1. Mr. Sweeney Southwest High School

2. Shakespeare has been variously called: The greatest dramatist who ever lived The greatest writer of any kind in the history of the English language

3. Born in Stratford-on-Avon in 1564 First child of John and Mary Shakespeare to survive John was a glover and prominent Stratford citizen who would eventually fall on hard times William received a basic education in Stratford Londo n Stratfor d

5. William married Anne Hathaway in 1582 – he was 18 and she was 26 and pregnant with their first child They would have three children: Susanna, Judith, and Hamnet (who died in 1596 at age 11) William and Anne spent most of their married life apart

6. Sometime between 1585 and 1590, Shakespeare joined an acting troupe based in London He became a writer and eventually a part-owner in the troupe His first plays were performed around 1590

7. Shakespeare’s plays were very successful, and he invested his earnings wisely He returned home to Stratford for good around 1610 He died on his birthday in 1616 and was buried in Stratford, in the same church where he was baptized

8. Acting was not a respected profession during Shakespeare’s day, so acting troupes needed the patronage (support) of a powerful noble to operate Shakespeare’s troupe was called the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, then later the King’s Men

9. Women were legally barred from acting, so boys in makeup played the female roles Most acting troupes traveled regularly, so they had to keep productions simple Plays had no sets; actors described the setting of each scene Costumes were minimal By Shakespeare’s day, some troupes had started building their own theaters

10. Shakespeare’s troupe built the Globe Theater in 1599; most of his plays were first performed there It burned down only 14 years later, but a rebuilt Globe now stands near the original’s spot

12. We refer to this period as the Elizabethan Age because of the queen who ruled England from 1565-1603 It was a time of great social and religious upheaval The Renaissance had finally reached England, bringing radical new ideas on all topics Protestants and Catholics competed for control of the country

13. Shakespeare wrote The Tragedy of Macbeth in 1605 or 1606 It was performed for the new king, James I We believe Shakespeare wrote it with James in mind: 1. James liked short plays and it is Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy 2. James was Scottish by birth, and it takes place in Scotland 3. One of James’s ancestors is a prominent character in the play 4. The play reflects James’s views on witchcraft