All's Well That Ends Well
Play by Shakespeare
Introduction This section is dedicated to All's Well That Ends Well, the play by William Shakespeare. The picture is 18th century and image displayed represents the essence of the play which, we hope, will bring to life a famous scene or character from the play. The information provided on this section of william-shakespeare.info includes famous quotes / quotations from, summary of the plot or story, facts about the play, a list of the cast and characters and access to the full text - script of the play by William Shakespeare.
Summary of the plot or story
The play's central romantic figures are a young nobleman called Bertram and an orphaned commoner called Helena. The problems with their romance are due to their different backgrounds and that it is at first a one sided affair with Helena falling in lobe with Bertram. Being a comedy, (albeit with serious undercurrents), Bertram comes around and All's Well does indeed End Well.
Information provided about the play
William Shakespeare never published any of his plays and therefore none of the original manuscripts have survived. Eighteen unauthorised versions of his plays were, however, published during his lifetime in quarto editions by unscrupulous publishers (there were no copyright laws protecting Shakespeare and his works during the Elizabethan era). A collection of his works did not appear until 1623 ( a full seven years after Shakespeare's death on April 23, 1616) when two of his fellow actors, John Hemminges and Henry Condell, posthumously recorded his work and published 36 of William’s plays in the First Folio. Some dates are therefore approximate other dates are substantiated by historical events, records of performances and the dates plays appeared in print.
Date first performed
It is believed that the drama was first performed between 1602 and 1603. In the Elizabethan era there was a huge demand for new entertainment and All's Well That Ends Well would have been produced immediately following the completion of the play.
Famous Quotes / Quotations"Our remedies oft in ourselves do lie, which we ascribe to Heaven." Act I, Scene I