In What Theatre Company Was Shakespeare A An Actor And Stockholder?

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In What Theatre Company Was Shakespeare A An Actor And Stockholder?

2 Answers

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Answer 1

Stockholder, is not really the correct term. He was a sharer, in some of the company's he was associated with. For instance, after tearing down "The Theatre",( a playhouse built by James Burbage, father of the famous Richard, in 1576,) in1599, Shakespeare and his associates, moved the lot, lock stock and barrel, across London Bridge to Bankside where, they erected the Globe. It was for this company, that Shakespeare wrote the vast majority of his output, starting with Julius Caesar, (in which he played Caesar). This company was called "The Queen's Men", after their sponsor, Elizabeth Tudor. In this company, Shakespeare had an eighth share, meaning, an eighth share of the profits. It also meant he was responsible for an eighth share of the costs!

Answer 2

Shakespeare is known these days as a play writer but in fact was also an accomplished actor and the part owner of the theatre company called Lord Chamberlain's Men. The company was sponsored by the same person whose name it bore. Later on the patronage the play received was from even higher circles in the form of King James I. This happened after the immense popularity the company had received and resulted in its name being changed to the King's Men by around 1603.

Most of the theatre company's work was composed of plays that had been written by William Shakespeare. But Shakespeare was not the only shareholder in the company the others were believed to be Thomas Pope, Richard Burbage, Augustine Phillips, William Kempe, Richard Cowley and George Bryan. It is believed that the play managed to survive the controversies and real life drama that the other companies in that era were embroiled in.