MENU

Shakespeare was involved in many aspects of London’s professional theatrical world. He was an actor, a playwright, and a shareholder in an acting company known as the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, which became the King’s Men when James I became king in 1603. His plays were performed on professional stages owned by his company--first the Theatre, and then, after 1599, the Globe. (After a property dispute, the Theatre was disassembled and the timbers used to build the Globe). In 1609, his company began using its own indoor theater at Blackfriars. His plays were performed in many other spaces, including the royal court, the universities of Oxford and Cambridge and the Inns of Court, public buildings and outdoor spaces in the provinces, and private households.

The total number of Shakespeare’s plays varies somewhat, depending on who is counting them, and how. The total shifts between 38 and 40 plays as scholars reassess references to his two lost plays--Love’s Labor’s Won and Cardenio--and analyze how large a hand he had in some collaboratively-written plays.

This category includes all publications of his plays, up to and including the First Folio in 1623; all entries for his plays in the Stationers' Register; administrative documents from the National Archives and elsewhere that make reference to his theaters and theater companies; and printed and handwritten references to seeing and/or reading his plays. Read Alan H. Nelson's thematic essay to learn more about lawsuits in Shakespeare's England.

Visit the British Library's Shakespeare in Quarto, to learn even more about actorsplayhouses and theater companies in Shakespeare's time, and to view completely digitized copies of Shakespeare's plays.

Our Featured Documents

All Documents

1599
The title page of the second edition of Henry IV Part 1 identifies William Shakespeare as the play’s author for the first time in print. The practice of including authorial attribution on title pages was becoming increasingly common at the turn of the century.
1599
This is the second edition of Edward III, printed by Simon Strafford for Cuthburt Burby in 1599.
1600
This is the first (and only) quarto edition of Much Ado About Nothing.
ca. 1600
SHAKESPEARE DOCUMENTED IS STILL GROWING! Descriptive content and transcriptions will continue to be added, updated and expanded. Check back for regular updates!
August 11 and 14, 1600
Sir John Oldcastle was entered into Liber C of the Stationers' Company on August 11, 1600.
August 23, 1600
On August 23, 1600, William Shakespeare's name appears in the Stationers' Register as "Mr Shakespere." This is the first of the four times Shakespeare's name appears in the Stationers' Register during his lifetime.
October 8, 1600
A Midsummer Night's Dream was entered into Liber C of the Stationer's Company on October 8, 1600.
October 28, 1600
The Merchant of Venice was originally entered into Liber C of the Stationers' Company on July 22, 1598, and licensed to James Roberts.
August 4, 1600
On August 4, 1600, Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, and As You Like It (along with a fourth play not authored by Shakespeare, Every Man in His Humor) were noted on the flyleaf of Liber C of the Stationer's Company.
1600
The first edition of Sir John Oldcastle Part 1 poses many difficulties. Firstly, there exist two different quartos of the play bearing the year 1600, one of which bears Shakespeare’s name as author.

Pages