Frequently Asked Questions | The Folger SHAKESPEARE

Usually boys and young men played women’s parts on stage, so there was no problem about beards...

Prices of admission depended on the kind of theater. Outdoor theaters like the Globe charged one pen...

Four folio editions of the plays were published during the 17th century: First Folio – 1623 Second...

The Folger Shakespeare Library has 82 First Folios, the most in one collection. Meisei University in...

The easiest answer to this question is 235. Anthony West counts 232 in his 2001 census of First...

“Folio” and “quarto” refer to the number of times a sheet of paper has been ...

Many of the plays were published during Shakespeare’s lifetime as individual plays in a q...

The First Folio is the first comprehensive collection of Shakespeare’s plays, containing 36 ...

The Comedy of Errors, with 1,898 lines (as per the Folger Shakespeare Edition; other editions may co...

Hamlet, with 4,167 lines (as per the Folger Shakespeare Edition; other editions may count lines diff...

His last play is probably The Two Noble Kinsmen, which Shakespeare co-wrote with John Fletcher arou...

His earliest play is probably one of the three parts of King Henry VI (Part 1, Part 2, and Part ...

Thirty-eight is the generally accepted number, though recent claims have been made for King Edw...

Some have argued that a more noble writer was secretly behind the works attributed to Shakespeare; t...

Yes, William’s father, John Shakespeare, was granted a coat of arms in 1596. It was disputed i...

William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway had three children. The eldest, Susanna, was baptized on May 2...

GOOD FREND FOR JESUS SAKE FORBEARE,TO DIGG THE DUST ENCLOASED HEARE:BLESTE BE Ye [the] MAN Yt [that]...

Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616 and was buried on April 25, 1616 in Holy Trinity Church, Str...

We don’t really know how Shakespeare’s young son Hamnet died. He had a twin sister named...

William Shakespeare wrote in his last will and testament, dated March 25, 1616, “Item I gyve u...

Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway near the end of 1582, when he was 18 years old. The exact da...

Shakespeare’s parents were John and Mary (neé Arden), who were married in about 1557. W...

He likely attended the local grammar school, beginning at age 7, although he probably had learned hi...

Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, in 1564. The exact date of his birth isn’...