Equivocation (play)

Equivocation, written by Bill Cain, is a play about telling the truth in difficult times. It proposes the question: what if the government commissioned William Shakespeare (known as Shagspeare in the play) to write the definitive history of a national crisis, the Gunpowder Plot, in one of his plays.

Synopsis

Act 1

London. 1605. A room. Sir Robert Cecil has called for Master William Shagspeare (Shag for short) to commission a play for King James. After reading what it is he should write about, Shag quickly rejects the offer, but is over powered by Cecil and is forced to take the commission. The scene suddenly turns into one of Shag's plays as actors (Nate, Armin, Richard, and Sharpe) come out performing a scene from King Lear, which Sharpe claims is unplayable. Shag breaks up the argument and tells them how Cecil called upon him, and how he has been commissioned to write a true history of the Gun Powder Plot. Shag tells them he's wary, since current events have never been done on the stage, but his actors claim he's "the man for the job". With that, Shag begins to write.