Details

This play tells a story of intertwined love triangles, set in Elizabethan London around the time that A Midsummer Night's Dream and the Sonnets were written. The central character is Edward de Vere, Earl of Oxford. The play's premise is that Edward de Vere used the pseudonym William Shakespeare, and was the true poet of the Sonnets and the Dream. William 'Shakespeare' of Stratford appears as a sharp director and dodgy entrepreneur. The plot revolves around Edward's relationships with his daughter, his mistress, and the young Earl of Southampton. But always looming in the background is his stormy relationship with his all-powerful former guardian and father-in-law, Lord Burghley. Edward's Presents grew from Sally's combined interests in literature and psychology, being inspired by Freud's view that 'Shakespeare' was the pseudonym of Edward de Vere. This production is timely: 2004 is the 400th anniversary of the death of Edward de Vere; an appropriate time to re-evaluate his life, and to consider whether he might have written one of the most famous plays in the world. Edward's Presents website.

Cast/Performers

Philip Tsaras (Edward de Vere), Tim Seely (Lord Burghley), Helen Abbott (Bess Vere), Phil Sealey (Will Shakesper), Lewis Barfoot, Adso Brown, Emily Daler, Sebastian Faber

Creatives/Company

Author: Sally Llewellyn
Producer: Earwig Arts
Director: Kirrie Wratten
Design: Jane Churchill