Making Shakespearegives a lively introduction to the major issues of the stage and print history of the plays, and discusses what a Shakespeare play actually is. Assuming no prior knowledge of the subject, the book reveals how the plays were written and printed, and how they have been influenced by London, the theatres where they played and the actors who played in them. It describes how the texts evolved between composition, performance and printing, and how they retain clues to their original productions. It presents a variety of background material and tools to allow readers to contextualise Shakespeare's plays for themselves.