While Shakespeare's popularity has continued to grow, so has the attention paid to the work of his contemporaries. The contributors to this Companion introduce the distinctive drama of these playwrights, from the court comedies of John Lyly to the works of Richard Brome in the Caroline era. With chapters on a wide range of familiar and lesser-known dramatists, including Thomas Kyd, Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson, John Webster, Thomas Middleton and John Ford, this book devotes particular attention to their personal and professional relationships, occupational rivalries and collaborations. Overturning the popular misconception that Shakespeare wrote in isolation, it offers a new perspective on the most impressive body of drama in the history of the English stage.

'… a fine primer for the Shakespearean era.'

Source: Reference Reviews

'… will prove useful for both undergraduates and graduate teaching. The volume is framed by a convenient chronology and a thoughtfully prepared bibliography that guide readers both back to formative early publications and forward to a solid selection of more recent work.'

Source: Shakespeare Quarterly

'A well-informed and variously interesting survey on the Elizabethan theatre.'

Daniela Guardamagna Source: Memori Di Shakespeare

'The Companion’s achievement is twofold: it introduces the reader to a variety of dramatists contemporary with Shakespeare but much less often studied, and it disproves the idea, prevalent for centuries, of Shakespeare as an isolated genius who worked on his own. In the days before copyright, Shakespeare and his colleagues frequently had a finger in one another’s plays, to an extent that renders attribution a far more complicated question than it is generally considered. This realisation is a key to understanding early modern drama, and this book conveys it with efficiency and panache.'

Mette Sjölin Source: English Studies