“Let’s put on a show” is an irresistible line in many a movie, and Shakespeare, who was deeply involved in the world of London theater, seems to have felt the same impulse, too. In several plays, his characters come together to put on a play of their own. For anyone interested in Shakespeare or theater, these acting troupes—whether composed of “rude mechanicals,” otherworldly spirits, or traveling players—may also reveal Shakespeare’s ideas about theater, from Hamlet’s guidance to the players to Peter Quince, who overcomes a host of obstacles to produce Pyramus and Thisbe in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Test your knowledge with our quiz about the plays within a play.
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Shakespeare has enough examples of plays within a play that a number of them are included in one part of the Folger’s Fantastical World of William Shakespeare map, shown above, which can be seen in the Shakespeare Exhibition Hall. To explore them further, look on the Folger website for images, blog posts, podcast episodes, resources, and full texts of the plays in which they appear: Hamlet (which includes The Mousetrap, also called The Murder of Gonzago), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Pyramus and Thisbe), Love’s Labor’s Lost (the Nine Worthies), and The Tempest (the spirit-filled masque).
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