Publication of William Shakespeare Plays

THE PUBLICATION OF SHAKESPEARE PLAYS

• The section covering Shakespeare the Playwright covers the reasons why Play writers were not held in high esteem and why the profession could be dangerous!
• The playwrights would sell their plays to the theatre companies for a 'one-off' sum. There were no 'royalties' during the Elizabethan era!
• Plays were blatantly copied and stolen - read the section on Quarto Texts and this plagiarism led to different versions of some plays, including those of William Shakespeare. In Shakespeare’s time copyright did not exist!
• William Shakespeare invested in the Globe Theatre and it was in his interest to produce as many plays as possible! The type of plays being shown were advertised by different coloured flags being flown on the theatre - these flags could be seen for miles (remember that most of the population were still illiterate!) Shakespeare and the Globe Theatre
• There was a huge amount of competition between the theatres! There was a lot of money to be earned and it was important for the theatres to produce new plays and play a variety of different plays during the week
• The majority of the plays of William Shakespeare were published in 1623 in a document called The First Folio - Seven years after his death!
• The plays were divided into three themes - Histories, Comedies and Tragedies:

William Shakespeare Comedies
William Shakespeare Histories
William Shakespeare Tragedies

THE FIRST PUBLICATION DATES OF THE PLAYS BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

• Each of the Plays first print / publication dates are detailed below

FULL TEXT, SUMMARY, CHARACTERS AND INFO ABOUT THE PLAYS BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

• The links highlighted below will provide access to the following:
  • Full Text of the whole Play
  • Short Summary of each Play
  • Information about each play - first performance dates, number of words, history etc
  • The Cast and Characters in each Play
  • Famous Quotes from each Play
• Henry VI Part I was first printed in 1594
• Henry VI, Part II was first printed in 1594
• Henry VI, Part III was first printed in 1623
• Titus Andronicus was first printed in 1594
• The Comedy of Errors. First printed 1623
• Taming of the Shrew was first printed in 1623
• Two Gentlemen of Verona was first printed in 1623
• Love's Labour's Lost was first printed in 1598
• Romeo and Juliet was first printed in 1597
• A Midsummer Night's Dream was first printed in 1600
• The Merchant of Venice was first printed in 1600
• Henry IV, Part I was first printed in 1598
• Henry IV, Part II was first printed in 1600
• Much Ado About Nothing was first printed in 1600
• Henry V was first printed in 1600
• As You Like It was first printed in 1623
• Julius Caesar was first printed in 1623
• Richard II was first printed in 1597
• Richard III was first printed in 1597
• Hamlet was first printed in 1603
• The Merry Wives of Windsor was first printed in 1602
• Twelfth Night was first printed in 1623
• All's Well That Ends Well was first printed in 1623
• Troilus and Cressida was first printed in 1609 
• Measure for Measure was first printed in 1623
• Othello was first printed in 1622
• King Lear was first printed in 1608
• Macbeth was first printed in 1623
• Antony and Cleopatra was first printed in 1623
• Coriolanus was first printed in 1623
• Timon of Athens was first printed in 1623
• Pericles was first printed in 1609
• The Tempest was first printed in 1623
• Macbeth was first printed in 1623
• Cymbeline was first printed in 1623
• The Winter's Tale was first printed in 1623
• Henry VIII was first printed in 1623
• The Two Noble Kinsmen was first printed in 1634

William Shakespeare Index

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