WorksheetsWilliam Shakespeare
Total questions: 50
Worksheet time: 17mins
In which country was William Shakespeare born?
Scotland
Wales
England
France
In which year was William Shakespeare born?
1364
1464
1564
1664
In which year did William Shakespeare die?
1313
1414
1515
1616
How old was Shakespeare when he died?
34
54
74
94
Who was the monarch of English for most of the years Shakespeare was alive?
Elizabeth the First
Elizabeth the Second
Henry the Eighth
Richard the Third
What was the profession / job of Shakespeare's father?
soldier
actor
teacher
glove maker
Before he became a playwright, what job / profession did Shakespeare (most likely) have?
soldier
actor
sailor
tailor
Where did Shakespeare attend university?
Oxford
Cambridge
Stratford
He did not attend university
To whom was Shakespeare married?
Anne Hathaway
Anne Montague
Anne Boleyn
Anne Capulet
How old was Shakespeare when he married Anne Hathaway?
18
28
38
48
How old was Anne Hathaway when she married Shakespeare?
16
26
36
46
Anne and William had three children. The oldest was Judith and a set of twins. What were the names of the twins?
Romeo and Juliet
Viola and Richard
Judith and Hamlet (with an 'l')
Judith and Hamnet (with an 'n')
William Shakespeare was born and lived most of his life in which English town / city?
Stratford-upon-Avon
Manchester
London
Hastings
Shakespeare was born and lived most of his life in Stratford-upon-Avon. What is the 'Avon'?
A mountain
A main road
A lake
A river
What is the name of the very famous open theatre many of Shakespeare's plays were performed in?
The Globe
The Rose
The Swan
The Royal
Approximately how many people could fit into the Globe Theatre during Shakespeare's time (sitting and standing)?
30
300
3000
30,000
How much money did it cost MOST of the audience members to attend a performance at the Globe Theatre?
one penny (around one cent)
one pound (around two dollars)
ten pounds (around twenty dollars)
fifty pounds (around one hundred dollars)
What horrible disease, very common during Shakespeare's time, often resulted in the closure of theatres in London?
Anthrax
Polio
Bubonic Plague (Black Death)
Small Pox
What was unusual about performers in plays on stage during Shakespeare's time?
They were all female
They were all male
They all performed naked
They all wore masks
What is the term given to a speech given by a character in which their private thoughts are expressed aloud?
dialogue
soliloquy
sonnet
chorus
What term is given to a poem consisting of 14 lines with 10 syllables in each line?
soliloquy
dialogue
chorus
sonnet
What term is given to a character or group of characters who recite the prologue or introduction of each act of a play?
chorus
sonnet
dialogue
soliloquy
Which of the following plays was NOT written by William Shakespeare?
Romeo and Juliet
Two Gentlemen of Verona
The Merchant of Venice
The Crucible
The title of which Shakespearean play is rumoured to bring bad luck if said by an actor on stage?
Othello
Macbeth
Hamlet
Coriolanus
Which of the following Disney films is loosely based on Shakespeare's play 'Hamlet' in which a King is killed by his brother who then tries to kill the King's son?
Beauty and the Beast
Aladdin
The Lion King
Pinocchio
In Shakespeare's play 'Titus Andronicus', the main character Titus invites his enemies for a meal of a pie with what kind of filling?
cockroaches and scorpions
the flesh of his enemies' children
poison mushrooms
cow manure
Approximately how many new words did Shakespeare create and add to the English language?
100
700
1000
1700
What happened to the original Globe Theatre?
It was infested by rats and burned down to kill them all
A cannon shot (used for 'special effects' during a play) set fire to the roof and it burned down
The nearby river Thames flooded and it was washed away
Lightning struck during a storm and it burned down
Why were Shakespeare's plays performed during the day at the Globe Theatre?
They had to rely on the Sun for lighting
Candles were far too expensive
Most people worked at night but few worked during the day
The actors demanded too much money to perform at night
In Shakespeare's time coloured flags would be displayed about the Globe Theatre to indicate what genre of play was being performed. What was the coloured flag for TRAGEDY?
White
Red
Black
What coloured flag was for COMEDY?
Black
White
Red
What coloured flag was for HISTORICAL?
Red
Black
White
Why was a red coloured flag displayed for Historical plays? (Think of the symbolism of the colour 'red'). There are two answers for this question.
The most important real life characters in these plays had red hair
Many real life historical events in these plays included many bloody deaths
Many real life historical events in these plays involved people of great passion, intense love and hate
Fire was often used as a weapon in historical battles
Where would the common or poor members of audience be located at the Globe Theatre during a performance?
seated on comfortable pillows in the upper levels
on the ground standing right in front of the stage
they could sit anywhere they wanted
outside of the theatre so they could only hear the performance
As the common or poor audience members were made to stand on the ground, they became known as ...?
groundlings
ground hogs
ground dogs
ground lizards
For an additional two pennies the rich audience members could also purchase what item to make their time at the Globe Theatre more enjoyable?
a bottle of wine and a hot dog
a telescope to see the actors up close
a cushion to sit on
a cat to sit on their lap to keep them warm
Apart from being a place where the Bubonic Plague could spread easily due to the crowding, why was the Globe Theatre sometimes an unsafe or unpleasant place to be?
there were no toilets for the groundlings so they had to 'relieve' themselves where they were standing
food vendors sold uncooked meat for snacks
pieces of the roof would sometimes fall off unexpectedly
people were allowed to bring their animals (e.g. goats, sheep and cows) to the performances
What would the groundlings do if it started raining during a performance at the Globe Theatre?
they could buy a small umbrella for an extra penny
they could sit at the feet of the rich audience members in the upper storeys
they would get wet as they were out in the open ... they had no choice
they could sit underneath the stage until it stopped raining
How many sonnets did Shakespeare write in total?
14
54
104
154
Although there is some debate (as some plays may not have survived after his death) , how many plays did Shakespeare write in total?
37
27
17
7
As well as being a famous playwright, Shakespeare was also known as a very successful ....?
cricket player
business man
magician
explorer
Which Shakespeare play begins with 3 witches casting spells and the death of a Scottish king?
Hamlet
Othello
Coriolanus
Macbeth
Which Shakespeare play features two young people who fall in love despite their families feuding?
Romeo & Juliet
The Taming of the Shrew
Troilus and Cressida
Twelfth Night
Which Shakespeare play is about a young Prince of Denmark and features the line "To be or not to be ... that is the question"?
King Lear
Hamlet
King John
Two Gentlemen Of Verona
Which Shakespeare play is about a famous Roman general?
Julius Caesar
Henry the Fifth
The Winter's Tale
Richard the Third
Shakespeare wrote a play titled 'The Tempest'. What is a tempest?
a broken heart
a storm
a savage animal
a flower
Shakespeare also wrote a play titled 'The Taming of the Shrew'. What is a shrew?
a large reptile
a vicious fish
a bird like a vulture
a small mammal
Shakespeare's plays features lots of different kids of characters. Which of these did NOT feature in any of this plays?
supernatural beings like ghosts and fairies
star-crossed lovers
aliens from other planets
famous historical figures likes Kings and Generals
Shakespeare often gave his characters interesting or unusual names to make them more memorable. Which of these is NOT the name from a Shakespeare play?
Jumanji
Bottom
Elbow
Moth
Which of the following is an ANAGRAM of William Shakespeare?
I walk with slippers on
Three witches cast spells
I am a weakish speller
While I slept I dreamed
