The earliest recorded performance of
The Tempestwas “at Whitehall before the King's Majesty” on 1 November 1611. A year and a half later, on 20 May 1613, the play was performed again for King James I, during the festivities leading up to the marriage of his daughter Princess Elizabeth to Frederick, the Elector Palatine. The play was probably also performed for a wider public by the company formed under the patronage of King James, the “King's Company” or “King's Men” – either indoors at the Blackfriars Theatre or outdoors at The Globe. The text was not published, however, until seven years after Shakespeare's death: despite the fact that it was probably the last play Shakespeare wrote alone, it appears as the opening play in his 1623 collected works (the “First…
2087 words
Citation: Sherman, William. "The Tempest". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 March 2002; last revised 20 January 2020. [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=7895, accessed 26 November 2024.]