Shakespeare the Entrepreneur

Introducing Shakespeare: A Graphic Guide - Nick Groom, Piero 2013

Shakespeare the Entrepreneur

When the theatres reopened after the Restoration of Charles II in 1660, a playwright named William Davenant (1606-68) led the company of the Duke’s Men. Shakespeare was William Davenant’s god-father.

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I CLAIMED HIM AS MY NATURAL FATHER AS WELL … SHAKESPEARE BEGAN HIS CAREER IN LONDON BY HOLDING HORSES FOR PATRONS OF THE THEATRE.

Davenant’s story gained credence in the 18th century and led to a legend that Shakespeare had been so successful at this work that he organized a group of lads called “Shakespeare’s Boys” - a fitting fable of entrepreneurship for the times.