Shakespeare's career as actor and playwright reveals the extraordinary
accommodation of his genius to the circumstances of his time. This unique
account describes Shakespeare at work against a background of theatrical
rivalry, opportunism, service to noble patrons, and political intrigue. Peter
Thomson recreates Shakespeare's writing career year by year, showing how the
plays mirror their times. The story reveals the precarious nature of theatrical
survival, the constant threat posed by the withdrawal of noble or royal
patronage, the spread of disease, the anxieties of war and the climate of
political uncertainty. This account of Elizabethan and Jacobean social and
professional life offers a fascinating insight into the world