Shakespeare's productivity rate slowed in the Jacobean years, not because of age Or some personal trauma, but because there were frequent outbreaks of plague, causing the theaters to be closed for long periods. The King's Men were forced to spend many months on the road. Between November 1603 and 1608, they are to be found at various towns in the south and Midlands, though Shakespeare probably did not tour with them by this time. He had bought a large house back home in Stratford and was accumulating other property. He may indeed have stopped acting soon after the new king took the throne. With the London theaters closed so much of the time and a large repertoire on the stocks, Shakespeare seems to have focused his energies on writing a few long and complex tragedies that could have been played on demand at court: Othello, King Lear, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, and Cymbeline are among his longest and poetically grandest plays. Macbeth only survives in a shorter text, which shows signs of adaptation after Shakespeare's death. The bitterly satirical Timon of Athens, apparently a collaboration with Thomas Middleton that may have failed onstage, also belongs to this period. In comedy, too, he wrote longer and morally darker works than in the Elizabethan period, pushing at the very bounds of the form in Measure for Measure and All's Well That Ends Well.
From 1608 onward, when the King's Men began occupying the indoor Blackfriars playhouse (as a winter house, meaning that they only used the outdoor Globe in summer?), Shakespeare turned to a more romantic style. His company had a great success with a revived and altered version of an old pastoral play called Mucedorus. It even featured a bear. The younger dramatist John Fletcher, meanwhile, sometimes working in collaboration with Francis Beaumont, was pioneering a new style of tragicomedy, a mix of romance and royal-ism laced with intrigue and pastoral excursions. Shakespeare experimented with this idiom in Cymbeline and it was presumably with his blessing that Fletcher eventually took over as the King's Men's company dramatist. The two writers apparently collaborated on three plays in the years 1612-14: a lost romance called Cardenio (based on the love-madness of a character in Cervantes' Don Quixote), Henry VIII (originally staged with the title "All Is True"), and The Two Noble Kinsmen, a dramatization of Chaucer's "Knight's Tale." These were written after Shakespeare's two final solo-authored plays, The Winter's Tale, a self-consciously old-fashioned work dramatizing the pastoral romance of his old enemy Robert Greene, and The Tempest, which at one and the same time drew together multiple theatrical traditions, diverse reading and contemporary interest in the fate of a ship that had been wrecked on the way to the New World.
The collaborations with Fletcher suggest that Shakespeare's career ended with a slow fade rather than the sudden retirement supposed by the nineteenth-century Romantic critics who read Prospero's epilogue to The Tempest as Shakespeare's personal farewell to his art. In the last few years of his life Shakespeare certainly spent more of his. time in Stratford-upon-Avon, where he became further involved in property dealing and litigation. But his London life also continued. In 1613 he made his first major London property purchase: a freehold house in the Blackfriars district, close to his company's indoor theater. The Two Noble Kinsmen may have been written as late as 1614, and Shakespeare was in London on business a little over a year before he died of an unknown cause at home in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1616, probably on his fifty-second birthday.
About half the sum of his works were published in his lifetime, in texts of variable quality. A few years after his death, his fellow actors began putting together an authorized edition of his complete Comedies, Histories and Tragedies. It appeared in 1623, in large "Folio" format. This collection of thirty-six plays gave Shakespeare his immortality. In the words of his fellow dramatist Ben Jonson, who contributed two poems of praise at the start of the Folio, the body of his work made him "a monument without a tomb":
And art alive still while thy book doth live
And we have wits to read and praise to give ...
He was not of an age, but for all time!
SHAKESPEARE'S WORKS:
A CHRONOLOGY
1589-91
? Arden of Faversham (possible part authorship) 1589-92
The Taming of the Shrew
1589-92
? Edward the Third (possible part authorship) 1591
The Second Part of Henry the Sixth, originally called The First Part of the Contention betwixt the Two Famous Houses of York and Lancaster (element of coauthorship possible) 1591
The Third Part of Henry the Sixth, originally called The True Tragedy of Richard Duke of York (element of coauthorship probable) 1591-92
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
1591-92; perhaps revised 1594
The Lamentable Tragedy of Titus Andronicus (probably cowritten with, or revising an earlier version by, George Peele) 1592
The First Part of Henry the Sixth, probably with Thomas Nashe and others 1592/94
King Richard the Third
1593
Venus and Adonis (poem)
1593-94
The Rape of Lucrece (poem) 1593-1608
Sonnets (154 poems, published 1609 with A Lover's Complaint, poem of disputed authorship) 1592-94 or 1600-03
Sir Thomas More (a single scene for a play originally by Anthony Munday, with other revisions by Henry Chettle, Thomas Dekker, and Thomas Heywood) 1594
The Comedy of Errors
1595
Love's Labour's Lost
1595-97
Love's Labour's Won (a lost play, unless the original title for another comedy) 1595-96
A Midsummer Night's Dream
1595-96
The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet
1595-96
King Richard the Second
1595-97
The Life and Death of King John (possibly earlier) 1596-97
The Merchant of Venice
1596-97
The First Part of Henry the Fourth
1597-98
The Second Part of Henry the Fourth
1598
Much Ado About Nothing
1598-99
The Passionate Pilgrim (20 poems, some not by Shakespeare) 1599
The Life of Henry the Fifth
1599
"To the Queen" (epilogue for a court performance) 1599
As You Like It
1599
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
1600-01
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark (perhaps revising an earlier version) 1600-01
The Merry Wives of Windsor (perhaps revising version of 1597-99) 1601
"Let the Bird of Loudest Lay" (poem, known since 1807 as "The Phoenix and Turtle" [turtledove]) 1601
Twelfth Night, or What You Will
1601-02
The Tragedy of Troilus and Cressida
1604
The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice
1604
Measure for Measure
1605
All's Well That Ends Well
1605
The Life of Timon of Athens, with Thomas Middleton 1605-06
The Tragedy of King Lear
1605-08
? contribution to The Four Plays in One (lost, except for A Yorkshire Tragedy, mostly by Thomas Middleton) 1606
The Tragedy of Macbeth (surviving text has additional scenes by Thomas Middleton) 1606-07
The Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra
1608
The Tragedy of Coriolanus
1608
Pericles, Prince of Tyre, with George Wilkins 1610
The Tragedy of Cymbeline
1611
The Winter's Tale
1611
The Tempest
1612-13
Cardenio, with John Fletcher (survives only in later adaptation called Double Falsehood by Lewis Theobald) 1613
Henry VIII (All Is True), with John Fletcher 1613-14
The Two Noble Kinsmen, with John Fletcher
KINGS AND QUEENS
OF ENGLAND: From the
Shakespeare's Lifetime
Lifespan Reign
Angevins:
Henry II 1133-1189 1154-1189
Richard I 1157-1199 1189-1199
John 1166-1216 1199-1216
Henry III 1207-1272 1216-1272
Edward I 1239-1307 1272-1307
Edward II 1284-1327 1307-1327 deposed
Edward III 1312-1377 1327-1377
Richard II 1367-1400 1377-1399 deposed
Lancastrians:
Henry IV 1367-1413 1399-1413
Henry V 1387-1422 1413-1422
Henry VI 1421-1471 1422-1461 and 1470-1471
Yorkists:
Edward IV 1442-1483 1461-1470 and 1471-1483
Edward V 1470-1483 1483 not crowned: deposed and assassinated
Richard III 1452-1485 1483-1485
Tudors:
Henry VII 1457-1509 1485-1509
Henry VIII 1491-1547 1509-1547
Edward VI 1537-1553 1547-1553
Jane 1537-1554 1553 not crowned: deposed and executed
Mary I 1516-1558 1553-1558
Philip of Spain 1527-1598 1554-1558 co-regent with Mary
Elizabeth I 1533-1603 1558-1603
Stuart:
James I 1566-1625 1603-1625 James VI of Scotland (1567-1625)
THE HISTORY BEHIND THE
HISTORIES: A Chronology
Square brackets indicate events that happen just outside a play's timescale but are mentioned in the play.
FURTHER READING
AND VIEWING
CRITICAL APPROACHES
Brooke, Nicholas, Shakespeare's Early Tragedies (1968). Strong on tragic structure.
Burns, Edward, Richard III (2001). Brief but stimulating study in series published for the British Council.
Clemen, Wolfgang, A Commentary on Shakespeare's Richard III (1957), trans. Jean Bonheim (1968). Good on language and imagery.
Marienstras, Richard, "Of a Monstrous Body," in French Essays on Shakespeare and His Contemporaries, ed. Jean-Marie Maguin and Michele Willems (1995), pp. 153-74. Cultural-historical analysis of significance of Richard's deformed body.
Moseley, Charles, Shakespeare: Richard III. A Critical Study (1989). High-class student guide.
Neill, Michael, "Shakespeare's Halle of Mirrors: Play, Politics, and Psychology in Richard III," Shakespeare Studies 8 (1975), pp. 99-129. From adaptation of sources to Richard's psychological complexity.
Rackin, Phyllis, Stages of History: Shakespeare's English Chronicles (1990). Particularly strong on the women.
Richmond, Hugh, "Richard III and the Reformation," Journal of English and Germanic Philology 83 (1984), pp. 509-21. Examines religious vocabulary and debates.
Rossiter, A. P., Angel with Horns and Other Shakespeare Lectures (1961). Sane, balanced.
Saccio, Peter, Shakespeare's English Kings: History, Chronicle, and Drama (19 77). Handy comparison with sources and actual history.
THE PLAY IN PERFORMANCE
Brooke, Michael, "Richard III on Screen," www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1022653/index.html. Valuable overview of film and TV versions.
Day, Gillian, King Richard III, Shakespeare at Stratford (2002). Survey of productions.
Hankey, Julie, ed., King Richard III, Plays in Performance (1981). Innovative edition annotated by means of reference to choices of actors and productions down the ages.
Holland, Peter, English Shakespeares: Shakespeare on the English Stage in the 1990s (1997). Discusses key modern productions.
Jackson, Russell, and Robert Smallwood, eds., Players of Shakespeare 3 (1993). Includes interview with Penny Downie on playing Margaret in the Henry VI/Richard III tetralogy.
O'Connor, John, Shakespearean Afterlives: Ten Characters with a Life of Their Own (2003). Lively account of some historic Richards.
Richmond, Hugh M., King Richard III, Shakespeare in Performance (1989). Useful overview.
Royal Shakespeare Company, "Exploring Shakespeare: Richard III," www.rsc.org.uk/explore/plays/richard3.htm. Rehearsal footage, actor and director interviews, commentary on Michael Boyd's 2007 production.
Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Study Materials, Richard III in Performance by Rebecca Brown, www.shakespeare.org.uk/content/view/315/315/.
Sher, Antony, Year of the King (1985). Compelling diary of a great actor describing what it is like to play the role of Richard.
Smallwood, Robert, ed., Players of Shakespeare 4 (1998) and 6 (2004). Each volume contains an interview with an actor talking about playing Richard.
For a more detailed Shakespeare bibliography and selections from a wide range of critical accounts of the play, with linking commentary, visit the edition website, www.therscshakespeare.com.
AVAILABLE ON DVD
Richard III, directed by F. R. Benson (1911), on Silent Shakespeare (DVD 2004). Brief tableaux from a very early film version.
Richard III, directed by Laurence Olivier (1955, DVD 2006). Also starring Olivier. Shaped the image of Richard for two generations.
The Wars of the Roses (tx. 22 April 1965), directed by Peter Hall, with text adapted by John Barton. BBC television version of a highly influential project of the RSC in its early years, with Ian Holm as Richard and Peggy Ashcroft as Margaret. Only available in specialist archives such as the British Film Institute in London.
Richard III, directed by Jane Howell (BBC Television Shakespeare, 1983, DVD 2004). Nearly four hours long, due to a very full text, in contrast to the heavy cutting of all other filmed versions. Less successful than the three parts of Henry VI by the same director, which were an unexpected highlight of the BBC series.
Richard III in Shakespeare: The Animated Tales (joint BBC/Russian television production, 1994, DVD 2007). High-quality cartoon abbreviation, notable in that Richard is voiced by Antony Sher, whose legendary 1984 RSC stage production is not available on screen.
Richard III, directed by Richard Loncraine (1995, DVD 2000). Developed from the McKellen/Eyre National Theatre production. Brilliant transposition to Fascist 1930s setting: a definitive modern revisioning, rendering Olivier into a period piece.
Looking for Richard, directed by Al Pacino (1996, DVD 2005). Quirky but illuminating "metaproduction" in which Pacino explores his fascination with the role and the play, assisted by actors and academics, including Kevin Spacey excellent as Buckingham.
REFERENCES
1. Quoted in E. K. Chambers, William Shakespeare (2 vols, 1930), 2.212.
2. Stanley Wells, "Television Shakespeare," Shakespeare Quarterly, 33 (1982), pp. 261-73 (p. 266).
3. Thomas Davies, Dramatic Miscellanies (3 vols, 1784), 3.440-42.
4. Thomas Davies, Memoirs of the Life of David Garrick (2 vols, 1780, repr. 1969), 1.40.
5. Davies, "Mr. Garrick's First Appearance on a London Stage" in his Life of David Garrick, 1.37-50
6. Julie Hankey, Plays in Performance: Richard III (London: Junction Books, 1981), p. 42.
7. William Hazlitt, review in A View of the English Stage; or, A Series of Dramatic Criticisms (1818), pp. 5-9.
8. London Green, " 'The Gaiety of Meditated Success': The Richard III of William Charles Macready," Theater Research International 10 (1985), pp. 107-28 (p. 125).
9. Review of Richard III, The Athenaeum, 26 December 1896.
10. Review of Richard III, The Times, 3 November 1937.
11. Donald Wolfit, First Interval: The Autobiography of Donald Wolfit (1954), p. 205.
12. J. C. Trewin, review of Richard III, The Observer, 17 September 1944.
13. Kenneth Tynan, "Heroic Acting Since 1944," in He That Plays the King: A View of the Theatre (1950), pp. 32-113.
14. Sheridan Morley, "A Breath of Fresh Air," New Statesman, 30 June 2003.
15. Hugh M. Richmond, King Richard III, Shakespeare in Performance (1989), p. 142.
16. Peter Hall, program notes to Edward IV [second play of the trilogy, drawn from parts 2 and 3 of Henry VI], RSC, 1963.
17. Milton Shulman, Evenin
g Standard, 21 August 1963.
18. Ian Richardson on playing Richard III, in Judith Cook, Shakespeare's Players (1983).
19. Richardson on playing Richard III.
20. Benedict Nightingale, New Statesman, 24 April 1970.
21. S. P. Cerasano, Shakespeare Quarterly 36 (1985).
22. John O'Connor, Shakespearean Afterlives (2003), p. 113.
23. John Peter, Sunday Times, 24 June 1984.
24. Interview with Simon Russell Beale by Peter Lewis, Sunday Times, 2 August 1992.
25. Irving Wardle, Independent on Sunday, 16 August 1992.
26. Paul Taylor, Independent, 13 August 1992.
27. Benedict Nightingale, Times, 13 August 1992.
28. Irving Wardle, Times, 5 November 1980.
29. Michael Billington, Guardian, 5 November 1980.
30. Julie Hankey, Times Literary Supplement, 14 November 1980.
31. David Troughton, "Richard III," in Players of Shakespeare 4, ed. Robert Smallwood (1998).
32. Anton Lesser, "Richard of Gloucester," in Players of Shakespeare 3, ed. Russell Jackson and Robert Smallwood (1993).
33. Henry Goodman, "Richard III," in Players of Shakespeare 6, ed. Robert Smallwood (2004).
34. Goodman, "Richard III."
35. Benedict Nightingale, New Statesman, 24 April 1970.
36. D. A. N. Jones, Listener, 23 April 1970.
37. Irving Wardle, Independent on Sunday, 16 August 1992.
38. Henry Goodman on his portrayal of Richard III, Richard III Online Playguide, www.rsc.org.uk/richard/current/home.html.
39. Susannah Clapp, Observer, 27 July 2003.
40. Benedict Nightingale, Times, 25 July 2003.
41. Troughton, "Richard III."
42. Cerasano, Shakespeare Quarterly 36.
43. David Starkey, Times Literary Supplement, 28 August 1992.
44. Troughton, "Richard III."
45. Goodman, "Richard III."
46. Peter Holland, English Shakespeares (1997), p. 2 31.
47. Lesser, "Richard of Gloucester."
48. Hankey, Times Literary Supplement, 14 November 1980.
49. Lesser, "Richard of Gloucester."
50. Lisa Stevenson on playing Lady Anne, Richard III Online Playguide, www.rsc.org.uk/richard/current/home.html.
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