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Elizabethan-Era Shakespeare
Someone who lived during Shakespeare’s time could get into the theater to see a play for as little as one penny. What does this say to you about who might have been able to see one of his plays, and about how his plays may have been regarded back then?

The City and the Theater in Shakespeare's Time
To see one of William Shakespeare’s plays during the time period that he lived would have been a very different experience compared to how most of us see his plays today, or even how we think of them.

Have a Little Party With Shakespeare
Print, color and cut out this Shakespeare birthday paper doll and his fun party accessories. Grab a cupcake and celebrate with the Bard!

Decorate a Fancy Pair of Gloves
William Shakespeare’s father, John, was a master glover and whittawer (leatherworker) by trade in Stratford-upon-Avon. He would have begun his career as an apprentice to a master for seven years before starting his own business.

Make a Model of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre!
You will need: scissors, crayons, tape or glue and a printed copy of both the inside and outside of the theatre.

London: A Growing Tudor City
If you were living in London during Shakespeare’s lifetime, you would have been in an exciting and huge city. Shakespeare was working there right as the city was beginning to support the arts and entertainments.

Word Search and Scavenger Hunt
Download our fun word search and scavenger hunt all about Shakespeare!

“There was a star danced, and under that was I born.” Much Ado About Nothing: Act 2, Scene 1
Here at Agecroft Hall we look forward every year to a day of festivities honoring the world’s greatest poet and playwright. Today we will look at Shakespeare’s life through the lens of the era that defined him.

Let's Make Some Noise! Shakespearean Sound Effects You Can Create at Home
If you were a director and were staging Shakespeare's The Tepest, how would you create the sounds of a thunder storm and a ship being torn apart?

Shakespearean Comedy: Draw a Comic Strip
When you want to read something funny you may go online or even to a newspaper or comic book to find a comic strip or story. A comic strip is a form of storytelling-“a sequence of images with a small amount of text in each box...normally inside balloons or written as captions”.

What Did Shakespeare Look Like??
What we know about Shakespeare and his life is an incomplete picture. We know more about his plays than we do about his personal and home life.

What DO we know about William Shakespeare?
What we know about Shakespeare’s life comes from his works and various legal and church documents. Through these we know when and where he was born and baptized, where he lived and grew up, who his business partners were, and the terms of his will.

Paint a Scene From A Midsummer Night's Dream
For the past four centuries, artists, writers and actors have been inspired by Shakespeare to create their own works of art. There have been films, sculptures, songs, t-shirts and jewelry all inspired by Shakespeare and his work.

Shakespeare's Family and Early Years
Shakespeare was born into a middle-class family that had money and aspirations. His father, John, was a glover (maker of gloves) by trade and also active in local government.

Shakespeare's Theater: The Blackfriars
The large size of the Globe allowed the companies to pack in the ticket buying public, but bad weather could create problems for the audience and actors. In 1596, James Burbage purchased property in a London neighborhood called Blackfriars, which was the site of an old monastery.

Shakespeare Gone Global
Since Shakespeare’s death over 400 years ago, his works have transcended the Globe for, well, the globe.

School for William
Young William would have been taught by his mother at home until the age of 5, then gone on to a local woman teaching “petty school” until he was 6 or 7 years old.

Shakespeare's Playhouse: The Globe
Most people who are familiar with Shakespeare know a little bit about the theaters where his plays were performed: The Globe and the Blackfriars.

Shakespeare's (Harlem) Renaissance and Beyond
Though William Shakespeare wrote his works during a time period known as the English Renaissance, which lasted from the early 1500s to the early 1600s, that would not be the last Renaissance they were associated with.

Setting the Scene: Stages, Sets and Costumes
Reconstructing just what a play would have looked like in Shakespeare’s time has been a tantalizing question for historians for the centuries after his death.