,

love triangles, magic, the fairy realm, and mischief.

● It’s a comedy-yay everyone isn’t dead at the end

● Most comedies end in marriages-this is no exception.

● Pay attention to who loves whom and how that plays out

in the plot line.

● Pay attention to the difference between the “real” world

and the forest/fairy world and the multiple story lines.

Presentations over Acts-that’s you!

● Review of what happened in the Act

● Unique method of presenting

● Act-out one excerpt from the Act

● Introduce characters from the excerpt (each person

should introduce their character + description)

● BE PREPARED TO PRESENT EVERY ACT!

● 50 points