This month we continue with the Elizabethan era and its playwrights. Yes, Shakespeare was not the only writer from this time!
In This Issue - Elizabethan Theatre: Part Two
The Life of a Playwright
It’s only speculation, but the Elizabethan era must have been a fascinating time to be a playwright. This era sees the rise of buildings for the sole purpose of theatrical production, the rise of the career playwright, the rise of theatre companies presenting multiple plays in a week, the rise of secular theatre into the popular art form that we are familiar with today, not to mention the era in which Shakespeare was born, wrote, and thrived. (Read More)
Playwrights (Other than Shakespeare)
It is important to realize that Shakespeare was not the only writer during this time period. Names such as Ben Jonson, Thomas Kyd, and Christopher Marlowe may not be as well-remembered as Shakespeare’s but they have as much to do with the development of the Elizabethan Era and the development of theatre as Shakespeare did. And indeed, writing for the theatre as a profession began before Shakespeare was established in London. (Read More)
Shakespeare
And now Shakespeare. Obviously, Shakespeare is well-known. Some might say he’s shoved down our throats, but I think there’s a reason for that. There’s a reason that he is known in greater detail than his contemporaries. Some of it was luck, he was born at the right place and the right time. (Read More)
Four Plays
Shakespeare wrote 37 plays and 154 sonnets. In this section it’s all exercises, all the time. There isn’t the space to look at every play, so we’ll look at four that are commonly taught in high school: Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer’s Night Dream, and Macbeth. (Read More)
Read more about all of these topics here!
