Shakespeare is considered by many to be the greatest English writer who ever lived. His 37(+) plays and 154 sonnets have seared themselves into the literary canon and become perhaps the most commonly produced theatre in the history of the world. Some estimate that at any given moment, a production of Hamlet is being performed somewhere in the world. I myself am a huge fan of The Bard and have even traveled to his birthplace and toured his hometown at Stratford-upon-Avon.
So when I learned that some of his greatest works were written while Will was under quarantine, I was pretty surprised and delighted with this reminder that our situation today is not unique or unprecedented, and that out of all this darkness great light can still be found.
Shakespeare, though obviously a prolific writer, was also a very sporadic one. He would go months without putting quill to parchment before being struck with bounteous inspiration, after which he would write several great works at once. His most productive writing time? When The Globe Theatre was closed for the contagion by order of the monarch.
Shakespeare’s lifetime in England was largely defined by the bubonic plague. Also known as the Black Death, the bubonic plague caused the most deadly disease outbreak in history. It is estimated to have killed 50 million people at its height in the 14th century, equivalent to 60% of Europe’s entire population at the time. By Shakespeare’s time, there were still regular flare-ups of the pestilence; a mere two years before Macbeth premiered in 1606 there was an outbreak during which 30,000 Londoners died, leading King James VI’s privy council to declare that whenever the death toll in London would rise above 30 in any given week, it would be forbidden for audiences to gather in playhouses to prevent the spread of disease.
According to The Guardian, “Between 1603 and 1613, when Shakespeare’s powers as a writer were at their height, the Globe and other London playhouses were shut for an astonishing total of 78 months – more than 60% of the time.” It was during this time that Shakespeare’s greatest works were written. It’s said that while he was under quarantine, the Bard penned some of his most famous plays: Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra, and King Lear, among others.
Will’s time spent in solitude gave him the space he needed to perfect his craft and to reflect deeply on his work. Without the Black Death, it’s entirely possible that we wouldn’t have some of history’s greatest plays. Through great tragedy, there is still some light to be found.
I originally discovered this little piece of history through this quote from Doctor Who veteran Matt Smith, so I’ll leave you with this:
“Perhaps it’s inevitable that, as a theater professor, I find myself reflecting on what Shakespeare would have done in circumstances such as these. After all, his own theater had to be closed for fear of contagion! The first time lasted two years, from 1592-94. Tradition tells us that, during these years, he concentrated on developing his artistry as a poet. When he returned to the stage, he did so with a voice that was new for him as well as the world. Gone were old formalities of genre and verse, to be replaced by something at once braver and less knowing, something unsettling fluid, urgent, and alive.”
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